AEW has finally listened, and Chris Jericho is on board

Over the past 12 months, AEW has endured declining viewership, television ratings and live attendance. The company has struggled to attract new viewers and retain those who have followed it for years. 

Despite the decrease in interest, Tony Khan continued to book big venues, often leaving thousands of seats empty. Of course, the visual of those empty seats further pushed the narrative of a company on a downward spiral. 

After months of online debate about the venues AEW uses, Khan has finally started using smaller, more intimate venues. The result has been astounding. Shows look and sound better, and the packed crowd produces far better visuals and acoustics for those watching at home. 

During a recent interview with Josh Martinez of Z100, veteran wrestler Chris Jericho praised AEW's new approach. 

"I think the worst thing you could ever do is to kind of in any business overprice yourself or overextend yourself," Jericho said. "We’re at a place where to go to some of the middle-size venues not in every city but in some of them, it’s a very smart move ... It just makes the show that much more exciting, and it translates so much better on TV ... I think one way is the supply and demand. If you have this many tickets for sale and they’re gone, it just makes the product hotter and you can just continue to grow.”

After a rapid rise within the industry, AEW has been pushing for exponential growth. However, a string of PR disasters, coupled with WWE's hot streak, has led to regression. Khan should listen to the fanbase, which is literally telling ownership what it wants from the company. 

As Jericho noted, having sold-out shows in every city will drive interest, make fans want to attend the next one and slowly increase in-person attendance. Since making the switch, watching the company's programming on TV has been a far better experience, especially in venues where there hasn't been a single empty seat. 

AEW is finally making decisions to help the company grow at a steady pace rather than trying to grasp the momentum that's long since faded. If it can keep building over the next year or two, it will be in a much stronger position than the one it's finishing this year in.