Welcome to the third-annual AEW Fan Survey! This project is designed to get a general sense of what a percentage of AEW fans think about the company and the product it is currently presenting.
For the 2025 survey results, check here, and for the 2024 survey results, check here.
This year, we were able to solicit a record number of 1,753 responses to the survey, with respondents coming from 49 states (damn you, Wyoming!) and 56 different countries, including places such as Costa Rica, Andorra, Iraq, Nigeria, and Singapore.
As always, this is still a very small percentage of AEW fans, and because the survey gets shared mainly in wrestling circles on social media, it is going to skew towards more hardcore, long-time AEW viewers, which is obvious when looking at the results. Still, the information is valuable to helping us better understand this portion of the AEW fanbase at this time.
I want to thank everyone who filled out the survey, and a special shout-out to anyone who shared the survey with other people, as that is critical to getting as many people to fill out the survey as possible. Thanks to John Pollock of POST Wrestling, Brandon Thurston of Wrestlenomics, Trevor Dame, Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer and Trish and Sarah from the Trish and Sarah Wrestling Podcast, for sharing the survey with their large followings.
I also want to thank Warren Hayes for helping me with some of the data–Warren and I have recorded an edition of The Gentlemen’s Wrestling Podcast going over the results of this year’s survey, which is available wherever people get their podcasts.
In addition, if you didn’t see it yesterday, check out a bonus report I have conducted where I asked extra questions to survey respondents who said they started watching AEW this past year. As I mentioned above, most of the respondents are long-time AEW fans, so it was interesting to get more information from this smaller field of new fans, where we learn how they first discovered AEW, what made them interested in the product, if they ever find the product confusing, and a lot more.
When did AEW Fans Start Watching The Promotion?
A majority of the fans who responded to the survey started watching AEW as soon as the company launched in 2019, suggesting these fans are lifelong wrestling fans who have been watching AEW for a long time.
The second-largest chunk is 22.9% of fans the company picked up between 2020 and 2024, which makes sense since that was five years when the company had a chance to reach new fans in a variety of ways.
Have AEW viewing habits changed?
Fans reported, in general, that they watch about the same amount of AEW as they did last year. 16.5% of respondents stated they watched less AEW, but this was largely offset by 15.2% of fans saying they watched more AEW than last year.
Compared to last year, the results are somewhat similar: 64.5% of fans said they watched the same amount of AEW as the previous year, while 19% said they watched less AEW and 15% said they watched more AEW.
Fans who stated they watched less AEW were asked why they had reduced their viewing. Popular answers included frustration with the product and some creative decisions, as well as non-AEW-related responses, such as being busier with work or other responsibilities.
After 6 years, I got bored of the booking rhythms and the same people being in the same spots and was finding myself less interested in AEW than other wrestling I was watching – Respondent from California
I’ve mostly stopped watching Collision, mostly because it doesn’t offer any real stakes to matches and/or storyline development – Respondent from Portugal
The wrestlers in many top positions have been there too long, and there is a lack of believability to the show’s storylines. The chanting of the live audience as opposed to emotional investment in the match has also made me watch much less – Respondent from Illinois
I’ve reduced my amount of AEW due to other stuff I’m doing. I still do catch clips or the show whenever I can – Respondent from Indiana
Do fans think AEW has gotten better over the past year?
65.3% of respondents reported that they thought AEW’s product had improved over the past year. 27.5% said the product was about the same, while 4.6% said the product quality had declined.
This is nearly identical to the results from 2025, which showed 64.4% of fans saying AEW’s product had improved over the past year, while 28% said it was about the same. Obviously, many of the fans voting in each survey are the same, although this year’s survey had more than double the number of respondents as the 2025 survey.
It’s worth noting that last year’s survey, conducted in March 2025, came on the heels of an excellent Revolution 2025 PPV event, and the company felt it had turned a corner after a disappointing 2024, leading many fans to feel the product was on the upswing. The fact that many fans still feel the company is improving in 2026 should be viewed as a positive, as the company has retained the optimism about the product from last March.
Are AEW fans attending live events?
When it comes to attending an AEW event live, 36.9% of respondents said they attended an AEW show in their local area. A further 20.7% of fans said they traveled to an AEW live event outside their local area. 20.7% of fans also reported that AEW did not come to their area, which is likely true for a vast majority of non-North American fans, given AEW’s limited touring outside a handful of shows in the UK and Australia.
