All Elite Wrestling enters 2024 with ratings and business momentum as it gears up for talks on a new TV carriage agreement.

AEW, which launched in 2019, drew 15.6 million viewers in 2023 across its three weekly television shows on Warner Bros Discovery’s TBS and TNT — AEW Dynamite, which airs Wednesdays on TBS, and Rampage and Collision, airing Fridays and Saturdays, respectively, on TNT. 

With strong 2023 returns on its pay-per-view events as well as record-breaking international live gate performances, the company — led by its CEO, general manager and head of creative Tony Khan — is in position to successfully compete in a crowded pro wrestling ring led by category leader WWE.

Khan, who outside the ring serves as chief football strategy officer of the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars and as general manager and sporting director of soccer’s Fulham F.C. of the English Premier League, recently spoke to Multichannel News about AEW’s plans going into the new year.   

MCN: Has the AEW brand met your expectations since its launch in 2019? 

Tony Khan: It’s been an incredible first four-plus years for AEW. As we approach year five, we’ve accomplished so much in the world of pro wrestling and there’s still so much we can still do. We’ve expanded from two hours of weekly television to five hours; from one weekly program on Wednesdays to three weekly programs on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. We’ve gone from being on TNT to being on both TBS and TNT every week, 52 weeks a year. We’ve expanded internationally toward Canada and did one of the biggest live gates in the history of Canada with [pay-per-view event] Forbidden Door. One of the biggest accomplishments ever in wrestling was our AEW All In event held at Wembley Stadium last summer where we sold more than 81,000 tickets. It’s the most tickets ever sold for any wrestling show in history on record and it was also a huge success on pay-per-view. So there is a lot of really awesome stuff happening and for us, it’s an exciting time. We’re approaching our media rights renewal window and that’s a massive opportunity for us for all the growth we’ve had since our launch. 

MCN: As you approach media rights negotiations, is AEW considering expanding into the streaming arena somewhere down the line?

TK: We have a great library of content as we explore future distribution opportunities. Along with AEW content, I acquired Ring of Honor, which features thousands of hours of footage and trademarks. Given our library, we have an amazing opportunity to launch on a streaming platform.

MCN: What has made the AEW brand so popular for both audiences and potential distributors? 

TK: We have a lot of the best wrestlers in the world in AEW, and we have a great, knowledgeable fan base that is very passionate about wrestling. There has been a great base for AEW on Wednesday night since our launch and we’ve been able to expand it into Fridays and Saturdays. Our pay-per-view business has grown over the years significantly, and the loyalty of our pay-per-view customers and the strength of that business is, in my opinion, a testament to the great connection we have with the AEW wrestling fans who are so engaged with our brand each week. 

MCN: When you initially launched, the clear leader in the pro wrestling ring was the WWE. Four years later, how does the AEW brand match up with WWE? 

TK: I think it’s a great time for wrestling because over the last several years, both companies have grown. AEW is a challenger brand [to the WWE], and it’s an exciting time for wrestling. When we got into the industry, I believe it was unquestionably a monopoly. I’m working very hard to grow and sustain AEW as a challenger brand, and it’s been a lot of fun putting on great wrestling every week. I think the arrival and debut of AEW has helped create a market around wrestling that has helped both of the major domestic wrestling promotions. For us at AEW, we’re really happy that we've been able to grow our business and expand our pay-per-view calendar and have such great results.

MCN:  Along with wrestling, you also have business interests in the NFL and soccer. Do you have a preference for a particular sport?

TK: I love all the stuff I’m doing, but they’re different. They have great qualities and strength. I love working in wrestling; but I also love being a part of the Premier League with Fulham F.C. and the work we’ve done to get the team to where it is today. I love being a part of the NFL with the Jaguars and the great fans in Jacksonville and the turnaround the team has had over the last couple of years and being a part of it. It’s all so fun for me and they’re all very different. 

TBS will expand its pro wrestling content with a new docuseries from the All-Elite Wrestling wrestling outfit.

