Tony Khan claps back at insider's claim AEW is 'cold'

On Oct. 10, highly respected wrestling insider David Meltzer claimed that AEW was cold. By that, he means they're losing traction with their fanbase. 

"They (AEW) are cold, boy are they cold and how to change that? Man, that's hard to do," Meltzer wrote in his Wrestling Observer newsletter. 

When speaking on an episode of the "The Dan Le Batard Show," AEW's owner, Tony Khan, bit back at Meltzer's claim. Khan noted how the company was less than three months removed from setting a world record for attendance. There was also mention of the company's strong pay-per-view showings.

"We've really begun to change it," Khan said (h/t to Fightful for the transcription.) "The perception is very strong for AEW worldwide. 44 days ago, we set the all-time record for ticket sales for any wrestling show ever in the history of the planet. We're having a very good year, our pay-per-view numbers are through the roof."

AEW has struggled to attract live audiences in recent months. Every day, there is a new video online showing a half-full stadium. Fans are also frustrated at the consistent links to indie shows from years ago as core parts of modern storylines. 

In essence, AEW is being branded as a hardcore wrestling fans promotion. The casual fanbase is slowly transitioning back to WWE. The firing of CM Punk seems to have accelerated things. 

AEW's global presence is still strong. Their TV ratings have stayed steady, apart from Collision, which is struggling. However, Meltzer's point about the company being "cold" isn't far off the mark. 

AEW needs to hire some dedicated creative staff. They need compelling storylines that feature their best talent. And Khan needs to start putting his star names in championship contention, regardless of whether they want the spotlight or not. AEW is far from a dying brand. However, they need to make some changes if they want to continue their recent growth and expansion. 

They have the stars. They have the young talent. They just need to have a plan and a vision that resides beyond "one-off dream matches." Otherwise, the fanbase will continue to dwindle, and a golden age of professional wrestling will suffer because of it.