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After months of speculation, All Elite Wrestling is finally official!
An initial idea from Matt Jackson, Nick Jackson, and Cody Rhodes, this new wrestling organisation is officially up and running. With The Young Bucks and Cody taking on Executive Vice President positions, and with Brandi Rhodes on board as Chief Brand Officer, it’s all systems go for AEW as the company begins to amass its roster and confirm its first shows.
Giving some serious sway to all of this, of course, you can add in the financial backing and acumen of Shahid Khan and his son Tony Khan. To give some perspective, Shahid is worth a reported $6.4 billion and is the principal owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars and Fulham FC, and the owner of Flex-N-Gate and the Toronto Four Seasons, while son Tony is the owner of TruMedia Networks and co-owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars and Fulham FC. The point being, these are some mightily wealthy fellas whose involvement in the wrestling business could shake up the landscape of the industry.
With AEW’s Double or Nothing Rally now in the books – and with a whole load of fallout from that event – let’s take a look at 6 reasons why All Elite Wrestling really is a huge gamechanger for the wrestling business.
#6 Health Insurance
The news of health insurance for wrestling is massive. Absolutely, utterly, unfathomably massive and something that is long, long overdue.
For years, the wrestlers of today and of decades gone by have spoken out on how there needs to be some sort of Union to take care of wrestlers, to make sure that they are properly looked after by their employers, that they are not worked in to the ground, and that they have adequate health cover should they require surgery or any time out of the ring.
Now, AEW’s Tony Khan has already discussed how there will likely be health insurance options available for wrestling talent. Injured and unable to work for two months? No problem, you’re covered. Require surgery that will put you on the shelf for a year? No problem, you’re covered.
As Khan explained after the Double or Nothing Rally, “I think that, yeah, there is a package, a compensation package and healthcare package, that could be available."
Not only is this huge for any talent looking at working for AEW, but hopefully it will cause other wrestling promotions to start to introduce similar coverage. Because let’s face it, not offering any sort of health insurance to people who are putting their health and life on the line for you on a nightly basis, that’s just ridiculous.
#5 The Fans Have a Voice
It seems like almost a forgotten concept, but the wrestling business was, for decades, built on listening to your fanbase and not stubbornly pushing on with your plans regardless of whether your audience is rejecting your ideas at each and every turn.
One prime, easy example of this is “Stone Cold” Steve Austin.
Depicted as a nefarious and vicious heel once he dropped his Ringmaster shtick, Austin was soon feuding with Bret “Hitman” Hart. But wait, is that the fans slowly starting to cheer for the Texas Redneck? Why yes, yes it is. The then-WWF recognised that fan reaction, took it on board, and masterminded a brilliant double turn at WrestleMania 13 as Austin was fast-tracked to becoming the company’s hottest babyface, while the changing reaction towards Hart saw the Excellence of Execution turned in to one of the best heels going.
Now, though? Vince McMahon and Co. have their plans and they’re sticking to them, regardless of if good guys are getting booed or bad guys are getting cheered.
With AEW, however, the promise has been made that the fans do indeed have a voice, that they won’t be told who to boo or cheer for, and that there are no plans to “coach” their audience on how to be a fan in the mould that the company sees fit. And after years of not being listened to, that is surely music to the ears of so many wrestling fans.
#4 Cross-Pollination
For those not around during the rise and rise of the World Wrestling Federation, the very reason for the WWF becoming so successful in the 1980s was due to Vince McMahon and his cutthroat mentality of putting any and all competition out of business; often taking their top stars in the process.
Even as the WWF moved forward towards the Monday Night Wars of the Attitude Era, the ultimate endgame for Vinny Mac was to put Ted Turner’s WCW out of business. Simply put, Vince has done his utmost over the years to make sure the wrestling business – particularly in North America – is a monopoly.
Vince McMahon and the WWE are not willing to share their spotlight with anyone. Sure, there are deals in place with the likes of Evolve and ICW where Triple H can use those organisations as feeder systems, but that’s merely for talent-procuring reasons.
