The NOW Arena outside Chicago has become the traditional home for AEW All Out, the company’s Labor Day weekend pay-per-view. But maybe not in 2023.
All Out has taken place at NOW Arena every year since its inception, with the exception of 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic forced it to Daily’s Place in Jacksonville in front of a spartan crowd. The venue itself is fine, but its location to the northeast of Chicago proper makes logistics somewhat tricky, and it’s not hard to find tales of woe from fans and journalists who had trouble getting back to the city after previous events.
That might not be a problem in 2023. According to Fightful Select (subscription required), AEW is considering running All Out at the United Center this year. That’s where the Bulls and Blackhawks play, and unlike NOW Arena, is in Chicago proper.
AEW has had tremendous prior success with the United Center, with Fightful Select noting that both The First Dance and last summer’s Forbidden Door sold out (and we can confirm the latter having attended in person). Having two big cards there during the same summer might be overkill … but that’s not a problem since Forbidden Door 2023 is headed to Toronto instead.
In general, AEW has seen some diminishing returns over the last year or so when hitting the same markets repeatedly. There seems to be a renewed focus within the promotion on visiting new venues for the first time in 2023, including spending more time in Canada and the potential for AEW to make its long discussed debut in the UK.
Still, the Chicago market has been one that always shows up in force to support AEW shows, even with, um, one particular favorite son still apparently on the outs. The United Center would make a lot of sense for All Out, and we know at least a few people covering wrestling who will be very grateful if AEW ends up confirming this report over the next few months.