DON'T DODGE A POSSIBLE $100 IN IWA CREDIT & CHAMPIONSHIP BELT!

The IWAR Network is extending an invite to join the 2026 IWAR Draft to everyone in the IWA who is looking for leagues that are competitive, creative, and fun. This is the 10th IWAR Draft, and the setup is simple: players enter a wrestler into the draft by sending us their name, picture, and a promo (up to one full page) in which the wrestler does their best to convince the IWAR commissioners that they are worth choosing. This is a legit event, so we don't know who is going to pick whom until it happens. Below is a link to the 2026 IWAR Draft Kit, which has details on how the draft works, the history of the previous nine IWAR Drafts, and a list of wrestlers who have declared so far.

Here are the important dates to know:

• Jul. 22 (today): You have nearly 30 days to decide which wrestler(s) you are going to enter.
• Aug. 20: The deadline to submit a wrestler or team (three wrestlers max.) for the draft arrives.
• Sep. 15: The IWAR Magazine's "IWAR Draft Special" is posted, containing all the promos from the 2026 Draft Class.
• Sep. 23: The IWAR Draft is held on the IWAR Network Tubecast.
• Oct. 6: The IWAR Draft contest begins, consisting of four cycles of competition.

A player may enter up to three wrestlers into the IWAR Draft, but if you want to enter more than one and have them all be drafted, you'll need to submit a pic and promo for each. If you want both/all to go to the same league, then just enter one wrestler, since they will only be able to be drafted once. (If you've already entered multiple wrestlers and don't want them split into different leagues, let us know.) Draftees can be existing wrestlers or new ones. You can tout their IWA records, wins, resume, or talk about what this new wrestler will do when they debut (this is also a great way to return to the game!). All drafted wrestlers must remain in the IWAR Network for the duration of the event to see who can collect the most IWAR Rankings points over four cycles, which are earned on the leagues' title pages and in the IWA Report (NWL rookies are allowed to stay in the NWL until they've reached their contract limit, and their title wins will still count toward the IWAR Draft scoring). The wrestler with the most points at the end of the four-cycle period will be named the winner of the IWAR Draft. Draft picks can be traded, as can wrestlers who have already been drafted, until the final pick has been announced. *** League transfers are free for this event only. *** Wrestlers are expected to stay in their new leagues for at least 12 cycles of activity as a way to help the league they've been drafted into.

Prizes: The winner of the draft will earn an IWAR World Championship match, be featured on the cover of the IWAR Magazine, and if there are at least five rounds' worth of wrestlers to draft (35 or more), then the prize pool will get a boost: there will be $100 in IWA credit at stake, as well as a REAL championship belt for the winner! (We currently have 21 entries, with 29 days to go. That is just 14 more players, so we are very close to making it happen.)

Thanks for reading. We hope you will join in the fun!

-- Matt Riley, IWAR Commissioner

(For the kit, right click HERE and choose "Save Target As..." You will be downloading a PDF file with a size of 493KB.)

IWAR MAGAZINE (updated 7/14)

"It's Gold Tuesday, and you know what that means... wearing out our refresh function until Gold posts.

"The 245th edition of the IWAR Magazine features the RTL's Deacon Elroy, who stunned the experts by capturing the IWA's U.S. Championship. Those in the RTL are well aware of his old-school brawling tactics that have made him a top contender for a long time. Now with this breakthrough, as Deacon Elroy has shaken up the rankings, could he catch Uncle Slow Moe?

"The IWAR's Summer Events -- the Summer Series, King of the Ring, All-Rookie Cup, Elite Trios Invitational, and Badd Co. Cup -- roll into the finals, so this is a crucial cycle of action. If you missed out on those events, the good news is that the sign-ups for the IWAR's Fall Events (Bound for Glory, the Tag-team Derby, and the Triple D Cup Trios Tournament) are now open if you want to join them, and we pushed the start date, so now you have until August 24th to join. (This issue has more details on the Fall Events!)

"We have some big news on the IWAR Draft, and we want to make this draft the biggest we've ever had, so we are super-sizing the prizes. First, the winner gets to be on the cover of the IWAR Magazine, but we are also going to give the winner a real championship belt! But wait, there's more! We will have $100 in IWA Credit, free matches, and more! But wait: that's IF we get 5 rounds' worth of entries! As of this moment (7/14), we have 21 wrestlers committed to this draft and to give us five rounds of drafting! We just need 14 more entrants to make these great prizes happen. This event is free, and is open to both new and existing wrestlers. There's a section in this issue that offers even more details about how the IWAR Draft works, so check it out and let us know who you want to declare for the 2026 IWAR Draft. (So, who are you going to enter in the 2026 IWAR Draft?)

"Join us WEDNESDAY, JULY 15th, for the LIVE edition of the IWAR Tubecast, hosted by Alex G, with Matt and any of the Creative Team members who can make the show, as we review the results, IWAR news, and Johnny B's IWA Trivia (featuring Johnny B himself offering behind-the-scenes IWA secrets, factoids, and other random fun), respond to unfiltered feedback from our players in the live chat window, and add in the usual nonsense and gibberish. It was a good run of 98 episodes, but we pulled the plug on the IWAR Gold Strategy Workshop with strategy expert Mike Cook as a result of the chaotic results in the past six months. That said, we are not leaving players in the dark, as we have created the IWAR Cheat Sheet, and if you want to get a copy of it before the next cycle, drop me a line. Our shows about How to Win in the IWA and the Multi-man Special are still available. (Both YouTube links will open in new browser windows. The IWA is not responsible for their content.)

