Folks, it’s official—AEW and Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) have inked a deal that’s going to keep AEW’s slams, flips, and chair shots on WBD networks for years to come. But hold on to your steel chairs, because the juicy details are still trickling out, and they’re bigger than a surprise superkick.
Now, the initial reports pegged the value of this blockbuster deal at over $150 million per year, but apparently, that was the lowball figure. According to the ever-mysterious WrestleVotes, the number is actually closer to $185 million per year, and even Fightful’s own Sean Ross Sapp confirmed this number. Folks, that’s a lot of zeroes, and it means AEW has some serious backing. If you think the pyrotechnics were big before, just wait.
But what about the ownership rumors? Some chatter claimed WBD might have snagged a piece of the All Elite pie, but sources from both AEW and WBD have shot that down faster than a missile dropkick. No confirmed stake in AEW for WBD—at least not yet.
Now let’s get into the nitty-gritty of AEW’s programming lineup. “AEW Collision” will remain your Saturday night wrestling fix, while “AEW Dynamite” keeps its prime spot on Wednesdays. But what’s up with “Rampage”? The poor show’s future is hanging in the balance like a wrestler on the top rope. There’s talk it might shift to another network altogether, which means we might not see the Rampage archives on Max when Dynamite and Collision hit the streaming platform in January.
And here’s the kicker: AEW’s PPVs aren’t going anywhere, and by that, I mean you’re still paying for them. Tony Khan and company are not going the subscription route like WWE did with Peacock or UFC with ESPN+, both of which saw some cash drain after making the switch. AEW isn’t about to “cannibalize” its PPV revenue like a faction turning on its leader in a cage match. Still, Fightful hints that AEW might tweak this approach in the future to strike a balance between paywalls and fan-friendly options.
Meanwhile, the deal opens up AEW to potentially negotiate with other networks now that WBD’s exclusivity clause is done. That could mean the return of AEW Dark, a rumored Fox deal, and maybe even some airtime for Ring of Honor—though as of now, nothing’s confirmed about bringing ROH to TruTV.
So, to sum it up: Big money, big moves, and the future of AEW is looking brighter than Kenny Omega’s entrance gear. Stay tuned, folks—this could just be the beginning of a new era.