Tony Khan Responds To Goldberg Calling AEW "Too Cheesy"

Tony Khan has offered a polite, diplomatic response to Bill Goldberg claiming that the AEW product is "too cheesy" for him to consider working for, claiming to have been "surprised" by the former WCW star's comments.

On Superstar Crossover, AEW boss Khan stated outright that Goldberg "wanted to work here", with the two parties holding "really nice meetings." Khan said he respects Goldberg and would've been interested in working together, with Bill's dismissive comments taking him aback.

Said Khan (h/t Fightful):

"Bill wanted to work here. I met with Bill several times. Bill was looking to work here. It's funny because I had a bunch of really nice meetings with Bill and would have honestly been interested in doing something. I have a lot of respect for Bill. I was surprised by that because that certainly wasn't what he said to me when he was talking to me about working here at some point, which I've always been open to and I really like Bill."

Continuing, Khan stated that he still respected Goldberg, adding that while Bill may hold a negative opinion of the AEW product today, the 57-year-old didn't say as much during their conversations:

"I wish him the best and God bless him. He's a great name in wrestling. I love what we do in AEW, and he's entitled to his opinions. Certainly, when I talked to him in-person, several times, in-person and in Zoom and phone calls, we've had very nice conversations, and he hasn't said that. It's good to know that's how he feels and maybe that's an opinion he holds now, but certainly in our past conversations he's always been a positive and nice guy."

Khan is referencing Goldberg's April appearance on 93.7 The Ticket, during which he bemoaned the lack of a "competitor that would allow me to look myself in the mirror after I was a member of their roster" in professional wrestling (h/t Wrestling Observer/Figure Four Online):

"I have talked to them a number of times throughout the past but this is where you're going to get the most blunt answer you're going to get from me: The product is too cheesy. It doesn't deserve to have...I mean, whatever. If there was a comparable, viable option as a competitor that would allow me to still look myself in the mirror after I was a member of their roster, yeah, then it would be a consideration but not a chance."

Interesting that a man who worked for both 2000 WCW and 2019 WWE would declare another wrestling product "too cheesy" for him to associate with, but c'est la Bill.

Goldberg's last match came in February 2022, when he was defeated by Roman Reigns at WWE Elimination Chamber. That turned out to be the final bout on the veteran's contract with the promotion. When the deal wasn't renewed, Goldberg became a free agent - and he hasn't appeared in professional wrestling since.

In the same 93.7 The Ticket interview, Goldberg stated that he was no longer actively pursuing a formal retirement match:

"I'll be perfectly honest with you. I've kind of put that on the back burner. Right now, I've segued into dad, first and foremost, and husband and car host. I'm just having fun at my garage. So I really don't have a lot of time right now to dedicate to prepping for a retirement match."