Around 500,000 cord cutters stream All Elite Wrestling (AEW) on Max each Wednesday, according to a new report from SEScoops. Since January, Max has streamed AEW programming, including the wrestling promotion’s flagship program, Dynamite, which airs live on Wednesday nights on TBS.
According to the SEScoops report, their sources stated Max combined with linear TV viewers on traditional TV, Dynamites has “an average of around 1-to-1.2 million viewers per episode since it was added to the streaming service.” The report also gives more detail into the show’s minutes watched per show:
According to sources, the show is averaging around 60 million minutes watched per show with a deviation of plus/minus 10 to 20 percent depending on the episode and competition. Nielsen style viewership numbers aren’t necessarily important to streamers, the minutes watched averages to 500,000 viewers per episode Live-Plus-1. Meaning it takes into account viewers who watched live on the app and for 24 hours afterward.
Max’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery, and AEW agreed to a new multi-year deal that kept the upstart promotion on its linear networks and simulstreams to Max. That deal was reported to be upwards of $150 million per year and brought live and on-demand AEW programming to the streaming service.
“This extension continues the tradition of iconic wrestling events broadcast on TBS and TNT, while also establishing a new legacy for AEW through weekly live streams on Max for years to come,” said AEW CEO, GM and Head of Creative Tony Khan of the deal.
Three months since AEW entered the ring on Max, the deal is successfully bringing more eyes to the wrestling product, with nearly 117 million people subscribe to the platform. Sources told SEScoops that “AEW has regularly out-performed some major hockey games on the app.” Additionally, the NBA is outperforming AEW on Max with an “average around 1.7 to 2 million viewers,” per the report. However, with the pro basketball league set to leave Max at the conclusion of the season, this could make AEW more of priority for WBD
In the SES report, their sources think that AEW will face “stronger competition” later this month when the second season of Andor streams on Disney+ and as WWE’s Road to Wrestlemania heats up..
On Sunday, April 6, AEW’s second annual Dynasty pay-per-view airs live from Philladelphia, Pennsylvania. This will be the first time that the City of Brotherly Love has held an AEW PPV event. Later this year, Max will expand its AEW content by adding live PPV streams. Before Sunday’s show, fans can watch the buildup on Wednesday during Dynamite and on Saturday during Collision on TBS and TNT, respectively.