In a groundbreaking move, WWE has announced the acquisition of AAA, one of Mexico's premier professional wrestling promotions. This acquisition marks a significant shift in the landscape of lucha libre and professional wrestling, promising new opportunities and collaborations.
The Deal: Ownership and Key Players
The announcement was made during the WrestleMania 41 weekend by key figures from both WWE and AAA, including Triple H, Rey Mysterio, Penta, Fenix, El Hijo del Vikingo, Andrade, Dragon Lee, AAA's CEO Dorian Roldán, and President Marisela Peña.
A report by LexLatin reveals that once the transaction is complete in Q3 of 2025, WWE will own 51% of AAA. The remaining 49% will be owned by Fillip, a Mexican sports and entertainment company. This partnership ensures that AAA retains its cultural heritage while benefiting from WWE's global reach and resources.
According to LexLatin's report, the deal had a strong intellectual property component: “The deal had a strong intellectual property component as the main value of the acquired company (part of the main assets purchased) is its intangible assets (trademarks, copyrights, and exclusive use rights, among others). Because of this, the transaction required an audit of these assets “to verify their specific characteristics, validity, and legal status, as well as a review of the licenses and other contracts entered into regarding them,”
AAA's Rich History and Legacy
AAA was founded in 1992 by Antonio Peña, a booker from Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL), who broke away to establish his own promotion with the backing of Televisa, seeking greater creative freedom. AAA has been a family-operated business for over 30 years and has been home to some of the greatest talents in lucha libre history, including Eddie Guerrero, Rey Mysterio, and Penta.
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Under Peña's direction, AAA incorporated telenovela-inspired sports entertainment elements into its product and developed a reputation for outlandish gimmicks and characters.
AAA is one of the most famous lucha libre promotions in the world and has been home to talent including Rey Mysterio, Eddie Guerrero, and recent WWE additions Penta and Fénix. In addition to the conventional "squared circle", the promotion occasionally uses a hexagonal wrestling ring and features much more extreme match styles compared to CMLL's conservative in-ring style.
AAA, like all other wrestling promotions, does not promote legitimate sporting contests but rather athletic theater performances, featuring storyline-driven, scripted, and partially choreographed matches; however, matches often include moves that put performers at risk of serious injury or death if not performed correctly.
Between April and May of 1992, Antonio Peña, booker of the Mexico City-based Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL), broke with the promotion in favor of establishing his own group, along with Konnan and much of the younger talent from CMLL. This split resulted in the founding of the Televisa-backed Asistencia, Asesoría y Administración de Espectáculos (AAA) promotion.
AAA has had working relationships with other Mexican promotions, like the International Wrestling Revolution Group, and with American promotions such as the National Wrestling Alliance, Major League Wrestling, and All Elite Wrestling.
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AAA primarily hosts its major events in Mexico, but has also promoted international events in the United States and Japan. The promotion previously aired its events on Gala TV in Mexico and on TUDN in parts of Mexico and the United States.
In 1994, AAA co-promoted the When Worlds Collide pay-per-view event with World Championship Wrestling (WCW), with WCW airing the event in the United States. The event was critically-acclaimed and is credited for popularizing lucha libre in the United States.
Talent such as Rey Misterio Jr., Psicosis, La Parka, and Juventud Guerrera would depart AAA in 1996 to join Konnan's short-lived TV Azteca-backed Promo Azteca before landing in the US-based Extreme Championship Wrestling and WCW promotions.
In the mid-1990s the name of the promotion was changed to simply be AAA (pronounced as "Triple A" (tree-pleh ah)), with Televisa maintaining ownership of the original Asistencia, Asesoría y Administración de Espectáculos name, after Peña bought out Televisa's ownership stake and became independent of the media conglomerate. AAA events would continue to air on Televisa after the purchase.
AAA developed a working relationship with American wrestling promotion Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) in early 2004. Through the relationship, AAA sent the luchadores Juventud Guerrera, Héctor Garza, Abismo Negro, Heavy Metal, and Mr.
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The Peña Family's Continued Involvement
AAA was originally founded in 1992 by Antonio Peña and continues to be operated by the Peña family. The Peñas will continue to be involved in AAA along with WWE and Fillip.
Following Peña's death, his sister Marisela Peña took the over management of AAA's finances, while Joaquín Roldán and Dorian Roldán became AAA's operational managers. Konnan would take over the booking of AAA.