With AEW, already it appears as if there is the potential for cross-pollination between wrestling companies. For instance, PAC turned up at the Double or Nothing Rally complete with Dragon Gate’s Open the Dream Gate Championship; something that Dragon Gate must clearly be okay with.
Similarly, mention was made to how AEW plans to have a working relationship with China’s OWE; something which is a huge “get” giving the massive Chinese market that can be utilised by such an agreement.
#3 Social Media Masters
More and more, the wrestling business these days requires performers to be social media savvy. And there isn’t anybody as expert at drumming up social media buzz than The Young Bucks, Cody Rhodes, and Chris Jericho; four talents who are set to play a major part in All Elite Wrestling.
The Bucks have made themselves one of the very biggest acts in the wrestling world, largely down to their social media presence. Sure, they are a pair of excellent in-ring workers and have put on stellar bouts across the globe, but it’s the ability to take social media platforms and innovate them in a way that pushes themselves and their buddies even further into the spotlight that truly makes them stand out from the pack.
Similarly, Cody has done the same for himself since finishing up with the WWE back in 2016, instantly using social media to make himself one of the hottest free agents on the scene. And then there’s Chris Jericho, who is just a true and utter genius in how he keeps himself in the spotlight, be it as a wrestler, as a rock star, as a TV host, as a movie star, as a podcast host, as a radio presenter, or as some crazy fool who decides he’s going to set up an all-encompassing wrestling show in the middle of the damn ocean!
In an age where social media management is only going to become even more key to marketing success, AEW has some absolute masters within its ranks.
#2 Chris Jericho
The Young Bucks may be some of the coolest cats on the wrestling block. Cody may be the legacy star who has made himself white-hot after shifting the shackles of the machine. Adam Page may be regarded as the next big can’t-miss prospect. PAC is a thoroughbred whose added edge has him primed to be a main event player. But you could argue none of these names are more important to AEW than Chris Jericho.
Yes, this may well be perceived as The Bucks and Cody’s baby, yet Chris Jericho just brings so much to the table. Y2J delivers that feeling of nostalgia to many, while still feeling relevant and ever-changing. He’s a mainstream name away from the wrestling world, his reach stretches out across various mediums, and he's regarded as one of the greatest workers and greatest minds that the wrestling business has ever seen. So yeah, Chris Jericho is kind of a big deal.
Having Jericho involved in All Elite Wrestling both as an in-ring talent and a backstage brain is a masterstroke. And for any WWE, New Japan or other talents wondering whether a move to AEW would be a smart move, seeing Jericho there only further cements this new company as a legitimate location to ply your trade. If it’s good enough for the first ever Undisputed Champion, who has seen it all in a three-decade-long career, then that’s a massive stamp of approval.
#1 Billionaire Backing
It’s one thing to talk the talk, but it’s a completely different thing to walk the walk. So sure, saying you’re going to change the wrestling world is all well and good, but how really are you going to do that?
Enter, Shahid and Tony Khan.
When you have literal billionaires backing your plan to change the wrestling world, yeah, that’s a gamechanger if ever there was one. And that is indeed the case with All Elite Wrestling.
Matt Jackson, Nick Jackson, Cody Rhodes and Brandi Rhodes may be those tasked with putting together AEW, but it’s the financing afforded by the Khans that really ups the ante.
Previously, the WWE was the only gig in town that could offer the major bucks on a regular basis – even more so now that their deal with Fox is looming large – and pro wrestlers were left with a lack of viable career options if they wanted to make some serious money. Companies such as Ring of Honor, Evolve, and Dragon Gate were great for in-ring satisfaction, and New Japan has never been a more viable option than it is right now, but none of those could offer up the amount of money that the WWE could.
Well now, that could be about to change.
Remember how WCW changed game in the mid-‘90s when Ted Turner started splashing the cash? Sure, that eventually went south due to massive mismanagement, but the point is that Billionaire Ted and his pursestrings had the then-WWF running scared.
With another majorly-backed player now on the scene in the shape of AEW, that offers up further opportunities for talent, in turn threatening to give Vinny Mac some major competition.
