AEW owners Shad and Tony Khan - who also own Fulham - are 'interested' in BUYING rival promotion WWE

Publish date: 2024-05-11

WWE's closest rival All Elite Wrestling, owned by Fulham and Jacksonville Jaguars owners Shad and Tony Khan, is keen to merge with its biggest competitor, according to reports.

AEW, which is also based in Jacksonville, Florida, started in 2019, and has grown to become the second largest wrestling franchise behind WWE over the past four years.

CNBC report that the Khans could partner with a strategic media company to share the intellectual property while merging the wrestling leagues, in a deal that could be worth £5bn (£4.1bn).

Fulham owners Tony and Shad Khan want to merge their AEW franchise with the WWE

Fulham owners Tony and Shad Khan want to merge their AEW franchise with the WWE

Vince McMahon returned to the WWE last week in a bid to sell the famous wrestling franchise

Vince McMahon returned to the WWE last week in a bid to sell the famous wrestling franchise

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While WWE's controlling shareholder Vince McMahon is keen to sell the company, it is not clear whether he would be interested in a merger with AEW, which is much smaller.


WWE raked in almost $1.3bn (£1.07bn) in revenue in the past year. By comparison, Tony Khan said in September that AEW was on pace to generate more than $100m (£82.1m) in revenue in 2022, but still less than a tenth of its more-established rival.

Sportsmail previously reported that WWE had hired external financial advisors amid links of a sale to Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. Other prospective buyers include Disney, Comcast, Endeavour and Netflix.

The WWE has several reported suitors including Saudi Arabia, Disney, Comcast and Netflix

The WWE has several reported suitors including Saudi Arabia, Disney, Comcast and Netflix

McMahon, who was worth more than $3 billion (£2.5bn) in July, helps to formulate some of the WWE’s intricate storylines.

Meanwhile, Flex-N-Gate owner Shad Khan has a net worth of $7.56 billion (£6.2bn), and he owns AEW with his 40-year-old son Tony, who is president, chief executive, general manager and executive producer of the promotion.

Shad Khan has owned Fulham Football Club for almost a decade, spending a reported £200m to purchase the London-based Premier League team from Mohamed Al-Fayed. 

The 2013 purchase of Fulham came one year after he took full ownership of NFL side the Jacksonville Jaguars in January 2012.  

AEW only started in 2019, but has risen in four years to become the WWE's closest competitor

AEW only started in 2019, but has risen in four years to become the WWE's closest competitor

However, Khan, 72, and his associates have yet to strike up talks with McMahon, or WWE chief executive Nick Khan, about any possible move and the intricacies of any deal to merge their prospective wrestling franchises, including McMahon's future role.

The plans were rumoured to involve allowing McMahon to maintain a role within the new wrestling league going forward, although it is not clear what the 77-year-old business executive would do in the continued venture.

McMahon left WWE in July amid allegations he spent $12m over six years to silence claims of sexual misconduct and infidelity.

Stephanie McMahon sensationally quit WWE after her father returned to the company's board

Stephanie McMahon sensationally quit WWE after her father returned to the company's board

He controversially returned to the fold last week, revealing the move was done to prove he was serious about a deal to sell the WWE to someone else.

His comeback prompted his own daughter Stephanie McMahon to sensationally resign as Chairwoman and co-CEO of the wrestling franchise on Tuesday. It has led to some speculation that her husband, the former wrestler Triple H, may also step away from WWE business, where he created the experimental NXT branch. 

Rival wrestling leagues have merged before. In 2001, the then-WWF, now WWE, acquired World Championship Wrestling (WCW) from Turner Broadcasting.

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