Tony Khan

On January 2nd, Tony and Shahid Khan were named as the company’s lead investors with Tony taking on the role of President of the upstart company. Nick Jackson, Matt Jackson, Cody Rhodes, and Kenny Omega were all named Executive Vice Presidents of AEW, combining those roles with their on-screen responsibilities.

At the launch rally on January 8th, the first names signed to the company included Britt Baker, PAC, and most notably, former WWE Undisputed Champion, Chris Jericho.

Following the announcement, Khan revealed that AEW would be an “alternative” to WWE. It would be a more ‘”sports-based” product with an emphasis on action rather than angles. Creativity was placed in the hands of the wrestlers and not a team of writers allowing promos and storylines to feel more natural.

Another big announcement followed. AEW and WarnerMedia announced a deal for a weekly prime-time show airing live on TNT, the network that had previously carried WCW until its demise in 2001.

The promotion’s first official show, Double Or Nothing was held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas in May 2019 and was a success. The show was headlined by Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega and featured the surprise debut of Jon Moxley.

On August 31, 2019, AEW produced its second pay-per-view event, All Out. At the event, the Women’s World Championship belt was unveiled and in the main event, Jericho defeated Adam Page to become the inaugural World Champion.

Dynamite aired on TNT for the first time on October 2nd, 2019. This led to the short-lived but hotly debated ‘Wednesday Night Wars’ after WWE moved NXT off their own network and onto the USA Network before Dynamite debuted.

The two shows ran together during the midst of the pandemic. But one thing AEW had on its side and used extremely well was Daily’s Place. The open-air arena allowed the company to continue to put on its flagship show with a big-time feel attached. The use of the wrestling talent on the outskirts of the ring acting as fans was another huge bonus as it provided a less jarring audio and visual wrestling experience.

Khan continued to shock the wrestling world with the surprise return of Sting. The moment was the talk of the town for weeks and has given the legend the last run he deserves.

Sadly, Tony Khan’s AEW was rocked by the sad death of Brodie Lee in December 2020 ahead just 41. His arrival in AEW brought legitimacy to the Dark Order, and as the ‘Exalted One’, Lee was allowed to spread his wings with new character traits and promos. His destruction of Cody to win the TNT title was a watershed in AEW history. The way the promotion handled his passing and celebrated his life was a heartbreaking yet beautiful tribute to a man who meant a lot to both fans and his family.

After returning to live touring, Khan continued to add to his roster by signing several big-name former WWE stars including Bryan Danielson and Adam Cole. Khan’s biggest acquisition to date is no doubt CM Punk, who ended his seven-year exile from wrestling to become All Elite.