October 2, 2024 will go down as a landmark day in All Elite Wrestling’s history, and no one feels that more than AEW President Tony Khan.
On this date, AEW and Warner Bros. Discovery announced a massive multi-year, multi-platform media rights renewal, a deal valued at over $150 million per year, according to Variety. This milestone solidifies AEW’s future across multiple platforms, including AEW Dynamite and AEW Collision being simulcast weekly on MAX, along with discounted AEW pay-per-views available on the streaming platform.
During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Khan described October 2, 2024, as the “biggest day in AEW’s history”, pointing to the strategic timing of the groundbreaking announcement. “What a perfect time to make this announcement about our future,” Khan stated, emphasizing the importance of this new era for AEW.
Adding to the excitement, Warner Bros. Discovery’s U.S. Networks CEO Kathleen Finch praised AEW’s ability to deliver an audience unlike any other. Finch highlighted the tremendous opportunity that comes with expanding AEW’s reach to a MAX streaming audience, which may not have previously been exposed to AEW’s brand of wrestling. “We are really excited about the growth opportunity and the excitement opportunity that the fandom can bring once we’ve got a new platform to expose AEW to,” Finch said.
Finch also took a moment to recognize Khan’s remarkable success over the past five years, saying, “What he has done in five years is so miraculous that I think we sometimes lose sight of that.” She compared AEW’s rapid growth to that of a company that would typically take 10 to 15 years to reach such heights.
For his part, Tony Khan had nothing but glowing words for the team at WBD, expressing deep appreciation for Kathleen Finch and David Zaslav. “I could not ask for better bosses,” Khan said, praising their ongoing support of AEW and the strong partnership that has helped fuel AEW’s growth since the formation of Warner Bros. Discovery.
With this new deal, AEW is poised for even greater success as it continues to expand its reach into the streaming world, bringing live wrestling action to MAX and further solidifying its place in the wrestling industry.
