Why WWE & AEW Wrestlers Are So Unhappy Right Now

SASHA BANKS BAYLEY
WWE

Not to bang a well-worn drum, but WWE's mass release strategy at the height of pandemic panic in 2020 was gross enough before they spent the next several investor calls relaying monstrous record profits. But they perhaps didn't consider how the ramifications would resonate and ripple as the years passed.

Fox and USA Network rights fees brought the market leader untold wealth in 2019, and AEW in-part was permitted to exist by the paymasters at the top of the television tree will to spend big money on wrestling. The product existed in the live sports/entertainment grey area that streaming services couldn't yet compete with, and industry bankrolled itself forever as a result.

But what of those that ensured there was an industry in the first place? The wrestlers performing for one of the two billionaire-backed organisations producing mainstream North American wrestling today grew up hearing stories of how much the generation before them managed to gleam thanks to the Monday Night War. Cash, creative freedom, a work schedule more suited to their life - the stars of of the late 1990s/early 2000s were getting some or all of it, and with WWE's monopoly shattered in 2019, the good times were overdue for a return.

CONT'D...

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett