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AEW Goes All In - Tony Khan's Biggest Announcement Ever!
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00:00Hello there, my very good friends. On today's wrestling news video, AEW is heading to Wembley Stadium, which is crazy and awesome and ambitious, and I'm going to talk about it.
00:11FTR's wrestling future was determined on last night's episode of Dynamite. Also on Dynamite, a major free agent returned and signed with the promotion.
00:20And finally, we'll talk about Tony Khan speaking up the prospect of WrestleMania-style events in AEW.
00:27I'm Andy from Walk Culture. This is the news. Lots of AEW stuff to get through today, which I guess makes a bit of a change from the past four days or whatever I've spent talking about you-know-who.
00:40Wembley. AEW's going to Wembley Stadium. This is wild.
00:44So Tony Khan had hyped up one of his big announcements for last night's episode of Dynamite, calling it one of the most important in company history, something he'd dreamed of doing for a long time.
00:52And it turned out to be that London show, which was always likely to be a candidate for that announcement because it's been on the stove for what feels like months and months and months.
01:02A few people were like, hey, maybe they'll run Craven Cottage, Fulham's stadium. He, of course, runs Fulham Football Club.
01:09I think that's like a 25, 26, 7,000-seater stadium. Probably pretty realistic.
01:15Or maybe they'll run the O2, which WWE, of course, is running for Money in the Bank.
01:20No, they've gone big. They're running Wembley Stadium.
01:23Right, for those of you who don't know, Wembley Stadium is the national arena of England.
01:28It's a 90,000-seater stadium when set up for football, which is the primary sport that happens there.
01:35It's also where this event, SummerSlam 1992, took place. Bret Hart, British Bulldog, all of that stuff.
01:41So if you're a wrestling fan, that's probably what you know it from.
01:44Now, the stadium has been demolished and rebuilt since then, but it's still Wembley.
01:49It's still Wembley. It's just a new stadium. That was in 2007.
01:53So this is... I should probably tell you when the show is, actually.
01:57Sunday, the 27th of August. It's All In as well. All In London, Wembley Stadium.
02:04Tony talked about All In when he was making the announcement alongside Nigel McGuinness,
02:07and it was Adam Cole who showed up and formalised the whole thing and said the venue.
02:13So, yeah, it's nuts. It'll be the biggest venue that AEW has ever ran.
02:17It'll be their biggest... well, their only show in the UK so far, of course.
02:21And barring a major disaster, it will be the highest attended show in company history.
02:26That record is currently held by Grand Slam 2021,
02:28which I think attracted around 20,000, like 170 people, to Arparash Stadium.
02:34So, I mean, even if they don't... even if they have a poo with their pants on and all of that,
02:40AEW is still going to outdo that in London.
02:42Selling it out, interesting. It's a huge building, obviously.
02:47I'll talk about that a little more when we get to the Twitter questions.
02:51But, yeah, really ambitious move. Big statement of intent.
02:55Yeah, I'll talk about it a little more when we get towards the end of the video.
02:58Stay tuned for that.
02:58But, also, FTR's wrestling future determined on last night's episode of Dynamite.
03:04A spoiler alert for anyone who hasn't seen the show, but you can click the timestamp.
03:09It's down there. Do that.
03:10I'll give you five seconds.
03:12Four, three, two, one.
03:15They're sticking around, it seems.
03:17They defrauded the guns as AEW World Tag Team Champions last night.
03:21The stipulation for that match was, of course, that if FTR lost, they would leave.
03:25So, it seemed very much like AEW turning a bit of real-life contract situation into on-screen drama.
03:31And that way, if they did leave Dax and Cash, perfect.
03:34You've got the storyline tie-up for it.
03:37Stipulation, all that.
03:38But it would appear that they're sticking around.
03:40Of course, FTR speculation has been rife for a while now.
03:45Dax Harwood revealed a couple of months ago that their contracts were up in April.
03:49And since then, there's been speculation on them heading to WWE, going back there, all of that stuff.
03:55Dax has been very open and forthright when talking about this situation, particularly on this podcast.
03:59And I'm sure he'll have some interesting words on the next episode.
04:04I'm not sure when that drops, but it'll be an interesting listen nonetheless.
04:08Anyway, they beat the guns.
04:11Obviously, the guns were their last opponents in AEW.
04:13And they confronted them at Revolution in March and all of that stuff.
04:16So it's an ongoing storyline.
04:18It was like a double pinfall.
04:19They both hit, like, simultaneous sunset flip style pins, Dax and Cash did to get the win.
04:26Big ticker tape.
04:27Actually, I thought the celebration afterwards was quite funny because they got the confetti.