"The IWAR Creative Team -- Mike, Derek, Scott, Jeremy, Aaron, Alex, Patrick, Ryan, Tom, Dan, Derek (no, the other one), Rob, Darren, Jimmy, and I -- would like to thank our players for making the IWAR the best place to play in the IWA."

-- IWAR Commissioner Matt Riley

(For the latest issue, right click HERE and choose "Save Target As..." You will be downloading a PDF file with a size of 2.4MB.)

PLAYER RANKINGS WITH CLASS (updated 7/9)

Manager "Dr. Pain" Mark Duchaine has created an app that introduces the concept of weight classes (based on total roster size) into the unofficial player rankings, which aim to gauge performance in the game by number of major title victories. Wondering how you stack up using his version? Click HERE for the standings for the entire year thus far, HERE for his rankings that only count men's singles gold, HERE for his rankings that focus solely on the women's titles, HERE for those restricted to the men's tag belts, and HERE for his rankings based on just the World and U.S. Six-man Championships. For his list of stables ranked by average points per wrestler, click HERE.

Note that Mark's system does not award bonus points for winning the same team titles more than once in a given cycle, unlike the other player-made rankings.

XtremeX... an X Wrestling (XWA) pay-per-view event -- Preview

"Who thinks Bruiser Buck Dewitt can take down uber talented Misthios Nicolai Jarrah and go home the World X champ? Now, who thinks the champion can handle the roughest and toughest challenge of his life? Well, we're gonna find out this weekend at Xtreme X.

"In addition to that incredible matchup, we're gonna see if the Misthios tandem of Matthias Xenakis and Elias Lysander can slow the onslaught of Brick City Brawler and Pearl City Pitbull who just steamrolled their way through the World X Tag-Team tournament. They did it at Elite X, but that was then, and this is now. And, the stakes are much higher. Should be a great battle.

"Ben Logan and Wiseau Sirius are looking to make a statement against 'Bad to the Bone' Marowak Black and his partner Cubone Black. Marowak really looks like an up and comer, but Cubone is too much of a liability for that team. XWA's resident Six-Man force, Muffman, Jr., Insane Hairbag and 'Stunning' Steve Eaton accepted a challenge from a trio of C4 birds of prey, Vulture, Condor and Eagle. Also, Maquina Fuerta and Malakai King are gonna mix it up.

"I know a lot of fans can't wait to see the sure-fire Hall of Famer, Mike Drake, step in against Sweet Eddie Gold, one of the best grapplers in wrestling today. Can't wait for that one myself. Falcon and Jamaican Devil are gonna square off, a win here would be big for either man... or bird... or devil for that matter. And I gotta mention, Chris Hero going up against the always tough... mean... nasty... brutal... Notice. BURN is lucky to have him, so they don't have to face him. Chris really is a hero.

"Best of luck to everyone on the card, there's so much more that I couldn't even get to. It's gonna be a great show."

-- Abreu Mencia, XWA Commissioner

WOMEN'S CONTEST OF CHAMPIONS (updated 6/18)

For the latest results, right click HERE and choose "Save Target As..."

FREE WRESTLER IMAGES FOR IWA MANAGERS!

Darrin Maurer is generously allowing all IWA players to use his AI-created wrestler photos in their trash talk, free of charge! Head over to his Facebook page, AI Original Pro Wrestlers, and see if any would be a good fit for a character on your roster. While you're there, don't forget to like and follow, because he adds new images all the time.

Thanks for supporting the game, Darrin!

(The link will open in a new browser window. The IWA is not responsible for its content.)

THE UNOFFICIAL HOW TO WIN IN THE IWA GUIDE V2.0 (updated 5/1/25)

Learning the ropes in a game where those ropes are imaginary can be confusing. Back in 2018, an unofficial How to Win in the IWA video was published to help. Now, a mere seven years later, IWA Strategy Expert Mike Cook and IWAR Commissioner Matt Riley have streamlined the video to get players started down the path to higher scores. Good luck!

(Click HERE for the YouTube page. This link will open in a new browser window. The IWA is not responsible for its content.)

SPECIAL EDITION OF THE IWAR MAGAZINE: IWA TURNS 38, BRL HITS 600! (updated 4/10/23)

"This special edition of the IWAR Magazine that acts as the Unofficial History of the IWA starts in 1985 and honors the Battle Royal League reaching its 600th cycle of competition by following the growth of the game through the events, changes, wrestlers, rivalries, and more. We hope you will enjoy this trip down memory lane, and the odds are good that you will see some names you recognize. This is an update to the 2017 edition, so if you saw it before, check it out again and see all that we've added.

"Thanks to all the people who've played in the IWA and have helped to make the game so much fun."
-- IWAR Commissioner Matt Riley

For this issue, right click HERE and choose "Save Target As..." (you will be downloading a PDF file with a size of 9.8MB).