Nothing throws a wrench in a company’s five-year business plan like a global pandemic, especially when that business is rooted in live entertainment. Though AEW’s ratings and attendance numbers could be stronger, overall, Tony Khan’s company deserves credit for weathering the storm and delivering some objectively entertaining shows in its short existence. Speaking to Q101 ahead of Full Gear, Khan reflected on AEW’s ability to persevere through those early challenges.
“The lockdown really changed everything and it turned out to be a really successful period for AEW,” he said. “We were able to put all the shows for over one year in Jacksonville. And since we came out of that and started touring again, it’s been just over three years. And in those three years … We went to Wembley Stadium and sold 81,000 tickets for AEW All In.”
Khan acknowledged that AEW tends to draw decently in larger cities like Chicago and Toronto. AEW has struggled to fill seats in smaller markets, with some fans noting sections of certain arenas either empty or blacked out. Khan said he and his team are analyzing this and may adjust their live event schedule accordingly.
“The markets where AEW has drawn the best are the major markets that have typically had NFL, NBA, Major League Baseball teams, or big college towns,” Khan said. “That’s something for us to continue to study and evaluate, is what our best performing markets are, and trying to hit those an appropriate amount of times.”
AEW recently moved December 7’s “Collision” taping in Columbus, Ohio, from the 20,000-seat Nationwide Arena to the smaller Great Columbus Convention Center. AEW is framing this as a unique opportunity to hold the show in conjunction with GalaxyCon. AEW hopes its new media rights deal bolsters future live events numbers.