04:31But there must have been, like, some kind of breeze in the building because all the confetti just kind of blew away from the ring when they were celebrating.
04:37So that was quite funny.
04:39But yeah, it's cool.
04:41For me, personally, I think that they have a better chance of having great matches in AEW.
04:46Because if they're signed there, they can go and work Ring of Honor and they can go and work New Japan and they can do Indies and all of that stuff as they please.
04:53So for me, it's a bit more interesting.
04:55There's more scope for them to have good matches in a variety of different places.
04:58Obviously, if they went back to WWE, there's plenty of teams for them to have great matches with there.
05:03But, you know, a bit more variety.
05:04I think that's cool.
05:05But it's good that they had the option as well and that they were able, presumably, to score themselves a good deal.
05:12Because they could have gone back to WWE and I think they probably would have been quite happy there.
05:15But good for them.
05:17I'm glad that they're kind of sticking around.
05:21And we'll see what their first, second, sorry, run with the World Tag Team titles does.
05:25The first one, 63 days, a little bit short.
05:28Hoping for a longer one this time.
05:30But anyway, let's move over to Jay White.
05:33So, yesterday, we did the whole gimmick where we spoke about WWE's interest in Jay White or Jay White's interest in WWE.
05:42It wasn't quite clear which way around it was.
05:45He wasn't going there, it seemed.
05:47And that's definitely the case now because he was on Dynamite last night and he's got an All Elite graphic on Twitter.
05:53So, he showed up.
05:54Ricky Starks was hitting the ring to face Juice Robinson when Jay White's music hit.
05:58Switchblade came out onto the ramp and that allowed Juice to kind of ambush Ricky.
06:03Two on one beat down.
06:04They retreated up the ramp.
06:05All of that stuff.
06:07Jay has been a free agent since leaving New Japan earlier this year.
06:10He, of course, had two separate Loser Leaves matches there which was quite fun.
06:14Both of them were good as well against Hickaleo and Eddie Kingston.
06:17And now he's in AEW.
06:19So, I'm quite surprised by this.
06:21I thought he was going to head to WWE where I thought he would do a very good job.
06:24Not that he won't do a very good job in AEW, don't get me wrong.
06:26He's a good wrestler.
06:27He could do a good job anywhere pretty much.
06:30But yeah, it's cool.
06:32I think that he would have done, I think he'd have been a megastar over there.
06:36But I think he'll be a megastar over here as well.
06:38Can't really fail with this guy.
06:40Obviously, he is a Bullet Club.
06:42So, that's where the Juice link comes from.
06:45It's cool stuff across the board.
06:47Him and Ricky would be a really great match down the road as well.
06:49So, hopefully we get that.
06:52And our, what story are we on?
06:53I'm all over the place with the positivity today.
06:56Tony Khan talking about doing a Wrestlemania style event for AEW.
07:00Like a multi-day weekend spanning thing.
07:03He talked about this in an interview with Sports Illustrated.
07:06That actually went out before last night's All In Wembley thing announcement.
07:12I'll just read the quote to you.
07:13We could do one event spanning a weekend.
07:15And we could also do multiple events across a week.
07:17It's something we're considering.
07:19Especially as we keep entering so many new debut markets.
07:22We're looking forward to expanding and holding more huge events.
07:26So, this is pretty cool.
07:27My favorite thing about Wrestlemania is the whole carnival surrounding it.
07:30It's not just the big shows, WWE's two granddaddy of them all's or whatever you want to call them.
07:37But everything that happens around these things.
07:40Like the indie event, you obviously get an NXT show.
07:44Loads of companies flying in and taking advantage of there being thousands of wrestling fans in town.
07:49The whole place being buzzing.
07:50Like conventions, WrestleCon, like all of that stuff.
07:54I love all that.
07:55It's like a party, like a music festival for wrestling.
07:58It's the sickest thing ever.
08:00I'd like to see an AEW version of that for sure.
08:03Will that be in London in August?
08:05I mean, I think that would be cool.
08:07But there's no confirmation of that.
08:09By the way, if you want to see the press release for the London event on the 27th of August,
08:14it's on our website.
08:15You can check it out there.
08:16But we're going over to the Twitter questions today.
08:18And I've taken five today because the past few days have just been non-stop negative stuff about Vince and things.
08:25So I want to talk to the people for a little bit.
08:29That's what I want to do.
08:29The first one comes from All Elite Positivity.
08:32Good.
08:32I like that.
08:33I like that.
08:33Positive spin on wrestling.
08:34Morning, Mr. Murray.
08:36The age stands for hype.
08:37Yes, it does.
08:38Not only have we got a UK show, it promises to be the biggest UK wrestling event in the history of the company,
08:43of any company outside of WWE, and the biggest in the UK since SummerSlam 92.
08:48Absolutely.
08:49My question is, do you think it will sell out?
08:51I do.
08:52It's going to be tough.
08:53It's going to be really, really difficult.
08:56So there's a lot of factors to weigh up here.
08:59Obviously, it's a huge arena.
09:01It's a 90,000-seater stadium.
09:04The wrestling setup will probably bring that number down a little bit.
09:07And that's not to say that AEW will open up all of the seats, like the top-level bowls and all of that stuff.
09:15Maybe it'll be a slightly reduced capacity.
09:17You never know.
09:18So that would obviously improve their chances.
09:21It's their first show in the UK.
09:23There is a big hunger for AEW in the UK.
09:25The TV ratings are good.
09:27The TV network's weird, actually.
09:28It goes out on ITV, and it's like, it's a TV channel everyone has.
09:32It's free to air, but it's like a couple of days late.
09:35So there is that thing balancing against it, but the TV does well.
09:41I think there is an appetite for this in the UK.
09:45Is there enough to sell tens and thousands of tickets approaching 100,000?
09:50I'm quite dubious.
09:51I will say that Tony Khan is a smart guy.
09:54He's a smart businessman.
09:55And I don't think he would have booked this show if he thought he was only going to sell 20, 30,000 tickets, right?
10:02I think this guy's probably got a few aces up his sleeve.
10:05Now, you can speculate on that, right?
10:06You can rumor about CM Punk coming back.
10:11Or, I don't know, bringing in some top- bringing in Goldberg.
10:15I don't know if that would help, actually.
10:16But you know what I mean.
10:18I think he's probably got a few big things to pull off that will spark ticket sales as well.
10:23So I'm looking forward to seeing how this plays out.
10:26I'm immensely excited for the event.
10:27This and Money in the Bank happening in the UK within two months of each other this summer.
10:32It's just extremely cool for us UK fans.
10:35I think it's really awesome.
10:38And yeah, you know, I've got to give you a straight answer, haven't I?
10:40I can't just sit here and waffle.
10:44Okay, yes, yes.
10:45They're going to sell it out.
10:48I'm quite happy to look like an idiot if they don't.
10:50But you know what?
10:51After the week we've had, I would prefer to veer on the optimistic side.
10:55Yeah, screw it.
10:56They're going to sell 300,000 tickets.
10:58Obviously, not that much.
10:59But you know, it's going to be cool.
11:01Howie Potter has been on.
11:02Andy, serious question.
11:04Do you see Goomba enjoying a long title reign as an Intercontinental Champion,
11:08despite Vince's uncanny ability to bollocks up the booking of great wrestlers,
11:11regardless of how over they are?
11:13Howie uses Cesaro as an example.
11:15Perfect example.
11:16I would have a lot less confidence in Vince doing it than I would if Triple H was still
11:23the big boy right in the shows with the final say.
11:26I think that prior to this week, I wouldn't have been surprised if this gunfire run continued
11:32for like another six months to a year.
11:34That being said, I think the story is right there.
11:37The Sheamus story is on WWE's lap.
11:40Sheamus beating him one-on-one is like a really nice bow on top of their ongoing feud and what
11:48they did at Clash, what they did at Mania, what they've done between then.
11:51Sheamus becoming a Grand Slam champion is really romantic.
11:54Like, it's a great pro wrestling story.
11:56And actually, I would do that sooner rather than later.
11:59I would do that within the next two to three months.
12:02So, yes, it's Vince.
12:05He could bollocks that up, but I think a good story is right on their lap.
12:08It doesn't necessarily mean that Gunther has to hold the belt for too much longer.
12:12I think he's already had an awesome run.
12:15One of the best Intercontinental title reigns, frankly, of all time.
12:18He has brought that belt to a whole new level.
12:21And I'm delighted with how it's gone for him.
12:24And I hope it continues to go well.
12:26But it is Vince, so hard to feel as optimistic about his long-term prospects.
12:32Now that the crazy old man is back, for sure.
12:35My phone's being weird.
12:36But question number three comes from Adam Ryan, who asks,
12:39With the pending sale to Endeavor, where do you see WWE being at come SummerSlam?
12:45Yeah, I think they'll still be immensely successful.
12:47I think they're failure-proof at this point.
12:49Bringing in big dough, big crowds, all of that stuff.
12:51I think that Creative will feel a lot more like pre-July 2022.
12:57When the changeover happened, of course.
