Well folks, it’s that time of the year again where the Forbidden Door creaks open, and this time, it’s looking more like the gateway to a goldmine. AEW and New Japan Pro Wrestling’s cross-promotional extravaganza, featuring wrestling wonders from STARDOM and CMLL, has Tony Khan grinning ear to ear and flexing those promoter muscles like he’s just bench-pressed a bank vault.
At the post-Forbidden Door media scrum, Khan was positively jubilant, likely buoyed by a combo of adrenaline and pure dollar signs. “Tonight was not only a great PPV, but also a great live event here,” Khan chirped, with all the enthusiasm of a lottery winner. “Over 11,000 fans paid to be here at UBS Arena. We drew over a million dollars at the live gate. Really, really special. Third straight year with over 11,000 fans and over a million-dollar live gate, which is pretty cool too.”
That’s right, folks. Not only did Forbidden Door slam the attendance benchmark early on Sunday afternoon, crossing that 10K fan threshold like a wrestler crossing a turnbuckle, but it also piled up cash faster than a Las Vegas casino. Khan had already hinted at the million-dollar mark being in sight days before, and like a seasoned fortune teller, his prediction came true.
And while we don’t have exact PPV buys yet—because apparently, we need to wait a few weeks for that magic number—Khan assures us they’re trending in the right direction. Perhaps it’s the anticipation, perhaps it’s the thrill, or maybe it’s just the spectacle of seeing wrestlers from around the globe slam and jam in the squared circle. Whatever it is, Forbidden Door 2024 is one for the books!