Worlds Collide: A Joint Venture
To celebrate this new partnership, WWE and AAA will hold a joint show on June 7 at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles, dubbed “Worlds Collide.”
WWE and AAA will hold a joint show on June 7 at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles, dubbed “Worlds Collide.” The exact match card will be announced at a later date, but the show will feature both WWE and AAA talent.
A Premium Live Event, Worlds Collide, featuring NXT and AAA stars, will emanate from the Kia Forum in Los Angeles, California on June 7. WWE has announced the acquisition of AAA, one of the biggest professional wrestling promotions in Mexico, from Mexico-based sports and entertainment holding company Fillip.
In April 2025, it was announced that AAA would be partnering with WWE on its Worlds Collide event in June 2025, which will be a cross-promotion event with its NXT brand division.
On April 19, 2025, shortly after announcing a joint event between its NXT brand division and AAA, WWE commentator Michael Cole announced during the WrestleMania 41 pre-show that WWE had reached an agreement to acquire AAA, as part of a joint venture with Mexican sports and entertainment company Fillip.
WWE have acquired Lucha Libre AAA, and a new report has some notes on the deal. As noted, it was announced on Saturday that the company had acquired the Mexican wrestling company with NXT Worlds Collide taking place in Los Angeles on June 8th.
The announcement was made as part of the WrestleMania 41 countdown show over the weekend by WWE chief content officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque, Fillip’s chairman Alberto Fasja, AAA’s Marisela Peña and Dorian Roldán Peña, WWE Hall of Famer Rey Mysterio, and El Hijo Del Vikingo. “AAA has a rich cultural heritage with some of the most passionate fans in the world and it’s an honor to work with the Peña family to embark on this journey,” said Levesque.
Earlier this month, a list of luchadores that had reportedly signed contracts with WWE as part of the deal was shared on social media, including former WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio, El Hijo del Vikingo and La Parka.
Future Implications
This acquisition opens new doors for talent exchange and collaborative storytelling, potentially leading to a fusion of WWE's sports entertainment style with AAA's high-flying lucha libre traditions.
The report said that some in AAA were “even skeptical of the announcement” and said it is difficult for them to imagine that the Roldan family would give up all power of AAA. On a more talent-related note, Alberto El Patron is the current AAA Mega Champion. Patron has long had a contentious relationship with WWE and the company has given a “hard no” for years on the notion of working with him despite Patron having said for years that discussions had taken place between the two sides.
In June 2025, WWE's Los Garza won the AAA World Tag Team Championship at Triplemanía Regia III, marking the first AAA championship and the third non-WWE championship in total to be won by wrestlers under WWE contract.
AAA's Partnerships and Collaborations
AAA has a history of collaborations with various wrestling promotions. Here's a summary of some key partnerships:
- Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA): AAA established a working relationship with TNA in early 2004, sending luchadores such as Juventud Guerrera and others to TNA events.
- Major League Wrestling (MLW): In August 2018, AAA began a working agreement with MLW, co-producing special events like the Super Series.
- National Wrestling Alliance (NWA): In August 2021, AAA entered into a working agreement with NWA, leading to AAA wrestlers appearing at NWA events.
- All Elite Wrestling (AEW): AAA has partnered with AEW, allowing for talent exchanges and appearances on each other's shows.
These collaborations have allowed AAA to showcase its talent on a broader stage and bring diverse wrestling styles to its audience.
AAA Signature Events and Tournaments
Each year AAA promotes a number of signature events and tournaments: some shown as pay-per-view or streaming events and others presented as television specials. Typically hosts the Copa Antonio Peña tournament in memory of AAA's founder Antonio Peña; held around the anniversary of Peña's death. AAA's end-of-year show, usually held in November or December.
AAA Championships
Initially, AAA had few restrictions on the number of championships it promoted, often allowing wrestlers to defend titles from other promotions; such as the Universal Wrestling Association.
| Championship | Notes |
|---|---|
| AAA Mega Championship | AAA's top singles title. |
| AAA World Tag Team Championship | AAA's primary tag team title. |
| AAA Reina de Reinas Championship | AAA's top women's title. |
| AAA Latin American Championship | Title for Latin American wrestlers. |
| AAA World Mixed Tag Team Championship | Title for mixed-gender tag teams. |