The series, AEW: All Access, debuts in March, and follows AEW action from the perspective of the AEW wrestlers, said the network. Each episode will showcase such AEW stars as Adam Cole, Dr. Britt Baker, Sammy Guevara, Tay Conti, The Young Bucks, Saraya, Wardlow, and Eddie Kingston as they navigate the week-to-week challenges to remain at the top, as well as track the rivalries between talent as they vie for fans’ attention, according to AEW. 

“AEW has such an amazingly loyal and dedicated fan base that brings in more than 4 million viewers to TBS every Wednesday night,” Turner Networks, ID, & HLN Linear and Streaming President Jason Sarlanis said in a statement. “With All Access, we are bringing that incredible audience a whole new way to experience the wrestling universe they love. With this new series we are expanding the franchise in a way that invites viewers inside the world of wrestling like never before.” 

The show adds to TBS’ lineup of AEW content that includes its weekly AEW: Dynamite series, which launched in January 2022. “We’re always looking for new ways to engage with fans and give them unique access to our incredible talent,” AEW Head of Creative Tony Kahn said. “With the new AEW: All Access series, they’ll have a chance to peek behind the curtain and into the lives of their favorite wrestlers like never before.”■

Pro wrestler Jon Huber died Saturday from a reported lung issue, according to The New York Times.

Huber, who wrestled under the names Luke Harper for the WWE and Brodie Lee for All-Elite Wrestling, was a fan favorite as a soft spoken yet imposing presence in the ring, according to the WWE. 

Huber worked at the WWE for seven years before joining the All-Elite Wrestling company in 2020, according to the Times. 

Huber’s wife in an Instagram post said that Huber passed away “after a hard fought battle with a non-COVID related lung issue."

The WWE and AEW also posted social media tributes to Huber, as well as fellow pro wrestlers and personalities.

WarnerMedia has as extended its agreement with All-Elite Wrestling (AEW) through 2023, which will include a second TV series, the company announced Wednesday prior to its Television Critics Association winter tour presentation.

AEW, which currently distributes its weekly AEW:Dynamite series Wednesdays on TNT, will launch another series, although neither party would reveal specifics. The current series is averaging 1.2 million viewers on a Nielsen Live +7 Day basis.

Kevin Reilly, chief content officer, HBO Max and president, TNT, TBS and truTV, confirmed that WarnerMedia will bring AEW's YouTube series AEW Dark to TNT, although its unclear what day and how many episodes will air on the network. 

“When [AEW CEO] Tony Khan first shared with me his idea of starting a new wrestling league, I was impressed by his audacity to go up against a contender that has been the only game in town for 20 years, and ultimately believed that together we could bring his vision for a new, authentic, gritty product to bear,” said Reilly. “The fans have spoken and after only three months, we have seen AEW shake up the wrestling world and this will only continue as we build upon this momentum.”

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WarnerMedia will also continue to offer exclusive access to AEW’s pay-per-view matches, which launched last May on B/R Live. The sports streaming service will offer AEW’s next PPV event, Revolution, on Feb. 29.

“When we launched AEW one year ago, we wanted to start a revolution that would disrupt the wrestling business, but everyone said that it would take a strong weekly television partner to make AEW real in the eyes of everyone – above all, the fans,” said Tony Khan, president and CEO of AEW. “What virtually no one realized at the time was Kevin Reilly and TNT were committed to this very same movement from Day One, and their belief in us made it possible for AEW to think and act big from the start. Here we are, only three months into Wednesday Night Dynamite, and now we’ve been extended through 2023! We’re now making the ultimate statement that the team of AEW and TNT is here to stay and to bring fans more of the great wrestling that the fans demand and deserve.”

Heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder’s exciting one-punch knockout of top contender Luis Ortiz during their Nov. 23 pay-per-view event effectively concluded In Demand’s 2019 boxing campaign — a year in which the PPV content aggregator survived some early programming body blows from emerging sports streaming services.

Despite losing monthly UFC mixed martial arts events to ESPN+ this past March — and still reeling from the loss of marquee boxing matches from draws such as light heavyweight champion Canelo Alvarez to DAZN in late 2018 — In Demand officials said the company has found its footing in an evolving PPV events ring and is poised for a breakout year in 2020.

