"They don't have to topple WWE"- 12-time champion shares honest thoughts about AEW

Professional wrestling has seen a major boom in 2025. Both AEW and WWE have grown exponentially since the start of the year, and neither looks to be slowing down anytime soon. AEW has reached a wider audience than ever before, thanks in part to its partnership with Max.

Even the promotion's founder, Tony Khan, feels that 2025 has been the company's best year in its existence. WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley chimed in on the Jacksonville-based company's boom recently. While speaking in an interview with WANE 15 news, the 12-time champion heaped praises on the wrestling industry as a whole.

He shared his honest views about the Tony Khan-led promotion, stating that they've realized they don't need to topple WWE to become more successful. He emphasized the fact that there are other types of wrestling to offer, and fans can choose to tune into whatever they want according to their taste.

"Yeah, well, I think we're in a really strong position. WWE on a global basis has never been more successful. I think AEW realizes they don't have to topple WWE to be really successful and really enjoyable, and there's other wrestling out there for people who like all kinds of styles. I mean, just like in the city of Chicago, for example, you can find three or four different types of wrestling on a single night and all of it's good, depending on what your tastes are," Foley said. [H/T Fightful]

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Huge couple of weeks ahead for AEW

The Jacksonville-based promotion is gearing up for a huge couple of weeks starting in July. Tony Khan's company is set to host two special weekly episodes next week, with them being the 300th episode of Dynamite and the 100th edition of Collision.

Some big matches have been announced for Dynamite 300 as Kazuchika Okada faces Kota Ibushi for the first time in AEW. Mercedes Mone is set to defend her TBS championship against Mina Shirakawa next Wednesday as well. Meanwhile, FTR will take on The Outrunners on Collision 100.

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The following weekend will see them host their biggest PPV of the year, All In: Texas. The event is scheduled to emanate from Globe Life Field, and five huge matches have been announced for the event so far, with the inaugural AEW Unified Champion set to be crowned in Texas.

About the author

Faiz is a WWE writer at Sportskeeda Wrestling. He is a BBA graduate who is passionate about sports and wants to make a career in that field. This passion led to a postgraduate degree in Journalism, which helped him pivot into becoming a sports writer. When writing, he puts the utmost importance on accuracy and thorough research.

Faiz has six years of work experience across four companies. He started his career with Zomato and then moved to Amazon. He shifted to becoming a football writer at TV9 Digital and is now with Sportskeeda. He covered the Wrestling Xtreme Mania event in Gurgaon in 2025, where he had the opportunity to interview Raj The Maharaja, fka Jinder Mahal. At the same event, he also got quick interviews with former WWE Superstar Dijak and Japanese Joshi legend Emi Sakura.

When it comes to his favourite wrestlers, Faiz has two names in mind. He loved to watch Triple H before the current WWE CCO retired, and he is a huge fan of Roman Reigns. Being a loyal fan since the Tribal Chief's SHIELD days, Faiz credits Roman's mic skills and unmatched in-ring storytelling for his mega success. When he was young, one in-ring story left a lasting impression on his mind and eventually got him hooked on WWE. That match was Shawn Michaels vs. Ric Flair at WrestleMania 24. Apart from that, he is also a fan of RAW.

When Faiz is not writing for Sportskeeda, he loves to keep up with other sports. He is an avid cricket and football fan, a huge gamer, and loves playing some RPGs on the PlayStation.

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Edited by Kebin Edwin Antony