All Elite Wrestling (AEW) President and CEO Tony Khan sat down with amNewYork inside the Rockefeller Center Lounge to discuss the growth of his company, emotional losses, and the “Full Gear” show coming to the tri-state area next month.
AEW has been in business for over a half-decade. What began as an upstart promotion providing an alternative in a sports entertainment world dominated by WWE has now grown its own legacy, even acquiring other promotions such as Ring of Honor. Still, Khan says he has his eyes set on the future and wants to spread the company further across the globe with more special events in Europe.
“We built a lot. It’s been six years of AEW, and again, it feels like we started just yesterday,” Khan said. “I’m very interested in taking AEW and visiting more of Europe. I think there are more opportunities there. We’ve had great shows in the UK, particularly with shows in London. We’ve set records at Wembley Stadium, and we’ve had great events in Cardiff, Wales. And I’m really excited about this year taking AEW to Manchester for the first time. I think there’s more opportunities there internationally, for AEW…I think that’s very attractive, just international expansion.”
AEW has televised memorable moments over the years, from debuts of beloved wrestlers, classic matches, and viral segments. However, Khan delved into the memorable moments behind the scenes that has meant the most to him.
“Before Sting went out for his last match, as they were showing the video package, and as his sons were about to make their entrances and they were on the stage, that was really special. Sting said some very nice things to me right before he went out that I’ll never forget about how fantastic his run had been, and how happy he was about all this and the things he said afterwards. That was really probably the highlight,” Khan said.
On the flipside, Khan also spoke on other emotional moments, such as the devastating deaths of some of his most beloved talent and how he strives to keep their memories alive going forward.
“The hardest times in AEW, by far, was when we lost Mr. Brodie Lee, who was a great TNT champion and a great person in and out of the ring, a great father and the head of a great family. That was really probably some of the most important times ever in AEW, and also when we lost the late great Jay Briscoe. I think those are the times that are probably memorable and challenging, but they’re really important to remember. And I think about Brodie Lee, and I think about Jay Brisco a lot, and I think it’s important to honor the memories,” Khan said.
Khan visited the Big Apple hot on the heels of WrestleDream that aired from St. Louis on Oct. 18, which saw the return of beloved wrestling legend Sting, who helped Darby Allin defeat Jon Moxley in a brutal match. Khan said he was excited about the fans’ reactions and is now looking onward to Full Gear that will take place on Nov. 22 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
“The Prudential Center is a great home for AEW, we had our first ever dynamite on TBS there when the show came over from TNT to TBS in January of 22 and in Newark, in recent years, we’ve had Full Gear now three out of the past four years in Newark at the Prudential Center, I think it’s become a great home for the event, and I think there’s a good chance we’ll have our biggest crowd yet for Full Gear at Newark this year,” Khan said.
AEW has drawn impressive numbers in terms of attendance in the New York area over its tenure, including at Queens’ Arthur Ashe Stadium for Grand Slam. Growing up as a wrestling fan, he praised both New York audiences and the ability of his own company to find a home in the Big Apple.
“If you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere,” Khan said. “There’s probably more wrestling fans in New York and around New York than anywhere else in the entire world. And that’s what’s really great about coming up here. I first learned about how great of a wrestling market New York was, and what a great city it was at a very young age, and when you watch wrestling on TV, coming to New York and hearing about this place, everybody talked about it like it’s the greatest place in the world for media, for sports, and in particular, for pro wrestling.”