In Demand, owned by Comcast, Charter Communications and Cox Communications, has reached multi-event distribution deals with Premier Boxing Champions and All Elite Wrestling that will provide at least eight PPV events for its cable affiliates, representing more than 60 million subscribers. With negotiations for other high-profile events currently ongoing, In Demand executives said the reports of the PPV industry’s death at the hands of growing sports streaming services is highly exaggerated.

Money Still to Be Made

“The pay-per-view model is still a good business,” said In Demand president and CEO Dale Hopkins. “For big events, the greatest profits are still in pay-per-view.”

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The Wilder-Ortiz fight was the sixth major PPV boxing event In Demand distributed in 2019, with four of those fights coming from PBC and Fox Sports. The new multiyear boxing output deal calls for PBC/Fox Sports to distribute a PPV boxing event each quarter, via In Demand. Bruce Binkow, president of Integrated Sports, a sports marketing and operations agency that represents PBC, said the company is bullish about In Demand and the PPV event category.

“Boxing has a long and successful history with the PPV platform … fighters have long known that becoming a ‘pay-per-view attraction’ is the ultimate achievement in terms of notoriety and earning potential,” Binkow said. “Additionally, fight fans are accustomed to gathering friends and family for a communal viewing party when a big fight comes around on PPV.”

For In Demand, the deal solidifies a lineup of marquee PPV fights in 2020 that offer revenue opportunities for affiliates. One of 2020’s first major events of the year could be a potential Feb. 22 heavyweight title rematch between Wilder and Tyson Fury. Their 2018 fight ended in an exciting draw.

“The matchups on PPV are stronger than those on the streaming side,” In Demand executive vice president of programming and general counsel Michael Berman said. “Not only are we getting a large number of fights over the next few years, but we know we’re going to get some great matchups as well.”

In Demand’s long-term output deal with AEW brings a former event staple back to PPV. (It’s unclear if the events will be made available on Turner’s streaming Bleacher Report Live service, as was the case with prior AEW events.) World Wrestling Entertainment had moved its monthly PPV events to its in-house streaming service, WWE Network, back in 2014.

The deal calls for AEW — which launched earlier this year and currently airs the weekly AEW: Dynamite on TNT — to distribute a minimum of one PPV event per quarter through June 2021.

AEW president and CEO Tony Khan said the deal with In Demand is a perfect complement to the wrestling franchise’s basic-cable series.

“PPV is still available in millions of homes, and it's still a convenient and easy way to order events,” Khan said. “In Demand has a great history in delivering big PPV events, and we’ve been able to connect with our fans already through events on In Demand.”

Mark Boccardi, In Demand senior vice president of programming and marketing, added that two previous AEW PPV events performed well for the company, although he would not reveal specific results. “[AEW] has a very energetic leader in Tony Khan; they have a very good stable of wrestlers; they have a Turner deal; and they have the industry's support,” he said.

“They have a lot of ingredients to make a successful PPV run.”

Early Blows in ’19

In Demand’s PPV event prospects for 2020 look a lot more promising than they did in early 2019. The move of UFC’s PPV events to ESPN+ in March was a big loss, particularly since $19.99-per-month subscription service DAZN had already picked off several popular boxers with pay-per-view appeal, including Alvarez, former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua and middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin, to air exclusively on the streamer.

Fox Sports and Showtime helped filled the PPV event void with several marquee fights in 2019. While none of those events reached the gold standard of 1 million PPV buys, each event generated between 200,000 and 500,000 buys at suggested price points ranging from $65 to $75, according to industry sources.

Fox Sports executive vice president and head of programming and scheduling Bill Wanger said the PPV industry remains a viable option for the distribution of its biggest boxing cards.

“A lot of people forget that ESPN+ is doing PPV under a different model that doesn’t use traditional MVPDs; we think it's important to have traditional MVPDs selling the fight,” he said. “We also have a strong digital buying apparatus, where people can buy our events on a phone or tablet or however they want to watch it. We think we have the best of both worlds.”

