Seven years into its history, AEW is a polarizing wrestling promotion. Fans of the company cite its stellar in-ring action and offering what is, in many ways a refreshing departure from WWE’s more conservative, commercial approach to pro wrestling. Critics tend to cite problems with AEW’s storytelling, making it harder to follow coherent arcs and have the narratives behind big matches allow them to realize their on-paper potential.
All In 2026 represents a special moment for AEW when a lot of pieces have fallen into place for a more mature version of the company to promote its best built card ever. Whether All In will ultimately deliver on all of its potential or exceed the phenomenal shows the company has staged in the past remains to be seen. There’s every potential, though for this event to provide some of the best moments in company history and to present a leaping off point for months to come.
The All In 2026 Main Event Checks A Plethora Of Boxes
While it’s far from the only concern in evaluating a PPV card, the main event is important. Main events tend to disproportionately draw fans to buy tickets or order from home; in featuring the biggest stars and being the last things fans see, main events tend to leave an outsized impression on fans and an event’s legacy too.
All In has a main event that checks quite a few boxes in ways that so PPVs from any promotion typically do. In Will Ospreay challenging for and, in all likelihood, winning his first widely recognized world championship, there’s a chance for fans to feel like they’re witnessing a historic moment. The Aerial Assassin winning the big one in from a stadium crowd in his home country only makes the likely feel-good moment hit deeper.
The history between Ospreay and reigning AEW Champion Kenny Omega adds depth to their encounter as well. Besides a well-developed immediate storyline between the two, their history includes Ospreay being a spiritual successor of sorts to The Best Bout Machine as a gaijin who headlined and put on spectacular matches for New Japan. That’s not to mention the two putting on show-stealing classics with one another at Wrestle Kingdom 17 and Forbidden Door 2023.
Combine the marquee value, the history, the anticipated feel-good moment, and the current angle, and Ospreay vs. Omega has a lot of promise at the top of the card. Add on that, based on the talent at hand and the quality of their previous matches, this bout has all the making an all-time, bell-to-bell classic, and AEW couldn’t ask for much more out of a closing bout.
All In Features A Certified Dream Match
Whereas the men’s world championship bout at All In benefits from its long history, the tag title match benefits from a different kind of appeal among top-tier acts: the draw of a first-time dream match.
Cope and Christian vs. The Young Bucks is a certifiable intergenerational dream match fans never though they’d get to see. It’s one of the top teams of WWE’s Attitude Era—out of which both members went on to main event singles careers—squaring off with one of the greatest tag teams of all time to have never signed with WWE.
Matt and Nick Jackson have an established track record of working generously with legends in the twilight of their careers. Meanwhile, Cope and Christian have thrived in this tag run—perhaps not as athletic as they once were, but serving as ring generals, besides remaining in far better shape than two men in their fifties have any business being.
This is the kind of tag team match that quite arguably could’ve headlined a lower key PPV, and on a show the caliber of All In should deliver a banger with a different flavor from other top bouts on the card.
All In Includes A Women’s Championship Match Of Enormous Consequence
All In will feature Willow Nightingale defending her Women’s World Championship against Mercedes Mone. Beyond proven in-ring chemistry between these two, the match carries with it a lot intrigue based on the competitors’ history with one another.
Mone is one of the biggest stars of female wrestling from her generation, if not of all time. Moreover, she thrived in a gimmick of collecting major titles from across promotions.
Despite being an objectively bigger star than Nightingale, though, it’s telling that the reigning champ has had a tendency to get the better of the CEO. As Mone neared the peak of her powers before signing with AEW, it was Nightingale who disrupted her momentum, beating her in a tournament final for the NJPW STRONG Women’s Championship. And though Mone beat Nightingale for the AEW TBS Championship, Nightingale was the one to ultimately unseat Mone for that title a year and a half later.
At All In, these rivals clash for the fourth time one-on-one. All three preceding bouts included a title changing hands, and the stakes have never been higher than they’ll be at All In, with the Women’s World Championship on the line. More than Mone potentially collecting another belt, this match also marks her opportunity at winning her first AEW Women’s World Championship—her first widely recognized world title since leaving WWE five years ago.
All In Promises Fun Moments Elsewhere On The card
The three matches at the top of the card would put All In in the conversation for AEW’s best built card on their own. The other matches—announced or alluded to at press time—only shore up how special the lineup will be.
While, as of this writing, the Continental Challenge Cup lineup is not yet settled, either Jon Moxley or Claudio Castagnoli facing either Kyle O’Reilly or Nigel McGuinness has a combination of star power and talent to deliver something great. Likewise, The Casino Gauntlet Match has tremendous potential, with MJF lending star power as he either reinserts himself into the main event picture with a win or puts someone else over in a big way. Darby Allin vs. Kevin Knight, contested under Falls Count Anywhere rules, further promises to diversify the action and deliver something for fans of a hardcore style, rich in high spots.
Then there’s the Trios Championship Match. The reigning champs—Hangman Page and Brodido—are loaded with popular talent. On the other side of the ring, Swerve Strickland renews his longstanding issues with Page, besides joining him as a fellow past All In stadium main eventer. The most interesting wrinkle of all is Strickland’s rumored partners—a debuting Kofi Kingston and Austin Creed. This potential debut, itself, strikes a great balance of going unannounced but feeling widely anticipated, such that it can both feel like a surprise and delivery on a promise, not altogether different from the sensational back-to-back arrivals of Adam Cole and Bryan Danielson at All Out 2021.
Time will tell how successful All In is in terms of PPV buys, live attendance, or overall quality in its execution. The lineup established so far, though, offers plenty of reason for excitement as AEW pushes ahead for one of its most ambitious events to date.
