AEW Double Or Nothing 2026 Review 25.5.26.

Written By Patrick O'malley.

Intro.

As this year has gone on, and the Summer is slowly creeping in. AEW has continued its solid run as we head on the rd to Wembley Stadium. It's no secret that AEW has had a better creative run when compared to WWE of late. This is down to two factors in my opinion. In WWE at the moment it seems like their lazor focus has gone, this means that AEW have some clear leverage when it comes to fan perception. with the second being the fact there storytelling also won't suffer. In WWE at the minute it's hard for me to feel fully invested in anything that they put forward. This  is not a hate speech against WWE, this is the way that I look at this industry. I think it's important that AEW keeps this in mind, because as the Summer is starting to heat up, there in ring product needs to maintain it's cool hand in order to become no1 in the playground.

I Quit Street Fight Adam Copeland And Christian Cage vs FTR.

When I watched this at 8am in the morning. One of the things that came to my mind was the fact that the look on all four mens face said everything. This felt final, and it needed to be. This was a fantastic plunder Match, that was centred around the theme of family. The Mania 17 call backs were a nice touch, because this Match took me back to that time, as Copeland battered Dax Harwood with a ladder. Christian refused to say I quit in the only way that he knows how, by telling Cash Wheeler to f*** off, and then revealing that he's had sex with both of FTR's mums. The levels of violence was elevated when Beth Copeland came out, and was nearly put through a fire table, and even though my stance on violence against women has never changed, this actually made sense, because Stokeley was the one who ended up taking the bump. This was another call back to Manias past, because this happened on the show that Mick Foley was confirmed as All Elite. The weapon spots made sense as the violence gave room for the Match to breathe. This allowed for the final sequences to set the stage for the Match to come to an end. Copeland put a spike flavoured crossface on Dax Harwood, and made him say the words I quit. I liked this. Many critics are calling this one of the best Matches on the card, and even though I did like it. I don't think it's on that level, and it's because this Match needed a couple more minutes in my opinion.

Kazuchika Okada vs Konosuke Takeshita AEW International Championship.

To quite a lot of fans, this looked like a Dream Match, and I was one of those fans, because had a lot of promise going into it, and oh my, oh my, this didn't disapoint. It's also worth noting that when you isolate these type of Matches when they're happening. You've got to remember that Pro Wrestlers are running a marathon, and not a sprint, so this played into the urgentcy of the early going. This was a stylistic look at both Japanese styles that both men inhabit. This was my most anticipated Match on the card, and as I watched both men kicked out of brainbusters, and. rainmakers, I was reminded of the fact that, their bag of tricks was being dragged out for fan enjoyment, because as the Match went on, the fans grew louder. This New York crowd was onfire last night, and this elevated the work from both men. Konosuke got the win, and is the new AEW International Champion, but the drama wasn't done after the Match had finished, because in the aftermath Kyle Fletcher made his return to AEW. The Don Callis Family all left the ring, and Protoshita were left in the ring together, and then it happened. Kyle raised the hand of his former tag team partner, and then smacked him with the belt. The heel has gone even more down the heel rabbit hole. I loved this Match, and I would reccomend anyone to check this out.

Mina Shirakowa vs Athena Owen Hart Foundation Tournament Quarter Finals.

I'm going to be honest, this Match was decent, but I think it would've been better placed on Dynamite. This is nothing against the ladies. I just felt this Match got lost in the echo. And if i'm being honest, I think I might be right. Mina got the win, and has advanced to the semi finals.

Jon Moxley vs Kyle O'reilly AEW Continental Championship.

I'm going to be honest. I've heard a lot of fans online say that this Match was one of the best on the card, and i've got to state my case. I think this was miles better than the Match that they had last Wednesday on Dynamite, however this outweighed my expectations. Is this a Match of the year Contender, well no, what we got was a solid hard hitting affair, in which the story of the Match, being the theme of game recognising game, working well within the confines of the no time limits stipulation. Jon got the win, and retained his Continental Championship. I think we need another round at Forbidden Door next month.

Will Osperay vs Samoa Joe. Owen Hart Tournament Quarter Finals.

