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Despite kicking off 2024 with plenty of hype, AEW's ticket slump has followed it into the new year. Fans have now reacted with dismay to the shockingly low numbers for an episode of Collision next month.
AEW is heading to the Las Vegas suburbs for an episode of Saturday Night Collision on February 10. With the event just 17 days away, WrestleTix posted the updated attendance for the night. As of this morning, the show had sold a painfully low 928 tickets.
While this count can be expected to double over the next couple of weeks, it seems a clear indicator of the company's ongoing attendance struggles and its strange touring pattern.
Fans on Twitter were quick to express their confusion about All Elite Wrestling booking a show in the same city the night before the Super Bowl.
Some called for AEW President Tony Khan to announce the signing of top free agents Mercedes Mone and Kazuchika Okada in an effort to boost attendance.
Others reacted with shock and dismay over the sales figures.
It should be noted that the Jacksonville-based promotion has also suffered the bad luck of hosting some of its events in the same cities WWE runs during similar time frames lately.
Dave Meltzer compares AEW's current ticket slump to WCW in 2000
All Elite Wrestling's television ratings are holding steady and are, in some cases, improving lately. But while the fans are excited about the current product, ticket sales have become worrying.
The man responsible for live event scheduling, former Vice President of Live Events/Touring Rafael Morffi, departed the company at the end of 2023 and has been replaced by new COO Kosha Irby.
On a recent episode of Wrestling Observer Radio, industry veteran Dave Meltzer commented on the current state of AEW's attendance, comparing it to the dying days of WCW. He also noted that it would be Irby's job to right the ship in terms of live events.
"You're getting now to WCW 2000. And people hate when I use that term, but they're getting there. And that's a scary place to be. There's a lot of things that they could do, but they haven't. I know that Kosha Irby's in, and this is actually his job, his job is going to be to get this stuff up. And it's way too early to put any blame on him, he just got there," said Meltzer.
All Elite Wrestling is making a plethora of changes in 2024, but whether it manages to build greater live attendance remains to be seen.
What do you think Tony Khan should do to boost attendance? Give us your thoughts in the comments section below!