Showtime, which distributed a Manny Pacquiao-Adrien Broner fight in February, will look to distribute two to four PPV events in 2020, according to president of sports and entertainment programming Stephen Espinoza.

“It’s undeniable that the market is going through a lot of changes spurred in large part by technology, but proclaiming the end of PPV is premature to say the least,” he said. “The best strategy for a content owner is to make the content available on as many platforms as possible whenever and wherever the consumer wants it.”

Sports analyst Lee Berke said there’s room for In Demand and the PPV category to coexist with upstart subscription sports services in today’s multiplatform sports TV marketplace, given that both platforms offer quality content.

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“Purchasing a PPV event and subscribing to a streaming service is just another way of phrasing the same concept,” he said. “Combat sports continues to have strong appeal, but you need enough fighters that are deemed to be quality fighters to maximize revenues.”

Boccardi said the streaming services actually give boxing, MMA and wrestling a boost by exposing more up and coming fighters to fans who will hopefully go on to become major PPV draws.

“I don’t think it's all a negative that you have all of these distribution outlets,” he said. “If you’re a fan of the sport, you can go and watch fighters that you wouldn’t otherwise see.”

In Demand chief technology officer John Ward said the best platform to view high-profile PPV sports content continues to be through traditional pay TV. Current technologies like voice-enabled remote controls and online ordering — as well as new technologies like 5G — will continue to enhance the PPV experience for cable viewers.

“We want to give the consumer as many options and opportunities to get the content as possible,” he said.

This story was updated on Dec. 3. Showtime will look to distribute two to four events in 2020, not 2019.

Upstart pro wrestling franchise All Elite Wrestling (AEW) will make its cable debut Oct. 2 with a weekly primetime series on TNT. 

AEW Chief Brand Officer Brandi Rhodes and Executive Vice President Cody Rhodes -- who also appear in the ring -- talk about the series as well as competition in the pro wrestling genre in a new MCN Original Videos interview. 

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USA Network is adding a new wrestling show from WWE that will appear Wednesday nights, when WarnerMedia’s TNT is launching its series from the upstart promotion All Elite Wrestling.

Under a new agreement with WWE, the new series NXT, will be live on USA starting Sept. 18.

NXT, which features new and upcoming wrestlers, has been appearing on Wednesday nights on WWE’s streaming network. It launched in 2010.

All Elite Wrestling is set to debut on TNT on Oct. 2.

“The move to USA Network provides an opportunity to deepen our relationship with NBCUniversal and further build the Nxt brand,” said Vince McMahon, WWE chairman & CEO. “Over the long term our goal is to develop a following that can be monetized to the same level as our flagship programs, Raw and SmackDown.”

Smackdown begins airing on Fox this fall.

“USA Network and WWE have one of the longest and most successful partnerships in television history,” said Chris McCumber, president, Entertainment Networks – USA and Syfy. “As the #1 cable entertainment network, we’re excited to add Nxt to our weekly lineup alongside powerhouse flagship Raw, and to bring a new generation of Superstars to a wide audience.”

TNT will jump back into the pro wrestling ring on Oct. 2 with a weekly series from All-Elite Wrestling, the network announced during its Television Critics Association tour session Wednesday morning. 

The as yet titled series will be the first wrestling series on the WarnerMedia-owned TNT cable network since 2001 when it aired content from the now defunct WCW wrestling franchise. WarnerMedia's Bleacher Report Live sports streaming service will also stream the episodes as well as other AEW content. 

AEW will compete against the WWE in the pro wrestling ring, but AEW executive vice president Cody Rhodes said the company is not focused on the competition.

“The thing we have to do is not focus on WWE,” he said. “The WWE coins itself as sports entertainment; we’re coining ourselves as pro wrestling. We just want to be our best selves.” 

Turner Sports has also stepped into the combat sports ring with martial arts organization One Championship as part of a three-year partnership agreement reached this past January. Bleacher Report Live will stream 24 One Championship events in 2019, with TNT televising at least 12 one-hour, taped re-airs featuring One Championship events per year, according to the organization.