Why AEW Should Be Worried About The New WWE

AEW is already dealing with its own problems on the talent side.

That Brian Cage, Marko Stunt, Joey Janela, and now Jonathan Gresham have all mentioned a "lack of communication" amongst their organisational concerns means this is now a trend, not a handful of detached, isolated complaints. Clearly, something has gone wrong. The channels between Khan, his talent relations team, AEW's coaches, and the roster aren't functioning as they should, which must be addressed if the promotion is to retain its waning image as the US' "babyface" promotion.

Elsewhere, joining AEW no longer brings the promise of increased television time and boundless opportunities. While the list of wrestlers who have fared better under Khan's employment than Vince McMahon's is lengthy, AEW's roster is huge, now, and three hours of weekly content isn't a lot. Talented wrestlers routinely go missing from Dynamite and Rampage for weeks at a time. Even Thunder Rosa, the Women's World Champion, has expressed frustration.

Such challenges come with being a growing company that rapidly outperformed initial projections on launch and continues to do so. This is heightened in a market as volatile as wrestling, where enticing, ultra-talented free agents regularly materialise on 90 days' notice. Khan will have expected them. He is likely dealing with them in unseen, imperceptible ways.

But his company's perception has unquestionably changed since its launch. While AEW's approach remains starkly different to WWE's (to AEW's benefit), the honeymoon period ended a long time ago. The #AllElite image is shifted.

So too may WWE's.

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