All Elite Wrestling has managed to pull some of the biggest crowds in wrestling history, despite being only four years old.
Stars like CM Punk, Kenny Omega and Chris Jericho helped turn the fledgling company into a true competitor to WWE, and one of the best wrestling TV shows in the world.
They bring with them an ardent fanbase, and regularly sell out arenas all over the company, even crossing into Canada and the UK from time to time.
In this article, we’ll go through the biggest crowds in AEW history, and explain how these huge attendances came to be.
The First AEW Dynamite – 14,129
October 2nd 2019 was a monumental day in wrestling history. It was the debut of AEW Dynamite. The first AEW Dynamite episode drew 1.4 million viewers, still the record viewing figure for the company.
This first episode of AEW Dynamite started a revolution like no other in wrestling. Jaded WWE fans finally had an alternative, and they showed their appreciation by packing the arena for Dynamite’s debut episode.
Cody Rhodes revealed over 14,000 fans bought tickets for the event, which was the record att
AEW The First Dance (CM Punk’s Debut) – 15,316
Without mentioning the name “CM Punk” once, AEW managed to sell out the United Center in Chicago.
On the second-episode of AEW Rampage, they packed the building with fans, who had turned up on the rumour that CM Punk could be returning to wrestling.
He walked out of WWE seven years prior, and had not been seen in a ring since. He was always a fan-favourite, and a rabid hometown would have burned down the arena had he not shown up.
Luckily, the show started with 15,000 fans screaming his name, before the opening riff of “Cult of Personality” hit, and the Voice of the Voiceless returned.
This would be the record attendance in AEW for only a month, before CM Punk’s first TV match at Grand Slam.
Forbidden Door – 16,529
The first ever crossover event between AEW and NJPW drew AEW’s biggest ever pay per view crowd in 2022.
Stars from both companies came together for a series of dream matches. Even though the card was hampered by injuries to top stars, like CM Punk and Bryan Danielson, it still managed to sell over 16,000 tickets to excited wrestling fans.
Matches like Jon Moxley vs Hiroshi Tanahashi and Will Ospreay vs Orange Cassidy had the crowd on their feet, as one of AEW’s biggest crowds saw one of the best shows of all time.
AEW Grand Slam 2021 – 20,177
Following the debuts of CM Punk and Bryan Danielson, AEW had to find the biggest arena possible to showcase them.
They did just that, taking over the Arthur Ashe baseball stadium for one night, to host the long-awaited debut of Bryan Danielson in AEW.
The former WWE Champion had the reputation of being the best wrestler in the world – maybe ever – so his debut match would have to be a big one.
And it was. AEW managed to sell a record 20,177 tickets on the back of a match between Bryan Danielson and AEW Champion Kenny Omega.
This was a dream match for many, and went on to become possibly the greatest match of all time, with both men fighting to a 30-minute draw that left fans begging for a rematch.
The show was also a double-header with AEW Rampage, and saw CM Punk’s first TV match in over 7 years, when he defeated Will Hobbs.
AEW All In 2 – 70,000+
Absolute smashing the previous record by other 50,000 tickets sold is AEW All In 2.
The first UK show for AEW is set to take place this August, and has already blown nearly every show in wrestling history out of the water, with early ticket sales.
Despite not announcing a single match yet, AEW have reportedly sold over 70,000 tickets for the event, almost filling up Wembley Stadium in the UK.
We can expect them to start selling even more when matches are announced. When fans see superstars like CM Punk and Will Ospreay on the card, we could see that number shoot up to 80,000, or maybe even sell out the stadium with 90,000 tickets sold.
This would make All In the biggest crowd in wrestling history.