AEW made the right decision to not bring in the Briscoe Brothers

Some interesting news broke on Friday about The Briscoes and the speculation around their joining All Elite Wrestling. First reported by Fightful Select, there isn’t a plan to bring the multiple-time tag team champions into the promotion. The reasoning that stands out as it surrounds the controversy created by Jay Briscoe’s homophobic tweets back in 2013. When looking at the current landscape of professional wrestling and demands by fans for accountability, this is the right decision to make.

Back in 2013, Jay Briscoe’s comments were clearly hateful and full of bigotry toward same-sex marriages. Ring of Honor, their current employer at the time, condemned his comments and donated his following two paychecks to Partners Against Hate, a non-profit that works to reduce such behavior against juveniles. Jay Briscoe did apologize for his statement.

Nearly a decade later, these comments are still hindering opportunities for the tag team. According to the Fightful Select report, WarnerMedia sources stated “that a person of influence in the company did not want the duo signed to AEW, specifically due to Jay Briscoe’s homophobic tweets from 2013.

This is an interesting development because professional wrestling has consistently shown hesitancy to remove bad actors. Many of the men named during the Speaking Out movement still receive ample bookings, such as Jay Lethal who was added to the AEW roster after Full Gear. In WWE, Matt Riddle is among the best booked in the promotion, even as allegations and legal proceedings hang over his career.

Last month, AEW was looking to bring in Brian Kendrick but that was met with immediate backlash when his past hateful statements were uncovered. He was removed from the show just as quickly as he was added.

AEW made the right call not bringing in The Briscoes. Yes, they are a decorated tag team with title runs in Ring of Honor, New Japan, CZW, GCW, and more. However, actions such as wrestling in gear modeled after the Confederate flag and Jay Briscoe’s comments rightfully raise the eyebrow of some fans willing to dedicate their time and money to AEW.

Making the decision to not include them is the right call from a business standpoint. These are the tough decisions needed to make sure a promotion is an inclusive space, welcoming of those that make up the professional wrestling fanbase.