Tony Khan, Nick Khan among wrestling executives named in Variety's Top Dealmakers of 2024

[Chris]

Dealmakers 2024

Variety's Dealmakers 2024 Helped Create Some of the Biggest Headlines of the Year.

variety.com

Tony Khan​

CEO, All Elite Wrestling (AEW)
In October, five years to the week after Khan launched professional wrestling promotion AEW as a direct competitor to Vince McMahon’s long-dominant WWE, he closed a multi-year media rights deal with Warner Bros. Discovery, worth a reported $185 million a year, that calls for AEW’s shows and events to be broadcast on TBS and TNT and stream on Max. The company is now valued at more than $2 billion, making it the third-most-valuable combat sports company in the world.
Ain’t bragging if it’s true: “Our new arrangement signifies that AEW will make history as the first professional wrestling promotion to simulcast events weekly on top cable channels and a top streaming platform,” says Khan.

Ariel Emanuel, Nick Khan, Mark Shapiro, Andrew Schleimer​

Ariel Emanuel
CEO, TKO
Nick Khan
President, WWE
Mark Shapiro
President & chief operating officer, TKO
Andrew Schleimer
Chief financial officer, TKO
WWE
Last year, Endeavor merged Ultimate Fighting Championship with World Wrestling Entertainment under the TKO Group Holdings banner. In January 2024, TKO’s leadership quadrumvirate closed a $5.2 billion, 10-year deal to make Netflix the exclusive home of WWE’s flagship show “Raw” in the U.S., Canada, U.K., Latin America and other territories beginning in January 2025. As part of the pact, Netflix will be the home for all WWE shows and specials outside the U.S. from that date forward, giving roughly 80% of international territories immediate access to 100% its content, with the rest of the globe filling out their WWE lineups as outstanding deals expire.
Added value with Netflix: “While the money is extraordinarily important, the downstream impact and ancillary benefits to being with the distributor and just south of 300 million homes globally was something that got us very excited,” says Schleimer.

 

[Rosie]

But... AEW IS DYING! ERIC BISHOFF, JIM CORNETTE, AND BULLY RAY TOLD ME SO!

Now being more serious: Both WWE and AEW have things to work on, things I like and disagree with, but wrestling is doing very well overall now and I'm happy for that.

 

[Chris]

In fairness to Bully, I think he dropped most of the business talk, he at least just talks about booking now which is subjective lol his partner is way worse

 

[Cwalker]

Yeah whoever Bully’s co-host is that dude is unbearable. It’s just something about his voice

 

[Chris]

Yeah whoever Bully’s co-host is that dude is unbearable. It’s just something about his voice

I rarely listen to any clips by him but he had one recently about Final Battle and I mean I got a lot of beef with the ROH booking too so I wanted to see if that was what he had issues with too....no he was mad it wasn't a whole nostalgia act show with every ROH guy on the roster wrestling lol why would they do that.

 

[Rosie]

I rarely listen to any clips by him but he had one recently about Final Battle and I mean I got a lot of beef with the ROH booking too so I wanted to see if that was what he had issues with too....no he was mad it wasn't a whole nostalgia act show with every ROH guy on the roster wrestling lol why would they do that.

They could recreate Bully's booking which nearly killed ROH and the moment he told a fan to 'shut up and be a fan.'

 

[Chris]

Say what you will about Jericho but he's not PCO as champion

 

[Rosie]

Say what you will about Jericho but he's not PCO as champion

PCO, fun mid-card monster. Not world champ.

 

[Brandon Blaze]

Speaking of that guy. I just turned the show on to see what was going on, and he was singing really really badly so much Bully called in and told him NEVER DO THAT AGAIN… lmao. They got Nic Nemeth on today instead of Bully. Legit only reason Bully called lmao.

 

[Chris]

Not to hijack the thread to Busted Open, but I actually think it's mega impressive they've gotten the success they have on satellite radio in 2024 talking about wrestling of all things. Kinda just proves that nowadays you can still keep some mediums going with niche products even after the mainstream ones move away.

I just wish I liked the content more the only ones I care for is Denise and mostly Bully, but LaGreca and Dreamer are God awful

 

[Roy Mustang]

Not to hijack the thread to Busted Open, but I actually think it's mega impressive they've gotten the success they have on satellite radio in 2024 talking about wrestling of all things. Kinda just proves that nowadays you can still keep some mediums going with niche products even after the mainstream ones move away.

I just wish I liked the content more the only ones I care for is Denise and mostly Bully, but LaGreca and Dreamer are God awful

Podcast with Dreamer and Bully Ray? Explains the love for nostalgia above anything else, it's why Dreamer still has a career