WWE vs AEW: John Cena's Final Match to Compete with Worlds End PPV?

According to WrestleTalk, Bryan Alvarez said on the latest episode of Wrestling Observer Live that WWE wants to change the planned date of John Cena’s match from an early December date, which would be Saturday Night's Main Event, to the end of December. He said:

"Originally, the final John Cena match was gonna be in early December at Saturday Night's Main Event.This is not confirmed, but it does look like there is now a discussion that that date will be moved so it will be head-to-head with AEW Worlds End."

As reported earlier this week, Dave Meltzer from the Wrestling Observer Radio reported that John Cena is expected to face Brock Lesnar in the main event of an unnamed PLE that is going to be taking place on September 20 — the same night as AEW’s All Out pay-per-view. Now, this WWE September PLE marks the first time that a main roster PLE will be taking place during an AEW PPV. This year alone, it’s happened quite a few times with NXT. NXT will be hosting its Heatwave PLE the same day as AEW’s Forbidden Door event.

How Will AEW Fare?

You could say it depends on who Cena ends up facing in his last match, but honestly, people will just watch it either way because it’s his last match. Cena can still pull crowds in, even if his recent heel turn was a failure. It’s a big deal for even the most casual wrestling fan. Cena is a cultural icon thanks to his 20-plus-year wrestling career and his Hollywood career. So AEW might have some major problems, but the company does have its hardcore fans.

If all of these reports do actually happen, why did WWE wait so long to start battling it out with the promotion that has been around since October 2019? Well, they didn’t actually, in terms of going back to NXT. For those who remember, from 2019 to 2021, NXT and Dynamite went head-to-head, and AEW won most of the viewership ratings and the key 18-49 demographic. It was a new and exciting show.

Before moving NXT to Tuesdays, WWE combated the ratings war by having main roster talent go to the developmental brand because of how well AEW did. Though things have changed for AEW, and its ratings have been going drastically downhill. If they battled weekly again, it might look a little different this time around. In the end, wrestling fans are the real winners because, with WWE having competition, they want to give their best. The same goes for AEW, with WWE honing in on their PPV dates, they will want to have the best shows too. Hopefully, it will mean more innovative ideas from both companies.