Posted in: AEW, Opinion, Sports, TV, TV, WWE | Tagged: aew, opinion, Wrestlemania, wrestling, wwe

AEW: How Tony Khan Can Counter WWE's WrestleMania 43 in Saudi Arabia

With the WWE hosting WrestleMania 43 in Saudi Arabia next year, we've got a winning pitch on how AEW Tony Khan could (and should) counter.

Though contingency plans are reportedly in place should things in the Middle East remain unstable, the WWE is moving ahead with holding 2027's WrestleMania 43 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – the first time the annual event will be held outside North America. When the news first hit, there were a lot of folks who made it clear that holding a "WrestleMania" in Saudi Arabia is problematic, to say the least – including some who will end up wrestling on the card anyway. But that's not what this is about. This is about pitching AEW head Tony Khan on how he could counter the TKO company's move, score major PR points, and galvanize the professional wrestling community across the United States. Basically, put together a version of "Forbidden Door" that spotlights some of the hottest and up-and-coming indy feds across the United States.

Over the year leading up to it, Khan could send out scouts across the country to scope out potential feds to take part, while also giving the feds a chance to make their case. In addition, a fan/social media component would need to be in play. Obviously, AEW would be looking for each fed to spotlight their top match – title matches preferred. Okay, now that you have the card set (with backup matches ready for what will most likely be last-minute changes), how do you make it matter? For a spotlight card like this to work, it needs to have some teeth.

That's where the final match of the night comes in, with either a battle royal or a gauntlet match determining the winner. The prize? Along with a title belt (yes, we would want this to be an annual thing) that would be expected to be defended during the following year's event (barring contract issues), the winning wrestler also gets a spotlight match on either AEW Dynamite or during a major AEW event. Not only does the wrestler get national exposure, but the fed does as well. Plus, once the card is set, you would have any number of feds across the country promoting it on a grassroots level to their fans to rally support. And it would be so easy to promote on any number of levels: a potential public relations goldmine.

So there it is, Tony Khan. Feel free to run with it – just make sure to give me an executive producer credit and have a Classic Marinara Sicilian pizza from Bravo Pizza in Union Square delivered to my apartment, and we're square (like the pizza).

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