Eric Bischoff recently spoke on his 83 Weeks podcast and gave All Elite Wrestling some positive recognition, a rare occurrence from the former WCW president.

During the discussion, Conrad Thompson asked Bischoff about AEW’s decision to run shows in smaller, historic wrestling venues such as the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia. While Bischoff admitted that he does not share the same level of nostalgia for ECW as Thompson, he still believes AEW has made a smart business choice with their residency.

“I get the nostalgia part. I don’t feel it like perhaps you do because I had a different relationship with, certainly, ECW than you did at the time. So, I don’t have that connection. I have a connection but it’s different,” Bischoff explained.

He went on to highlight the importance of a strong live atmosphere when producing weekly television.

“There is nothing for your brand that is more challenging, when you’re producing weekly television, than to not have an audience because that speaks to the people sitting at home. It kind of suggests that maybe this isn’t that important. And conversely, when you see a packed stadium, whether it’s for Savannah Bananas or whatever else, that packed stadium makes you feel like you’re watching something that’s worth your time.”

Bischoff added that he had seen this issue firsthand during his WCW days, where smaller crowds in larger arenas made the product look weak on television. For that reason, he feels AEW running the 2300 Arena is the right move.

“So, I think the fact that AEW chose that arena because of its nostalgia that it represents to a lot of the audience and it’s suitable for television, I don’t know, makes sense to me. Where else are you going to go? Some 6,000, 7,000-seat arena where you can only sell 2,000 tickets. You don’t want to do that. So, I think it was a good decision business-wise.”

AEW has two events left in its 2300 Arena residency, with Dynamite set for Wednesday and a Collision taping on Thursday. Following those shows, the company will travel to London, Ontario, for a three-hour September to Remember special on Wednesday, September 17. The month wraps up with All Out on Saturday, September 20, at Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena.