Abstract
This article introduces the concept of the national gimmick – a performative, stylised persona derived from professional wrestling – as an effective lens for analysing government nation-branding and soft power strategies. Using WWE’s Clash at the Castle and its 2022 partnership with the Welsh Government as a case study, the article demonstrates how governments employ entertainment spectacles to project curated national identities to global audiences. It argues that professional wrestling’s emphasis on stereotype, performance, and narrative makes it an especially potent medium for understanding how states simplify and disseminate nation brands. By examining the portrayal of the Cymru Wales Brand (CWB) through WWE media, and the tensions surrounding Welsh representation at the event, the article highlights both the potential and the limitations of such partnerships. This interdisciplinary contribution bridges political communication and pro-wrestling studies to advance the study of government’s soft power strategies and the politics of branding.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Journal | British Journal of Politics and International Relations |
| Early online date | 14 Sept 2025 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | E-pub ahead of print - 14 Sept 2025 |
Acknowledgements
My thanks to Peter Allen, Andre Barrinha, Sophia Hatzisavvidou, and Leslie Wehner for comments on earlier versions of this paper. An early version of the paper was presented at the 2023 Political Studies Association annual conference. The ideas contained here were further developed in discussions with Will Cooling on the PWTorch podcast and Matthew Hexter and Richard Martin on Hiraeth podcast. My thanks to all for inviting me onto their platforms.Keywords
- branding
- nation branding
- pro-wrestling
- national gimmicks
- Wales
- Welsh politics