AEW Grand Slam: Australia Pulls $1.3M Gate, Third Highest in Company History

AEW taped its Grand Slam: Australia special in Brisbane, Australia, on Saturday, with the show airing later that same day on TNT.

Originally set to take place at the 52,000-seat Suncorp Stadium, the event was relocated to the Brisbane Entertainment Centre, reportedly due to slower-than-expected ticket sales. However, AEW CEO Tony Khan maintained that the show was always intended to be a television special.

Speaking on Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer revealed that the event generated AEW’s third-highest live gate in company history, pulling in at least $1.3 million.

“Well, it should be Melbourne or Sydney [when they return in 2026]. You know, they’ll draw… they’ll draw better in those cities," Meltzer said. "I mean, I think that, like, you go to, like, Rod Laver Arena, and, you know, I mean, you probably… you know, if it’s in a year, because you said 2026, so it’s not even going to be this year. So, if they go in, you know, in 2026 to Melbourne or Sydney for the first time, I think that being established, they’ll at least be able to, you know… I think in those markets, you know, get 15,000 people, and it’s, you know, a big gate."

Despite the change in venue, Meltzer acknowledged the financial success of the show, noting, “I mean, this was the third-biggest gate in the history of the company. I didn’t get the final number, but, you know, they’d passed… they were… they were at 1.3 million, at least, on Thursday, two days ahead. For AEW, that’s fantastic.”

However, he also pointed out that the event was not quite successful enough to justify a stadium setting, stating, “It was not a big enough success to be a stadium show. But that’s… it’s a big ask. You know, I mean, AEW is not a stadium product. You know, it really isn’t. Most wrestling companies aren’t stadium products. Very few, really, if you think about it.”

Meltzer compared the attendance figures to WWE’s history in the region, mentioning, “I think if they’d stayed at the stadium, if they did 11,000 here, maybe they could have done 13, 14,000 at the stadium. Wouldn’t have looked as good. But that’s… that’s still, like, for a WWE stadium show historically, is fine, especially for Brisbane. You know, it’s like, I’m sure I… I’d have to look it up. But, I mean, it was the biggest gate ever in Brisbane, Australia, for wrestling. And it’s probably the biggest attendance in years and years and years."

He continued, “I think WWE… I know WWE did 11,000 many, many years ago, you know, for a show. But, I mean, you look at it, like, you know, Hogan and Flair did 2,600 in that… I think it was in that same building, actually. The show was a success. It wasn’t the success that they had hoped for it to be, obviously, but it’s still a success.”