13:00I think that maybe there'll be a bit less buzz about the company.
13:03As a consequence of that, I think that we will start to see some of the business changes creeping in.
13:07I do think that there will be cuts, sadly.
13:10It's just what happens in these situations.
13:13And we will cover them accordingly as they come out.
13:15Yeah, I think it's going to feel like kind of the old days, to an extent.
13:22And I think that's a real shame.
13:24Because what Triple H has built over the past nine months clearly connects with a lot of people.
13:29And I fear that people might lose that connection.
13:32I don't think that half of WWE's audience is going to abandon the company.
13:37I think that WWE, when you listen to the live crowds, it seems very much like the beach ball, CM Punk, AEW chanting people.
13:44I think they've all gone, actually.
13:45And gone over to AEW now, where they can get a different flavor of wrestling.
13:49So I don't think there'll be wide-scale exoduses and stuff.
13:51I think things like that are always a little bit overstated in this era.
13:56But it will feel different.
13:58And I do think there'll be cuts, sadly.
14:00But we'll see how that pans out.
14:01I obviously hope there aren't.
14:03But, you know, that's how it goes.
14:04Kylie Fuller's been on, shouts to Kylie, asking,
14:07Would you be into Nigel McGuinness managing the BCC?
14:10Yeah, barely got to talk about this.
14:12Yeah, Nigel's in AEW.
14:13That's cool.
14:14Good for him.
14:15Like, I love Nigel.
14:15He's a great dude.
14:17Yeah, this would be sick.
14:18I think a lot of people drew this line when the graphic dropped last night.
14:21The is all elite thing.
14:23And it would be a perfect fit.
14:24Because obviously he has immense history with Bryan Danielson from their time in Ring of Honor.
14:28He's English.
14:30So, there you go.
14:33Perfect.
14:33Why not?
14:34Following in William Regal's footsteps.
14:36You know, I'm a sicko.
14:37I'm a total sicko.
14:39I kind of want to match it.
14:42I don't know if he's physically capable of doing that right and clearance and all that.
14:45And obviously if he's not, fair enough.
14:47That takes priority.
14:48But if there's a way to have one last Nigel McGuinness match,
14:52me as a psychopath, I want to see that.
14:54But yeah, I'm totally into him as the BCC leader.
14:57I think that'd be cool.
14:58That'd be a great direction to go.
14:59And a nice way to use him that isn't just a commentator.
15:02Even though he's a really good commentator.
15:04So, cool.
15:05And our final question of the day comes from John Harrison.
15:08Shout out to John.
15:09Good morning, Andy and his sexy co-host.
15:11There is nothing sexy about this slivery little freak John, but fair play.
15:17What's your favorite arena slash stadium of all time to house a wrestling event?
15:21Have a great day.
15:22Peace and love.
15:23Peace and love.
15:23Good message.
15:25Madison Square Garden, honestly.
15:27I know it's a bit cliche, but like watching the old like WWE Royal Rumbles and pay-per-views
15:33in that building, when you have like the entranceway directly in front of the hard cam
15:37with a short distance to the ring and the doors.
15:39I love that set up so much.
15:41I know they don't run it anymore because you can't fit the stage.
15:44You can't fit their silly video boards and all that stuff that I don't really like.
15:47You can't fit that in there, but that's my favorite.
15:50Also, the opportunity to go there to watch the G1 Supercard in 2019.
15:53It's just such a nice building in such a wonderful and chaotic city.
15:58So, yeah, it's MSG.
16:01A lot of people would say that, but I've got to be real and tell you what I think.
16:07It's just a great building when you're there in person and when you're watching it on TV.
16:13And I wish WWE ran it with that old school set up at least once.
16:16Just for me.
16:17Do it for me, guys.
16:18I'm sure you're watching this video and going,
16:21yeah, we've got to do what that bald idiot says.
16:22Anyway, thank you so much for joining me for another solo news video.
16:26I'll be back with another one of these tomorrow.
16:28You're not getting rid of me that quickly.
16:30It's been a pleasure, but don't forget to follow...
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16:34Like, share, subscribe, ring the bell for notifications.
16:37Stuff like that really does help us out, so it's very much appreciated.
16:40Then if you could follow us on Twitter at WhatCultureWWE and myself at AndyHMurray.
16:46The H stands for Hoop, 51, blow my neck.
16:49Indiana Jones and the Temple of Hoop.
16:52Back tomorrow.
16:53See you later.
16:54Eel.
16:55.
16:56I'mvin.
17:01.
17:03.
17:05.
17:06.
17:09.
17:10Eel.
17:12.
17:13.
17:16.
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