AEW’s Arena Mexico Sellout Sparks Frustration Over Lack of Card Announcement

AEW has officially sold out Arena México for its Grand Slam: Mexico event on June 18—but not everyone is celebrating just yet.

While the sellout is a major milestone, especially for a first-time AEW event in the historic venue with a 16,500-seat capacity, fans and media in Mexico are already expressing confusion and frustration over AEW’s typical “announce-it-late” style of booking.

On the May 22 episode of Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer addressed the tension brewing south of the border. “The AEW TV taping is Wednesday, and there’s already like—because these shows [CMLL’s Tuesday and Friday Arena Mexico cards] have been announced and nothing has been announced for AEW—it’s one of those things where people are kind of like… I don’t want to say getting panicked, but…”

He explained that fans in Mexico are used to knowing what they’re paying for weeks in advance, which clashes with AEW’s U.S.-centric booking style. “In Mexico it’s imperative to announce a card,” Meltzer said, adding, “Tony Khan, when it comes to these Wednesday shows, he announces it a week out and that’s just how he does things.”

AEW hasn’t confirmed a single match yet, even though top stars like Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay are featured on the posters and are reportedly expected to wrestle. Meltzer acknowledged the speculation, saying, “The two guys they really want to see, from what everyone tells me, are Kenny Omega—who has wrestled in Mexico before but never in Arena Mexico—and Will Ospreay, who I don’t believe has ever wrestled in Mexico at all, definitely not in Arena Mexico.”

Despite the strong ticket sales, Meltzer said the silence is generating questions: “There’s just a lot of questions on, ‘Why isn’t the card announced?’—not realizing they’re probably going to announce it at the last minute.”

So yes, AEW sold out a legendary arena—but they’ve also sparked confusion by not confirming a lineup. That’s standard in the U.S., but in Mexico, it’s rubbing people the wrong way.

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