Bill Goldberg

Did You Know?

• He suffered his only recorded dark match loss to Chad Fortune on July 8, 1997.
• Goldberg's mother created an award-winning hybrid orchid in 2000, which she named after him.

Football career

Goldberg played college football for the University of Georgia as a defensive tackle, earning Associated Press first-team All-SEC honors in 1989. He was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the 11th round, with the 301st overall pick, of the 1990 NFL draft. He signed with the Rams on July 11, 1990, but was released on August 29, 1990. After being a free agent for the 1990 regular season, Goldberg signed with the Rams again on March 18, 1991, but was released again on August 19, 1991. He was then signed to the practice roster of the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League on September 11, 1991, and released on October 19, 1991. On February 4, 1992, Goldberg was selected by the Sacramento Surge of the World League of American Football in the seventh round, with the 68th overall pick. He played in all ten games for the Surge during the 1992 WLAF season and recorded three sacks. The Surge finished the season with an 8–2 record and advanced to World Bowl '92, where they defeated the Orlando Thunder by a score of 21–17. Goldberg became a free agent after the 1992 WLAF season and signed with the Atlanta Falcons of the NFL. He was released on August 25, 1992, and signed to the Falcons' practice squad on September 1. He was promoted to the active roster on December 1 and made his NFL debut on December 3, 1992, wearing jersey number #71. Overall, Goldberg played in four games, starting one, for the Falcons during the 1992 season and posted two tackles. He became close with Deion Sanders during this time. Goldberg was released on September 6, 1993, but signed to the practice squad the next day. He was promoted to the active roster again on November 10, 1993, and appeared in five games for the Falcons during the 1993 season, totaling eight tackles. Goldberg played in five games again in 1994 and made one solo tackle. In 1995, he was selected by the new expansion team the Carolina Panthers in the 1995 NFL expansion draft. On April 20, 1995, he was cut by the Panthers, becoming the first player ever released by the team. Goldberg's football career ended when he 'tore his lower abdomen off his pelvis.' He explained that he hoped to return to the league after rehabilitation but was not considered a major asset due to his lack of success.

Professional wrestling career

Following the end of his professional football career, Goldberg began training in powerlifting and mixed martial arts as part of his rehabilitation. During this period, he was approached by WCW performers Lex Luger and Sting, who encouraged him to consider a transition into professional wrestling. He trained at WCW's Power Plant. Competing under the ring name Bill Gold, he wrestled in several dark matches during the summer of 1997. He made his in-ring debut on June 23, defeating Buddy Lee Parker in a dark match prior to an episode of Monday Nitro in Macon, Georgia. On July 8, he suffered his only recorded dark match loss, to Chad Fortune, at a WCW Saturday Night taping in Jackson, Tennessee. Goldberg made his televised debut on the September 22 episode of Monday Nitro, where he defeated Hugh Morrus in what would be the first of a long series of victories. Over the following months, he was booked to win matches in dominant fashion, often defeating opponents in under two minutes. His in-ring persona was characterized by silent intensity, explosive offense, and a distinctive entrance that featured him walking through backstage corridors to the ring. Goldberg made his first pay-per-view appearance at Halloween Havoc on October 26, assisting Alex Wright in defeating Steve McMichael. The following month, he faced McMichael in his first pay-per-view match at Starrcade on December 28, emerging victorious. Goldberg defeated Brad Armstrong at SuperBrawl VIII on February 22, 1998, and Perry Saturn at Spring Stampede on April 19. Around this time, WCW began officially referring to him solely as 'Goldberg', and began tallying his consecutive victories on television broadcasts. On the April 20 episode of Nitro, Goldberg defeated Raven to win the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship. Two days later on Thunder, Goldberg made his first successful title defense against Mike Enos. He later retained the championship against Saturn at Slamboree on May 17, Konnan at The Great American Bash on June 14, and Curt Hennig on subsequent programming. Around this time, he began using the catchphrase 'Who's next?' in reference to his ongoing winning streak. Goldberg's rise continued throughout the summer, eventually positioning him as a contender for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship held by Hollywood Hogan. A title match between the two was announced for the July 6 episode of Nitro, held at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.

Legacy, parodies, and reception

Goldberg has been described by Steve Austin as one of the strongest wrestlers in history, and Mark Henry also called him one of the strongest people in wrestling. WWE describes him as one of the most dominant Superstars ever. Arn Anderson likened his late-1990s popularity to that of Hulk Hogan, The Rock, and Austin. Diamond Dallas Page and Bobby Lashley claimed he was the most popular wrestler in the world at one point. Kevin Owens called him the figurehead and poster boy of WCW. His extremely masculine wrestling character has been credited with battling Jewish stereotypes. In 1999, Jewish News of Northern California stated he had turned the notion of Jew as victim on its head. The WWF parodied him with the character Gillberg, played by Duane Gill; Goldberg later embraced the parody and confronted Gillberg on Raw in 2003.

Other media

Goldberg began acting in 1999, appearing in Universal Soldier: The Return. He hosted The History Channel series Auto-Maniac and starred in Santa's Slay as a homicidal Santa Claus. In 2016, he appeared in the documentary Nine Legends. He made his first appearance on The Goldbergs in 2017 as Coach Nick Mellor. He hosted Forged in Fire: Knife or Death on the History Channel in 2018 and appeared in NCIS: Los Angeles as Special Agent Lance Hamilton. He is a playable character in numerous video games.