21.6% of fans reported that AEW came to their local area, but they did not attend the show. This is an interesting population to look at, since these people are by-and-large big AEW fans, but something was keeping them from attending a show live. That number is slightly down from the 23.1% who stated they didn’t attend a show that came locally in last year’s survey.
When asked what was keeping them from attending a show that came locally, fans cited a wide variety of reasons, including the cost of tickets/parking to attend a live show, traffic concerns, west coast live events often starting during work times for fans, and a general lack of interest in the product.
“I got off work too late to make the start of the show,” – Respondent from California
“I was HAPPY to pay the regular ticket price but you guys only use ticketmaster which charges an additional $50 service fee per ticket for some reason?” – Respondent from California
“No wheelchair accessible seating listed on the booking site,” – Respondent from Massachusetts
“I went to EVERY show at the start. Nothing has happened on AEW TV over the last few years that has interested me or my friends at all,” – Respondent from Massachusetts
What do fans like and dislike about the AEW product?
Once again, the in-ring product in AEW is the main driver of what fans enjoy about AEW, with over 95% of respondents stating it is something they like about AEW. AEW uses the slogan “Where the best wrestle,” and it’s obvious that the core of the company should be centered around trying to have great matches and employing tremendous in-ring action. It is risky for AEW to stray away from this standard, either by signing and promoting wrestlers that cannot hold up to the in-ring standard, or by running episodes of TV that lack in-ring time, since, as the survey has shown time and time again, the in-ring action is the calling card for fans.
Other aspects of the company that fans stated they enjoyed were the wrestlers and characters in the company, and the storylines, with a particular focus on the diversity of talent, with fans regularly citing that seeing different types of performers getting a chance to be taken seriously as something that appealed to them.
“The match quality is unparalleled and it’s probably the only thing that has remained consistent in their entire run so far. I love getting to see new wrestlers develop on TV as well as wrestlers I’ve seen in the past get to run with their creativity and evolve as performers. And I love that we get to see New Japan and CMLL wrestlers come in essentially unfiltered. No one is toned down to make them fit, if they have something unique about them, they’re allowed to showcase it,” Respondent from Pennsylvania
“The in ring action reminds me of older wrestling I liked. And I like that the booking lets the characters cook,” – Respondent from Canada
“The wrestlers make the show. Especially when it comes to folks grounded in both character and their wrestling abilities, it’s pretty obvious someone like Toni Storm or Jon Moxley get so much mic time in AEW because of *their* abilities and the care they put in,” – Respondent from Arizona
“The in ring product is second to none. The storylines are improving, the promos feel raw and authentic. The wrestlers themselves are unique and give it their all in the ring,” – Respondent from Texas
“Performers have more latitude to be themselves (Moxley, Joe, Ospreay) or take risks with their characters (Toni, Swerve). AEW will take a wrestler that doesn’t fit the WWE mold and allow them to flourish (Darby, Orange, Speedball). There is a wider variety of wrestling styles on display,” – Respondent from Connecticut
On the flip side, for the second year in a row, merchandise stands out as the most common complaint fans have about the company, citing that the merchandise offered at live events is lacking and that many of the available clothing options are not appealing to customers. Other fans expressed a dislike of the commentary teams on television.
“I think that the merch could be better. The pricing is a little much sometimes but the main issue is just that wearing any of these shirts is kind of cringe outside of a show. Contributing to this while also being its own issue is how many shirts are just a mono color shirt with a square image,” – Respondent from Massachusetts
“The merch is often sold out or the stuff that is available nobody wants. The promos can be great but it doesn’t happen enough. The booking can be boring and not driving storylines enough,” – Respondent from Pennsylvania
“The merchandise meaning T-shirts can definitely be worked on in terms of actual quality of shirt and design. Half the shirts people are wearing you can’t even purchase like all of the deathriders stuff which I would love to buy all of. I’d like to see an older twist on Merch like the classic logos we used to get for people in the early 2000s, especially the quality of those shirts because they still hold up today,” – Respondent from New York
“I think Excalibur is annoying and while Tony Schiavone has his moments, he often messes up with names and other things,” – Respondent from Tennessee
“Commentary specifically, I like a few of them but the main commentators don’t add much to the matches for me,” – Respondent from Pennsylavania.
