Teddy Long reveals why AEW was not interested in signing him

Teddy Long recently revealed in an interview that he was told he’s too old to join AEW. The WWE Hall of Famer is one of the most revered managerial figures in the pro-wrestling business, and to see him in Tony Khan’s promotion would have been a treat for the fans.

Long began his career as a referee in WWE but soon found his calling when he was made the General Manager of SmackDown in 2004. He was a regular fixture in SmackDown’s programming until 2014, after which he retired and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame the same year.

Appearing on The Wrestling Inc Dailly podcast, Long spoke about watching Vickie Guerrero on AEW and disclosed he was told by the company that he’s too old to join the promotion. He further said that considering the ages of many AEW employees, the reason came as a surprise.

“Well, I saw her coming out just one time [managing Nyla Rose],” said Long. “I don’t really get the chance to watch much AEW. They told me… I got word that I was too old to be over there [laughs]. If you take a look at that [AEW product], I don’t know how they could say that. But I’m just saying what I’m saying,” said Teddy Long.

Teddy Long added that he’s currently too occupied with SWE Fury, a nationally televised wrestling show based in Texas, for which he’s the on-screen manager.

AEW employs many legends of the pro-wrestling business

Ever since its inception, AEW has signed many legends of the wrestling business. So it comes as a surprise that Teddy Long was not signed up by the company.

The likes of Jake “The Snake” Roberts and Tully Blanchard have found prominent spots in Tony Khan’s promotion.

Arn Anderson is also under a multi-year contract with AEW along with legendary commentator, Jim Ross.

The former SmackDown GM could have been a good addition to Tony Khan’s promotion and acted as an on-screen authority figure as well.

Would have liked to see Teddy Long make random tag team matches in AEW as well? Drop your thoughts in the comments section below.