5 things AEW is doing right
Since the new company was first announced, All Elite Wrestling has done a lot of things right. It would have been easy enough to consider the wrestling market saturated between the depth of current WWE offerings, and a variety of high profile smaller companies like Ring of Honor, Impact Wrestling, and New Japan providing strong, increasingly accessible offerings for hardcore fans.
However, AEW has quickly established itself as a company with star power, resources, and a foundation that could well make them meaningful, legitimate competitors to WWE. They have a TV deal with TNT, and the critically acclaimed Double or Nothing and Fyter Fest shows under their belt, all setting them up nicely out of the gate as a company for casual and hardcore fans alike to take seriously.
How did AEW position itself, so quickly, as quite arguably the number two wrestling promotion in the world? This article takes a look at five things AEW has been doing right.
#5 Not depending too much on ex-WWE talent
One of the signature mistakes of companies trying to get to WWE’s level is to lean too heavily on former WWE talent. It’s a natural choice to make given that WWE stars tend to have the most exposure to wrestling fans. There’s also an argument to be made that they’re best talents in the world for having worked the most rigorous schedule in front of the largest fanbase in the world.
AEW has picked its spots with WWE alumni, including Chris Jericho working the Double or Nothing main event and Jon Moxley making his surprise debut after, and later working Fyter Fest’s closing match. However, the company has also featured guys like Kenny Omega, Hangman Page, The Young Bucks, and The Lucha Bros in important positions and let them demonstrate their talent to win over fans, instead of relying on big names from yesteryear to get the company over.