Do AEW fans trust Tony Khan?
81.4% of respondents said they generally trust AEW President Tony Khan as the key decision-maker in AEW. Khan, who serves as the lead booker in AEW, received more support this year than in 2025, when only 68.7% of fans said they trusted him. This figure checks out when also looking at how 65% of fans stated that they felt the product has improved over the past year.
Fans who said they trust Khan cited that his passion for wrestling and the fact that he is a real wrestling fan, similar to the fans themselves, has allowed them to believe he wants to produce a product that wrestling fans enjoy.
“I think he has learned a lot since 2023 (when I stopped watching), he’s realized AEW doesn’t need to be like WWE to be successful, and knows how to listen to fans and give them what they are asking for,” – Respondent from Tennessee
“He has his finger on the pulse of wrestling as a whole and truly understands the business – it’s clear to see that he is booking from the perspective of a fan which cannot be said for other bookers such as Triple H,” – Respondent from the United Kingdom
“A life-long fan who understands the business, the mistakes of past companies; he is someone who knows how to run the administrative and business aspects of wrestling while also having a deep knowledge of what makes it a unique form of entertainment. I do wish people like RJ City and Bryan Danielson were allowed more creative control on particular instances like the Women’s division or ROH,” – Respondent from Chile
“I think he’s come a long way since 2019. He’s made mistakes in judgements and some questionable booking decisions over the years, and will likely make more in the future, but overall he’s improved greatly year on year,” – Respondent from Ohio
Fans who said they did not trust Tony Khan stated that they feel like he should delegate more that he can lose focus in angles and characters that he does not feel that invested in.
“I feel as though he has a lot on his plate that he should delegate more of. I do not think he has been, historically, the best at communicating with his roster, and you can really tell by the onscreen product when he is not invested in things. The women’s division suffers the most from this,” – Respondent from Canada
“Overall he’s a decent enough booker who largely avoids self-inflicted wounds but his booking is very patterned. His refusal to downcycle anyone from the top of the card, and truly push new people into it, is extremely frustrating,” – Respondent from California
“I do not believe he can be objective about his own role in creative and step aside when the moment calls for it. He does not delegate to others in the company or give public credit to members of his team,” – Respondent from Illinois
Do AEW fans enjoy WWE?
Keep this chart in mind whenever someone argues that AEW should be more like WWE in order to attract more fans.
What other promotions do AEW fans watch?
Nearly half of the survey respondents said they watched New Japan Pro Wrestling regularly. I think this data set is the most telling for examining the voting pool. I find it unlikely that 45% of AEW fans are regular NJPW viewers, or that 30% are regular CMLL viewers. It’s clear this is a more hardcore fan voting pool than maybe an average AEW fan viewer pool. Still, it is notable what promotions those fans are interested in, with CMLL and STARDOM in particular seeing big rises from last year’s survey. It is perhaps notable that last year, 27.5% of fans stated they watched WWE, and this year’s survey shows that figure at under 20%, mirroring a decline in WWE’s popularity across the board in 2026.
Who are the most popular wrestlers in AEW?
As part of the survey, respondents were asked who their favorite wrestlers in AEW were, as well as their least favorite wrestlers. Kenny Omega tops the survey, followed by Will Ospreay and Adam Page.
Last year, the same names were in the top three, in a different order, with Page placing ahead of Omega and Ospreay. Out of the ten names, seven are returns from last year. The new names on the list this year are Kyle Fletcher, Jon Moxley, and MJF, who replaced Bryan Danielson, Orange Cassidy, and Eddie Kingston from last year.
Among the least favorite wrestlers, an editor’s note must be provided. I only wanted to include actual active wrestlers on the survey, so I decided not to include Chris Jericho as an option. Jericho had dominated the least favorite wrestler poll in the past two years, and surely would have won this year as well, but at the time of the survey, he hadn’t appeared in AEW in almost a year, and his contract status was uncertain. Of course, as soon as the survey closed, Jericho returned to AEW–but that is why he didn’t appear as an option this year.
Sammy Guevara serves as a Jericho surrogate, though, as he was voted the least favorite wrestler this year.
