AEW spent a lot of money, the three superstars joined, and the ratings did not rise but fell?
Recently, AEW has been a big deal, signing three superstars: Will Osprey, Kazumu Okada and Sasha Banks. However, what is criticized is that despite the huge investment, the ratings have not improved, but have declined. Among them, Sasha is regarded as the biggest failure of Tony Khan's signing.
When it comes to this, we have to start with AEW signing three superstars in succession. At the 2023 All-Arms Tournament, Will Ospree officially joined AEW. As a strong player, his addition has undoubtedly added a lot of strength to AEW.
On March 7, 2024, legendary Japanese wrestler "Rain Caller" Kazumu Okada made his debut at AEW. The veteran who held the AEW title has brought a lot of highlights to AEW with his experience and superb wrestling skills.
Finally, there's the addition of former WWE Women's Champion Sasha Banks. She made her debut on March 14, 2024 in the AEW Dynamite Big Business special, and the viewership reached 1 million at that time, which can be said to bring a small climax to AEW. Soon, though, this little climax was extinguished.
Although AEW paid a lot of money to sign these three superstars, the ratings did not improve, except for the first episode of Sasha's debut, the ratings of AEW Dynamite have been hovering around 800,000 and failed to break through. Even last year's episode of the backstage farce of the CM punk incident was broadcast, and the ratings only briefly exceeded 800,000.
As for the reason for the sluggish ratings, many people pointed the finger at Sasha. As a former WWE Women's Champion, Sasha is undoubtedly the most heavyweight member of AEW's signing. However, her performance is far from satisfactory, especially her speech in the ring has many problems, giving people the feeling of playing a villain.
Many experts and media professionals have been outspoken about Sasha's performance at AEW. Mexican legend Conan directly pointed out that she was the biggest failure of Tony Khan's signing, while well-known media personality Apt also expressed disappointment with Sasha's performance at AEW.
There are also rumors that AEW paid a whopping $5 million in annual salary to sign Sasha, which undoubtedly heightens doubts about whether she is worth her money. Such a high salary in exchange for a player with mediocre ratings and questionable acting skills undoubtedly makes AEW's investment decision fall into the dilemma of being questioned.
It's not hard to understand why Sasha's performance at AEW has been questioned. As a former WWE Women's Champion, expectations are naturally high. However, the reality is a bit cruel, and her performance is far from meeting everyone's expectations.
It would be an oversimplification to point the finger at Sasha herself. We can't ignore that AEW executives did make some debatable decisions on this matter.
It was the high salary paid by AEW to sign Sasha. According to rumors, Sasha earns up to $5 million a year at AEW. For an emerging small wrestling company, this fee is undoubtedly a heavy burden. In exchange for a contestant whose acting skills have been questioned, it undoubtedly raises questions about whether AEW has made an expensive bet.
AEW was also very divided in its handling of Sasha. On the one hand, due to the heavy investment in it, AEW naturally hopes to make the most of Sasha's popularity, which will lead to an increase in ratings. On the other hand, Sasha's performance at AEW was far less than satisfactory and even caused a lot of negative reviews. In this case, it became a dilemma whether AEW should continue to support Sasha.
Finally, Sasha's case also reflects the bottleneck of AEW's future development to a certain extent. As an up-and-coming small wrestling company, AEW has struggled to keep up with WWE. The sluggish ratings will undoubtedly affect AEW's business prospects, which in turn will constrain its development. AEW urgently needs to take strong steps to reverse the current predicament.
For AEW, how should it solve the current dilemma? I think AEW needs to start from the following aspects:
AEW needed to rethink its talent acquisition strategy. While signing big-name stars can bring a short-term boost of attention, if not properly planned and utilized, the effect will only be short-lived. When introducing talents, AEW should not only focus on popularity, but also on the actual ability and development potential of players.
Secondly, AEW needs to strengthen the training and packaging of existing players. The foundation of a wrestling company is the players, not the individual big-name stars. AEW should focus on building a group of star players with popularity and strength, so as to form its own core competitiveness.
AEW needs to strengthen the innovation and planning of program content. As an up-and-coming small company, AEW needed to capture the audience's attention with innovative program content. AEW also needs to strengthen the planning of the program to ensure the quality and coherence of the program content.
AEW needs to strengthen the maintenance and interaction of the fan base. As a start-up company, AEW has a relatively small fan base, so it needs to maintain and expand its fan base in various ways. AEW also needs to enhance its engagement with fans and understand their needs and expectations so that they can better meet their needs.
AEW is indeed facing some difficulties at the moment, but as long as it can take effective measures, I believe it will be able to get back on track. As an emerging small company, AEW has more room and potential for development. As long as it can seize the opportunity, I believe it will be able to stand out in the fierce competition.