The Wrestling Observer Newsletter is reporting that even though All Elite Wrestling hasn’t run shows in front of a live audience since March. The company still managed to break even in April and made a small profit.
Tony Khan, on a recent episode of the AEW Unrestricted podcast, said AEW had lost millions of dollars from loss live gates due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the issues, Khan stated the upstart promotion was the second-healthiest company in the industry.
Meltzer noted the money made in April did not make up for the loss of live gates, but it did keep the company in the black. Profits came from the money they get from TNT, online merchandise sales, and the cost savings due to taping a month’s worth of shows in two days in Decatur, Georgia. The promotion saved additional money because they didn’t have to fly talent in and out each week.
AEW has since returned to running a combination of live and taped shows from Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, Florida. This week’s episode of Dynamite was taped in advance, but the May 20 and May 27 editions of AEW Dynamite will be broadcast live, as will the Double Or Nothing pay-per-view.
The Observer also noted that if the pandemic hadn’t happened, AEW would have likely had a huge month in revenue. The promotion expected good gate numbers for their shows in Milwaukee, St. Louis, Boston, Philadelphia, and Houston. St. Louis and Houston, in particular, are good markets for wrestling, and it would have been AEW’s debut in both.
Shows in Rochester and Newark planned for March also would have been big for the company. Newark might have set their all-time record for gate. Before the pandemic, it was hoped that these shows would make up some of the losses from their first year.
