Tony Khan Discusses How Max & New WBD Deal Changed Things for AEW, Listening To Their Fans

– During the latest episode of The Toronto Sun’s No Holds Barred, AEW President and CEO Tony Khan discussed the growth of AEW, how the new broadcast deal with Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) has changed things for the promotion, along with AEW now streaming on Max (soon to be HBO Max once again). Below are some highlights (via Fightful):

Tony Khan on how the new WBD broadcast deal and streaming on Max has changed things for AEW: “What’s really changed for us this year, it’s been a true game-changer and sport-changer for AEW; it’s changed the whole marketplace for us in terms of AEW’s wrestling landscape. It’s Max, the streaming service. Having AEW on Max has helped us reach new viewers, a new audience, a younger audience, all kinds of people who have never seen AEW before, maybe even some cord-cutters that have gotten away from cable, coming back into AEW.”

On AEW’s viewership: “We’re still seeing record viewership on TSN, TBS, and TNT. The audience all went up from Q4 to Q1, even though we started streaming, more people are watching on cable, which is the complete opposite of what every analyst would’ve expected. We’ve grown our cable numbers as we expanded into the streaming universe, and that move to streaming has injected a lifeblood into AEW that’s been a really positive thing for the wrestlers, the staff, and the fans in 2025.”

On their recent run of shows, vocal fandom, and listening to their fans: “The most important thing we’re doing is great shows every week. Every Wednesday and Saturday, the shows have really delivered, and our fans have been behind the company. Our fans love wrestling, they’re vocal, and we listen. I love hearing when they enjoy it, and I want to lean into things they like. It can’t be the same show every week. It has to be different things, but trying to produce shows that our fans like is something we want to do, and we have been doing a great job of it in 2025.”