While AEW has never been shy about acquiring talent, 2026 has seen AEW owner Tony Khan really open up his pocket books. Already, the promotion has signed eighteen talents to contracts, including Andrade El Idol, Mascara Dorada, Mistico, The Dogs, The Rascalz, CMLL World Women's Champion Persephone, and one-half of the AEW Women's World Tag Team Champions Lena Kross. with rumors swirling they could also be adding recently released former WWE talents New Day and Motor City Machine Guns once they are available.And it appears AEW may also have their eye on one of the most famous WWE wrestlers of all time for some sort of collaboration. The Takedown On SI reports that AEW has "expressed real interest" about bringing in WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley once his WWE Legends contract expires within the next month. It was not clarified whether AEW wanted to sign Foley for a long-term deal or have him make an appearance, nor was it clarified what type of role AEW would like Foley to fill.Speculation regarding Foley showing up in AEW began after Foley cut ties with WWE last December, citing the promotion's association with Donald Trump's Presidential Administration, whom Foley has been a vocal critic of. Should a deal be reached between the sides, it would mean that Foley has worked with every major US promotion in his career, having previously worked for WWE, WCW, ECW, TNA, and Ring of Honor.This would not be the first time that Foley has had discussions about doing something with AEW, as the WWE Hall of Famer has been open about talking with former AEW Men's World Champion MJF about wrestling him in a retirement match. During a recent interview, MJF revealed that those discussions later included Khan, and were far enough along that the match was set to happen, only to be called off after Foley got injured while training.
As with seemingly every potential AEW signing, this report about Mick Foley coming in is sure to generate a lot of discussion regarding whether bringing in Foley is a good idea, a bad idea, and everything in between. Personally, I think this is a good idea, strictly because it's Mick Foley. Is he perfect? No. Do I think he's largely a WWE guy? Sure. But having seen Foley's work in non-WWE promotions, whether its as a wrestler or just cutting promos, I know he's capable of delivering high quality outside of the WWE style. Add in the fact that he's one of the most recognizable wrestling figures ever, and I think it's worth the risk (and it's frankly not that big a risk) to bring Foley in and see what happens.Now, it is fair to question what Foley brings to the table these days. Can he have that match with MJF or possibly (gulp) Darby Allin? AEW has been the place where many who we thought would never wrestle again got cleared, and in the case of Sting had a glorious sendoff, but given all the punishment Foley took and the fact he got hurt training to face MJF, it's fair to ask if his body could hold up to one match, let alone more than one. And while Foley is a great promo, it's difficult to see him as a manager, and AEW seems to (rightfully in my view) have an aversion for authority figures after several failed attempts. It's absolutely possible Foley doesn't fit in this version of AEW. And yet, I'd still give it a shot. Maybe AEW starts out with one appearance for Foley and goes from there, maybe they just jump in and take the risk. Either way, I am good with AEW giving it a shot with Foley. The risk isn't that great, and the rewards could be quite good.
