Why would WWE not expect AEW All Out to sell as well as it did opposite Worlds Collide?

AEW/WWE

With WWE Worlds Collide and AEW All Out in the record books, a curious situation occurred in the run-up to both shows regarding ticket sales.

Fightful Select carried a report that sources in WWE had “admitted they didn’t expect AEW to sell as well as it did, but were still happy with their own sales.”

It was a topic that Tony Khan would address in the AEW All Out post-show press conference, with Fightful quoting the executive as saying:

“Did WWE actually go on the record and say they were surprised that we did so well? I was just curious about that. We had our own show to do. I was kind of surprised they would say that because we’ve done very, very well.

“AEW is having an incredible year, why would they be surprised that we would sell out? We’ve sold this arena out many times, and AEW is having a fantastic year.”

When comparing AEW All Out to WWE Worlds Collide, it’s curious that the TKO-owned company would not expect their opposite number to do well in the same territory:

Worlds Collide Isn’t A Major PLE

Whenever Dynamite and NXT have gone head-to-head, some critics have pointed out that AEW’s main show is going up against a B-show in WWE’s schedule.

This is very much true of Worlds Collide and All Out, with a WWE “special” going up against a key entry in the AEW calendar. Why WWE would be surprised that AEW’s offering would deliver in the way that it did is baffling given this detail.

As a statement from the unnamed WWE source, it would ring true if an actual PLE featuring main roster stars and all the matches one would expect was put up against the AEW pay-per-view.

The Sell Out

WrestleTix reported that AEW All Out had distributed 9,456 tickets and, with 0 remaining, while WWE Worlds Collide saw 13,853 with 657 tickets available. “Tickets distributed” includes all tickets sold, plus comps.

While WWE distributed more tickets, it fell just a touch short of a sellout, something that AEW All Out was able to do with its venue configuration.

The CM Punk Factor

CM Punk in Chicago is always going to be a draw, but one star is rarely the whole show.

For Punk, he teamed with Rey Mysterio and El Grande Americano to face Dominik Mysterio, JD McDonagh and Omos (with results for the whole show right here, for those who don’t want to wait until it streams on Wednesday).

CM Punk at WWE Worlds Collide was confirmed on August 13, and would go on to be one of the few main roster stars to be confirmed for the show. By contrast, All Out was filled with a large number of recognizable names from their roster, primarily because they don’t have an equivalent to NXT.

Regardless of how he was used, without it specifically feeding into the stories being told on the main roster, using Punk in this way arguably offers little above a house show appearance.

What was AEW All Out offering that WWE Worlds Collide wasn’t?

One title was on the line at Worlds Collide, with that being the AAA Reina de Reinas Championship.

By contrast, All Out offered seven championship matches, with two matches determining number one contenders. Across the whole main show, every match has an impact on a title.

Even for fans who had left ticket purchases late, potentially waiting to see what happened at AEW All In: London on August 30, there was more at stake on this PPV than on WWE Worlds Collide.

Make It Count

A true head-to-head, particularly in the event space, would be to put a key WWE PLE up against an AEW PPV.

Next year may see this happen in the form of a WrestleMania 43 in April next year, with Tony Khan promising “a huge event in the spring of 2027.” It’s a bold step, but one that is separated by continents. The next move would be to run an AEW PPV opposite a WWE PLE, in the same part of the United States.

Transcript from Fightful.

To make sure you stay up to date with all the biggest wrestling and WrestleTalk news, follow us on Threads by clicking this link!

• wwe
• AEW All Out
• Worlds Collide
• AEW

Share this article with friends