All Elite Wrestling casino matches
Professional wrestling match type
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As part of a general theme, the American professional wrestling promotion All Elite Wrestling utilises various casino-themed matches: the Casino Battle Royale, a 21-man rumble-rules battle royal; the Casino Ladder Match, a nine-man ladder match where the prize – a large poker chip suspended above the ring – signifies a future AEW World Championship opportunity; and the Casino Gauntlet match, a gauntlet match where entrants gradually fill the ring and the first participant to score a pinfall or submission wins the gauntlet.
History
The first Casino Battle Royale occurred during the pre-show of AEW's inaugural event, Double or Nothing in May 2019, and was a men's match. The winner of this first match was entered into the match to determine the inaugural holder of the AEW World Championship at All Out in August of that year.[1] The second Casino Battle Royale was a women's match and was held during the pre-show of the All Out event mentioned above. Like the first, the winner of this second iteration was entered into the match to determine the inaugural holder of the AEW Women's World Championship on the debut episode of AEW's weekly television show, Dynamite.[2] Further Casino Battle Royales took place at All Out in 2020, Double or Nothing in 2021, and on Dynamite in 2022 for men, and at All Out in 2021 for women. A tag team variation of the match, called the Casino Tag Team Royale, was first utilized at Revolution in March 2021, where the prize was AEW World Tag Team Championship match[3][4] – and on the episodes of Dynamite immediately preceding the Revolution pay-per-view in 2022 and 2023. In December 2022, a version for three-man teams was established called the Casino Trios Royale, where the winning team would split $300,000.[5] The Battle Royale was supplemented by the Casino Ladder match – a ladder match in which the prize, a large poker chip, is suspended above the ring – in 2020, and by the Casino Gauntlet match – a modified gauntlet match – in 2024.
Rules
Casino Battle Royale
The Casino Battle Royale is a modified rumble rules battle royal that features 21 entrants. It begins with a group of five wrestlers, and every three minutes, another group of five wrestlers enters, while the 21st and final entrant enters alone. The wrestlers are grouped based on the suit they drew from a deck of cards—spades, diamonds, clubs, or hearts—and the order of when each group enters is based on a random draw of the cards. The 21st and final entrant is the wrestler who drew the joker.[6] The winner receives a world championship match of their respective gender's division—either the AEW World Championship or the AEW Women's World Championship.[1][7]
For tag teams and trios, rumble rules are also implemented, but participating teams are not grouped by card suit; instead, one new team enters every 90 seconds. Individual eliminations occur when a wrestler has gone over the top rope and both feet hit the floor; a team is eliminated when both members of the team have been ruled out of the match. The match ends when one wrestler or team is left.
Casino Ladder match
The Casino Ladder match is a modified ladder match where the prize, a large poker chip suspended above the ring, signifies an AEW World Championship opportunity. The match has nine entrants: two participants start the match in the ring, and an additional wrestler enters the match every ninety seconds. The poker chip above the ring may be retrieved at any point during the match, even if not all entrants have participated.[8] The first ladder match took place at Double or Nothing in 2020 and was won by the debuting Brian Cage.[9] Further Casino Ladder matches took place on the 2021 anniversary episode of Dynamite, which was won by "Hangman" Adam Page,[10] and at All Out in 2022, which was won by MJF.[11]
Casino Gauntlet match
The Casino Gauntlet match is a modified gauntlet match. Featuring a maximum of 21 participants, the match starts with two wrestlers in the ring and new entrants enter at randomly-timed intervals. The match may end at any time by pinfall or submission, even if not all 21 participants have taken part in the match.[12] The first Casino Gauntlet match, on the April 24, 2024 episode of Dynamite, was won by Will Ospreay, who earned an International Championship match at Double or Nothing;[13] the prize for subsequent matches has typically been a world championship opportunity in the division. Before Forbidden Door in 2025, open-ended contracts could be executed at any time at the holder's discretion, not dissimilar to the rules of WWE's Money in the Bank concept; after that show, AEW president Tony Khan announced that any future matches guaranteed by the contract would require one week of advance notice.[14]
Winners
Casino Battle Royale
| # | Event | Date | Winner | Title shot | Draw | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Double or Nothing | May 25, 2019 | "Hangman" Adam Page | Inaugural World Championship match at All Out | Joker | [15] |
| 2 | All Out | September 5, 2020 | Lance Archer | World Championship match on the Dynamite anniversary episode | Spades | [16] |
| 3 | Double or Nothing | May 30, 2021 | Jungle Boy | World Championship match on Dynamite | Spades | [17] |
| 4 | Dynamite | June 8, 2022 | Kyle O'Reilly | An opportunity to qualify for the AEW Interim World Championship Eliminator Series | Spades | [18] |
| # | Event | Date | Winner | Prize | Draw | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | All Out | August 31, 2019 | Nyla Rose | Inaugural Women's World Championship match on the Dynamite debut episode | Clubs | [7] |
| 2 | All Out | September 5, 2021 | Ruby Soho | Women's World Championship match at Grand Slam | Joker | [19] |
| # | Event | Date | Winner | Prize | Draw | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Revolution | March 7, 2021 | Death Triangle (Pac and Rey Fénix) | World Tag Team Championship match on Dynamite | 14 | [20] |
| 2 | Dynamite | March 2, 2022 | The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson) | World Tag Team Championship match at Revolution | 11 | [21] |
| 3 | Dynamite | March 1, 2023 | Danhausen and Orange Cassidy | World Tag Team Championship match at Revolution | 9 | [22] |
| # | Event | Date | Winner | Prize | Draw | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rampage: Holiday Bash | December 23, 2022 | AR Fox and Top Flight (Dante and Darius Martin) | $300,000 | 8 | [5] |
Casino Ladder match
| # | Event | Date | Winner | Prize | Draw | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Double or Nothing | May 23, 2020 | Brian Cage | World Championship match at Fight for the Fallen | 9 | [5] |
| 2 | Dynamite: Anniversary | October 6, 2021 | "Hangman" Adam Page | World Championship match at Full Gear | 9 | |
| 3 | All Out | September 4, 2022 | MJF | World Championship match at Full Gear | 8 |
Casino Gauntlet match
| # | Event | Date | Winner | Prize | Draw | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dynamite | April 24, 2024 | Will Ospreay | International Championship match at Double or Nothing | 5 | |
| 2 | Dynamite | May 29, 2024 | Will Ospreay | World Championship match at Forbidden Door | 4 | |
| 3 | All In | August 25, 2024 | Christian Cage | World Championship match contract | 11 | |
| 4 | Dynamite | September 11, 2024 | Kyle Fletcher and Will Ospreay | World Tag Team Championship match at Grand Slam | 2 | |
| 5 | Dynamite | January 8, 2025 | Powerhouse Hobbs | World Championship match at Maximum Carnage | 7 | |
| 6 | All In | July 12, 2025 | MJF | World Championship match contract | 2 | |
| 7 | Full Gear | November 22, 2025 | Ricochet | Inaugural National Championship | 3 | [23] |
| 8 | Dynasty | April 12, 2026 | Kevin Knight | Vacant AEW TNT Championship | 9 | [24] |
| # | Event | Date | Winner | Prize | Draw | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dynamite: Maximum Carnage | January 15, 2025 | "Timeless" Toni Storm | Women's World Championship match at Grand Slam Australia | 6 | |
| 2 | All In | July 12, 2025 | Athena | Women's World Championship match contract | 9 | |
| 3 | Dynamite: Beach Break | July 8, 2026 | Willow Nightingale | Women's World Championship match at Redemption | 8 |
Championship opportunities
- – Win
- – Loss