AEW Collision sees an abnormal drop in ratings despite former WWE star's debut
TV ratings for weekly shows have seemingly been a significant cause of concern for AEW President Tony Khan. A new update has shed light on the viewership of this past week's Collision.
The June 1, 2024, episode Collision saw a drastic decline in viewership. The total number of viewers was 378K, a drastic drop from 415K viewers in the previous week. Per Wrestlenomics, the show was also down 16% and 21% in each category over the four-week average.
Former WWE star Lio Rush made his Collision debut last Saturday. He lost to Roderick Strong in a one-on-one match. Considering the ratings, the show failed to capture the audience's interest.
Rush was signed to WWE between 2017 and 2020. He is a former NXT Cruiserweight Champion and also worked with SmackDown Superstar Bobby Lashley. The 29-year-old was released by the company on April 15, 2020, as part of the COVID-19 budget cuts.
Dave Meltzer thinks AEW's weekly programming may undergo significant changes soon
AEW's media deal with Warner Bros. Discovery is nearing its end. Meanwhile, Tony Khan has held talks with the media and entertainment company's executives about potentially reaching a new agreement. A recent report has indicated that Khan is unhappy with WBD's current offer.
The report added that Warner Bros. Discovery executives were considering having five hours of weekly All Elite Wrestling programming on TNT and TBS. On a recent edition of the Wrestling Observer Radio, Meltzer discussed how the media company's officials might approach their new potential deal with All Elite Wrestling.
“From a business standpoint, from an AEW standpoint, and from a WBD standpoint even more, a third hour on Wednesday is a lot more valuable than a one-hour show on Friday. So from both sides, looking at this from a business standpoint if you want to have five hours, drop the Friday because the Friday is just not — it’s a C show, and a third hour on Wednesday’s going to greatly outdraw that one hour on Friday,” he said.
It remains to be seen whether WBD will renew its deal with All Elite Wrestling. Will the promotion's weekly programming witness significant changes in the coming months? Only time will tell.