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Since its launch in 2019, All Elite Wrestling (AEW) has rapidly grown to become one of the biggest professional wrestling promotions today, second only to WWE. During the AEW All Out post-show media scrum, AEW President Tony Khan reflected on the company’s swift rise, calling it an “unprecedented success story” and likening it to the former American Football League (AFL).
“As someone who studies sports history, and with the NFL season about to start as I head to Miami for the Jaguars game, I have to point out that the last time a challenger sports league in North America had a market share like AEW’s was the AFL,” Khan explained. “The AFL was a fantastic league with great stars. The NFL is the biggest media enterprise globally, and the AFL came in and gained significant market share.”
Khan continued, “We all know the AFL eventually merged with the NFL, creating the Super Bowl, which is now the biggest entertainment event. Together, the NFC and the AFC form the NFL, the greatest sports league, media enterprise, and marketing machine in the world.”
Khan highlighted how the AFL emerged as a strong competitor to the NFL in the 1960s, leading to a merger in 1970. While Khan didn’t suggest any potential merger between AEW and WWE, he expressed pride in AEW’s growing market share, believing it could establish AEW as the second most profitable wrestling company in history. Recently, AEW sold over 50,000 tickets for its 2024 All In pay-per-view, surpassing this milestone for the second consecutive year.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit AEW and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
