Are AEW PPV events too long?

Last weekend, AEW Double or Nothing took place. While it was a solid show, it was also a very long one. If you believe the recent report from Bryan Alvarez, not everyone within AEW was happy about the length. So the question needs to be asked: Are AEW’s pay-per-views too long?

Before I try to answer that, I want to go back to my previous column for a bit. I felt like I rushed it and didn’t explain my thoughts as clearly as I wanted to.

So why do I think WWE going to war with AEW is a good thing? The thing is, competition always makes the product better.

Look at WWE’s history. When were they at their best? In the ’80s, during the national expansion, Vince McMahon was motivated by trying to take over the wrestling world. Having competition pushed him to put on the best product possible. The same was true on the other side with Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP). Ultimately, Vince won that war, JCP was sold to Turner, and it became WCW. But once Vince had no real competition, he got complacent, and the product suffered. That opened the door for WCW to start gaining momentum.

Then, when WCW overtook WWE as the top promotion, it reignited Vince’s competitive spirit. That gave birth to the Attitude Era—one of the hottest periods in wrestling history.

Eventually, WCW made mistakes, WWE capitalized, and with help from Time Warner no longer wanting wrestling content, Vince bought WCW. But again, without competition, WWE’s creative output declined. Yes, TNA existed, but they weren’t significant competition—at least not until 2010 when they tried to go head-to-head with WWE. That attempt didn’t last long and nearly killed the company.

We had to wait for the creation of AEW to finally get something resembling a “war” again. Let’s be honest: WWE didn’t start this. They were happy doing their thing. AEW chose to counterprogram NXT on Wednesdays. WWE responded by adapting—moving NXT from the WWE Network to the USA Network. That move made both shows better, and we got some of the best wrestling in the world for the length of that rivalry.

When NXT moved to Tuesdays, Tony Khan got a bit complacent. The product lost some of its momentum, and that forced AEW to make adjustments.

Which brings us to now—WWE counterprogramming AEW. Look at this past Sunday. Battleground and Double or Nothing were both probably the best shows either company has put on in a while. That’s because they were competing to win over fans. Sure, WWE had the advantage of being the cheaper option, but like I mentioned in my last column, AEW’s show was so good that fans were buzzing. That kind of word-of-mouth could bring in new viewers—maybe even friends buying the replay together to watch it later.

That’s why I think this kind of counterprogramming could be a great thing for AEW. It might wake Tony Khan up and push him to start booking great shows again like he did in AEW’s early days.

Back to the main point: Are AEW pay-per-views too long?

Personally, I do think pay-per-views shouldn’t go more than four hours. Anything beyond that becomes exhausting. I zone out and stop caring. Based on Bryan Alvarez’s report, it seems like some wrestlers and backstage staff in AEW feel the same way.

The issue is, Tony Khan is a lot like Vince McMahon when it comes to his booking mentality. He books what he wants, and he’s stubborn. While he might take recommendations, at the end of the day, he’ll still do what he likes. If he enjoys five-to-six-hour pay-per-views, that’s what we’re going to get—regardless of how others feel.

Just look at how long it took him to start booking smaller venues or releasing talent. People in AEW were pushing for those changes for a while, and it took Tony about a year to finally come around.

So while many in AEW would love shorter pay-per-views, if Tony doesn’t want that, nothing’s changing.

In my opinion, the big PPVs should be four hours max, and the smaller ones no more than three. Only book matches that are truly pay-per-view worthy. If it feels like something that could be on Dynamite or Collision, save it for TV.

These complaints about AEW pay-per-view lengths sound familiar. Remember when we used to criticize WWE for six-hour WrestleManias?

For me, at least, AEW’s pay-per-views are too long and need to be trimmed down to fit into a 3–4 hour window—including the pre-show. If fans have to break a show up into multiple viewings because they’re exhausted, you’ve missed the whole point of a big event. Pay-per-views shouldn’t be about quantity—they should be about quality. TNA understood that, and it shows in how consistently good their pay-per-views and specials are.

WWE eventually figured it out too. Their current format features shorter cards with fewer matches, but nearly every match delivers. Fans walk away satisfied, not drained.

So will AEW make the same adjustment? Honestly, I doubt it. Tony is stubborn. He enjoys long, overstuffed pay-per-views, and he likes having most of his top stars on every show. If AEW wrestlers and staff want this to change, they’ll need to get support from Tony’s inner circle to convince him—and even that’s not a guarantee.

That’s it from me for today. I’ll leave you with a quote from former WWE referee Jimmy Korderas:

“Fans who complain about WWE counterprogramming AEW—you wanted this war. Now that WWE is giving it to you, you’re complaining? Get over it. Enjoy the product you like and stop worrying about stuff that clearly has nothing to do with you.”