Further details on WWE's acquisition of Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide have emerged.
Ahead of WrestleMania 41 on Saturday, WWE announced that it had acquired AAA and would be presenting Worlds Collide featuring both brands on June 7, putting an unexpected twist to long-standing rumors of a working relationship. Speaking during WrestleMania Saturday's post-show, WWE CCO Paul "Triple H" Levesque further addressed the acquisition, focusing on his plan to make lucha libre thrive. He clarified that he's not looking to change lucha libre but to bring the resources and infrastructure that benefited WWE to the Mexican promotion, citing the ID and NIL talent programs, and declaring that the vision will be clearer to see at Worlds Collide.
It was reported by Fightful Select after the announcement that there had been conversations about AAA finding new partners for years, but once the WWE-TKO merger happened discussions about that partner being WWE started to pick up, and there were conversations between both sides for quite some time. It was noted in the report that the acquisition itself had been kept under wraps, but it is believed that the deal was finalized after AEW and CMLL announced Grand Slam Mexico.
Regarding the status of AAA Mega Champion and formerly WWE outcast Alberto El Patron (Del Rio), the subject of much controversy throughout his career as well as allegations of abuse in his personal life, it was reported that for years WWE had given a "hard no" on working with El Patron. But those close to Del Rio are said to have claimed that he has said otherwise, the two sides had discussed possible appearances, and the relationship was no longer "contentious."