Guevara has not been featured a ton on AEW television lately, wrestling more in Ring of Honor. Most of the wrestlers who placed here are older wrestlers better known for WWE runs, including Adam Copeland, Bobby Lashley, Billy Gunn, and MVP. The only wrestlers currently getting any substantial screen time at the moment who are on this list are Copeland and Gabe Kidd.
Last year, Jericho placed first, followed by Britt Baker (also not included as an option this year) and Copeland. The only returning choices from last year are Copeland, Gunn and Guevara. Jeff Jarrett, Kamille, Adam Cole, Danhausen, and Dax Harwood either fell off the list or were ineligible for this year’s list.
What would AEW fans change about the promotion?
Finally, survey respondents were asked if they could change one thing about AEW, what would it be?
There was incredible diversity of answers, but some consistent themes emerged across many responses.
One of those was that the company had too many title belts, and that having so many made some championships feel redundant, and that they lacked consistent storyline focus.
“National, TNT, International and Continental are all interchangeable. Which I feel dilutes the importance of someone like an Okada, who should be positioned to a higher level but it isn’t clear with the title he holds,” – Respondent from New York
“There might be too many championships currently in AEW. I try not to think about how complex the Continental Championship & the Unified Championship & the International Championship work and co-exist as one lol. And you add in the National Championship, it just becomes way too much to try and keep up with,” – Respondent from North Carolina
“I would lower the amount of titles, and if PPVs become monthly I would limit the matches to about 7 or 8 on a main card to give the Dynamite/Collision shows a few more big matches,” – Respondent from Louisiana
Another common thing fans wanted to see changed was more television time and booking attention being given to the women’s division in AEW.
“Give the women more matches and more time, they are all very talented but have minimal time to show it,” – Respondent from Canada
“MORE WOMENS WRESTLING, find a way to add 30 more minutes to dynamite and collision and give the women more of a chance to develop their stories, The talent is there and In my soul I believe there is someone who says they are okay with what they have that can deliver something great. I believe in these artists and their ability to perform!” – Respondent from Oregon
“More time and space for women wrestling and storylines with the usage of more talent that are not appearing enough, such as Riho, Nyla Rose, Yuka Sakazaki,” – Respondent from Turkey
“The women’s division mostly, just put more emphasis you do in the men’s division towards the women’s division. Even if that means booking an extra match for the women on Collision, it gives the women a bigger slice of the pie to make their magic,” – Respondent from South Carolina
“More women’s matches that don’t involve the same small number of people, and more than one women’s match per week,” – Respondent from Ohio
A common change that many international fans requested was to make the product more accessible, either through better international distribution with TV partners, or more favorable start times for events.
“PPV start time is much too late,” – Respondent from Portugal
“I wish they’d tour Europe properly, instead of just the London show,” – Respondent from The Netherlands
“Living in the UK a Sunday PPV is a no go and trying to avoid spoilers until Monday night can be a pain,” – Respondent from the United Kingdom
“Get a streaming deal in India that’s reliable,” – Respondent from India
“The prices of MyAEW plus the streaming service for the international market in LATAM. I think that the price is something expensive. Maybe $10 for the month with PPV would be more good for the fans here in LATAM,” – Respondent from Peru
“Better streaming service in Mexico. We always get the worst ones,” – Respondent from Mexico
I always get a kick out of some of the just random/funny stuff people point to in the survey on what they think AEW should change, so I will share some here.
“I hear there is internal refusal to Toru Yano. This is an affront,” – Respondent from Canada
“Tony Schiavone should be much nicer to the heel wrestlers,” – Respondent from New Zealand
“More men kissing in the ring,” – Respondent from Missouri
“The lighting or color correction of the show is extremely overaturated and makes everyones skin look a bit plastic, and the blood looks neon red too as a result. The show’s lighting used to look way more natural 3 or so years ago. This is one area where WWE is just simply way better. Japanese promotions also look way better,” – Respondent from Germany
“Lock Gabe Kidd, Clark Connors, and David Finlay in a room with RJ City until RJ can drag personalities out of them,” – Respondent from Canada
“I would bring in experienced names like Bully Ray, Jonathan Coachman, Vince Russo, Jim Cornette, Eric Bischoff, Scott D’Amore, etc. to help Tony Khan,” – Respondent from Pennsylvania
“Make it gayer,” – Respondent from England
