Last year, Shane McMahon, former WWE executive and talent, met with AEW President Tony Khan to explore future possibilities, but no significant outcomes emerged. According to Fightful Select, details emerged about their July 2024 meeting.

During The Coach & Bro Show, ex-WWE broadcaster Jonathan Coachman revealed that McMahon requested equity in AEW and expressed a desire to run the company. However, Khan reportedly “ghosted” McMahon afterward. While Fightful couldn’t confirm McMahon's equity request, a source close to him acknowledged that Khan didn’t follow up post-meeting. McMahon had indicated he wanted to “run things” at AEW but lacked the necessary product knowledge and familiarity with their business model for the role.

The source mentioned that McMahon didn’t take Khan’s lack of follow-up personally. It was suggested that Khan might have thought McMahon was joking about a major role in AEW. Interestingly, McMahon considered his experience valuable after years of calls for a change in leadership from his father, Vince McMahon.

Fightful Select also emphasized that there was no intention for Shane McMahon to appear on AEW programming or engage actively with the promotion. Khan has remained discreet about the meeting, only confirming they met once and are not collaborating.

Furthermore, a source connected to McMahon indicated that while a cameo in AEW isn’t ruled out, extensive collaboration between the two sides is currently unlikely.