How AEW Should Debut Drew McIntyre

Effectively stealing a spot on the card, Galloway could brutalise Cassidy on his debut with the intent of taking the International Championship and "restoring its prestige", or however he wants to reframe and justify his violence.

Over the weeks leading up to the show, a sinister motivation could reveal itself; he never got his big Championship moment in front of his "home nation", and he's found a shortcut. Heeling him against his most loyal supporters might seem counterintuitive, but it'd only take weeks of the big Scot shooting on UK fans specifically for patronising him during his cursed 2022 run at Roman Reigns. The whole thing playing as one big riff on the "these shows need UK acts" refrain works even better when the highest profile UK act making the trip is booed out of the building against a company original and arguably the character most associated with AEW's unique creative flair.

Whomever eventually beats Cassidy is elevated by that alone, so the momentum would be with him after the fact. The localised heat could subside, replaced by the actions of an ex-WWE killer monster towering over his challengers and clinging onto the belt as if it was the Universal Championship he was never able to claim.

AEW are great at putting runs together, and Drew's with this title would carry on Orange Cassidy's incredible reign. Cassidy may even be the man to win it back, but if nothing else, it adds value to the roster without that perpetual question hanging over so many signings over the last few years - were they really worth the investment?

Like he did in WWE on the cusp of an unprecedented global pandemic and across an independent industry not predisposed to embrace performers like him, he'd answer that with a resounding "F*CK Yes".