Grading All Elite Wrestling's first year as a promotion

Conclusion and overall grade: B+

Dynamite's first show took place in Washington, D.C.

There were numerous unknowns and expectations once The Elite announced they had paired with Tony Khan to form a new wrestling promotion. They kept themselves relevant with social media and announcements until their actual PPVs/shows came around.

We knew that the action would be top-notch with the members of The Elite and many other familiar faces joining the promotion. There were some small bumps along the way, but that is expected to happen in any company's first year.

One huge plus for the promotion was having the backing of the Khans. It allowed the promotion an almost unlimited supply of cash in order to bolster the roster while also making it an attractive option to prospective free agents. That in turn has forced other promotions to up their games.

Having a two-hour show has helped the new promotion expose portions of the roster to the public each week. There are, however, still some who haven't had nearly the amount of exposure as others (lots of Britt Baker and Brandi, little of Gibbs, Ford). I get that AEW Dark is another hour for those people to get exposure. The whole point of landing a TV deal was so that people wouldn't be forced to watch matches on YouTube instead of on TV in certain parts of the world.

The first year was ultimately a success and should certainly set things up for a much better second year. Who will eventually dethrone 'Le Champion?' Will it be a veteran like Omega or Moxley or a younger star like Darby Allin or MJF? Who else will join the promotion with free agency currently in play? It will definitely be fun watching things play out throughout the business now that AEW is a part of it and has a year under its belt.