This was another Match of the night contender. I'm fascinated by the direction that AEW is taking Will Osperay down, and you could tell that it's working, as his heel turn is slowly starting to cook. Will has said that the Triple Threat Match that featured AJ Styles. Samoa Joe, and. Christopher Daniels in TNA from 2005, is the reason that he's even a Pro Wrestler, because of how it impacted his future career path. As a fan of this sport for over thirty years of my life. I do love it when differant styles make Matches. This is a perfect case and point. This was another Dream Match. Everything from Joe not selling moments of wills offence, the debuting of Wills new asthetic, and even though overall outcome was predictable. The physicality of Will being groomed by The Deathriders is one of the best things in Pro Wrestling at this minute. Will got the win, and the rise of Wills heel turn is going to shape the industry going forward. Some fans want Will to headline Wembley Stadium in August, and if i'm being honest I just want to see him in an incredibly well told story that can go head to head with the main event scene, because  if AEW can manage this properly, then they will see the tickets rise. Creative needs to be clear, and cohesive.

Swerve Strickland vs Bandido Owen Hart Tournament Semi Final.

I think that this might be my second Match of the night. This was simply sensational, and a fantastic effort from both men. Most of you that read my work will know that I also love MMA, and I have a love for Surfing documentaries. One of my favourites is The Billabong Obyssey, now I know what you're all thinking, what do both of these things have to do with any of this? well let me explain. Styles are known to make fights, and when Surfers are in competition, they seem to spend time looking at how other competitors work, this is called making magic happen, and wanting to be the best, and being a step ahead of their own game. This is the perfect way to describe both Swerve Strickland, and. Bandido. I could sit here and wax lyrical about how both examplified what the term fighting spirit means, when it comes to this Match, but that would do it a diservice. There exchanges, and sequences were gold, and as the final moments came. Swerve advanced, and I could've done with 5 minutes more of this. I loved this Match.

AEW Womens World Championship Four Way Thekla vs Kris Statlander vs Jamie Hayter vs Hikaru Shida.

I liked this. When you look at this Match, the Matches within the Match were solid, and the chemistry between all four women was great to see, however this Match fell a bit short in length, and as a result the Match suffered. Thekla retained.

Stadium Stampede Match Jericho. The Elite And The Hurt Syndicate vs The Demand The Dogs And Andrade El Idolo And Mark Davis.

As I watched this Match earlier on this morning. I had to take a step back, because when the first one happened, we were all in lockdown. due to the covid 19 pandemic. Fast forward six years, and AEW are bringing back this stipulation after a three year break. I was at All In 2023 when the last one took place. Even though i'm not the biggest fan of Jericho these days for reasons that I can't talk about, this was a lot of fun. When these plunder Matches come around, I always struggle when it comes to writing about them, because so much happens, to the point that I struggle to keep up. The weapon induced chaos made sense, and the backstage moments involving Lio Rush frightening Bobby Lashley, Jack Perry commiting near manslaughter, and a brawl in the merch area, leading to a near food fight in the catering area, which made me think that Satnam Singh loves Cake. When you add this in with the work in the ring, like Shopping carts being used, inconjunction with chair shots, and table spots, this became a chaotic masterpiece, because poor Bishop Khan had to take seven superkicks, as the babyfaces got the win. Also the entrances were great. Kenny Omega looks cool being soundtracked to Metallica. I'm just going to say it Metallica rule.

MJF vs Darby Allin AEW World Heavyweight Championship.

The entrances on this night have been a study in contrast, and this was the main case and point. Max walked past some clippers, because if he lost, then he would lose his Golden esc locks, whilst Darby took solace in the underground sewers of New York City. This could have gone south in the early going, when Darby attempted a torpe suiceda, only for his feet to catch the middle rope, giving him a concerning bump to his neck. Darby was able to get to his feet. This became the story of the Match, as Darby's body was starting to fail him. This Match is also the standard that AEW has set for themselves, when you look at this Match, because both men were original day one guys, when the company came into starlight from a dream. They played back moments from there history, which dated back to Full Gear 2021. There exchanges were excellent, and it bled into how the Match finished. Darby took an insane dive from the top of the scaffolding onto Max who was placed on a table below. This also left Darby cut open on the back of his head. This played into the final exchange, and how it played out. Max got the win with a Piledriver, and side headlock combo. Then it happened. Kevin Knight came out, and then attacked his friend, who was also trained by Darby's mentor Buddy Wayne, after Max tried humiliate Darby further,  by wrecking him whilst he was on the stretcher being taken out the arena, with a UFO Squash. This was excellent.

Overview Of AEW Double Or Nothing 2026.

I've heard a lot of fans call this one of AEW's best ever PPV's, and if i'm being honest. I don't think that this comes up with the likes Double Or Nothing 2021. All Out 2021. All In 2023, and. Revolution 2022. This was an incredibly good show with some Match of the year contenders, but when you dig beneath the surface. The direction coming off the back of this, we need to see were they go, and after that I would make my ranking.

AEW Double Or Nothing 2026 is a high 9/10.