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The Best Matches From AEW World’s End 2025

Things got wild in Chicago!
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Best Matches From AEW World's End

All Elite Wrestling has had one heck of a year. Even after a small “rough start,” they soon locked in and delivered one impressive show after another. It didn’t matter if it was Dynamite, Collision, or a PPV; they always brought it. So, the question was, “Could they end the year properly?” Yes. Yes, they did. AEW World’s End was another great PPV, and as I’ve done before, it’s time to showcase what I thought were the “Best Matches From AEW World’s End!” With the stacked card below, do you think you can guess what I’ll pick?

I know, hard to pick a few from that stacked card, and yet, the only way for me to truly start out this “Best Matches From AEW World’s End” list is to talk about…

…yep! I’m starting out with this one because it was an insane affair that highlighted my love of AEW in a very specific way.

You see, multi-person matches, on both TV and PPV, were often treated as “filler,” or even pointless, unless they had a very specific gimmick to them. AEW has never viewed them that way. They always try to make these matches shine, and 2025 showcased that both to start the year and now to end the year.

Seriously, a “Mixed Nuts Mayhem” match? Give a raise to the person who came up with that title.

What helped make this match work weren’t just the combatants within, but the fact that they did it Tornado Tag Style, which ensure that EVERYONE was in play at every moment, and that led to a lot of fun beats. Not the least of which was Marina Shafir going toe-to-toe with Orange Cassidy in a way I didn’t expect:

Yeah, that was great, but it didn’t end there, as Timeless Toni Storm did what she often does in chaotic situations like these and stole the show:

If not obvious, she went full-tilt with this match, so much so that they even had Claudio give her the Giant Swing!

The Conglomeration and Toni Storm defeat the Death Riders.The ULTIMATE party match in AEW—what a fun, entertaining, and hilarious match! No one does these matches like All Elite Wrestling.Highlighted by Toni Storm going for a spin.#AEWWorldsEnd

— All Elite Central (@allelitecentral.com) 2025-12-28T03:26:03.777769Z

And then, there was this “Masterpiece Theater” moment:

Poetry. Pure poetry. This match was just a lot of fun to watch, and that’s why many are still talking about it today, because AEW decided to “go nuts” with this match, and it worked out beautifully.

…and now…for something a bit more serious…

Yeah, I couldn’t have a “Best Matches From AEW World’s End” list without talking about at LEAST one of the three Continental Classic matches from the night. As I’ve covered in my Dynamite/Collision recaps, this year’s C2 has been absolutely insane, and after what happened last night, it may truly be the most unpredictable one we’ve ever had.

The first bout between Takeshita and Okada was stunning and high-impact in multiple ways, and then, we got to Kyle Fletcher vs. Jon Moxley. This bout was very much “The Future of AEW vs. The Ace of AEW,” and it lived up to that moniker by doing a brutal bout that showcased both men’s toughness, while also highlighting that you have to be more than athletic to make it in this business.

You have to want it more.

From the beginning, Fletcher made his plan painfully clear, as he wanted to destroy Moxley’s leg:

It was a sound strategy, as he used that same idea against Jack Perry to help secure his spot in the semifinals, and when that wasn’t enough to beat down Jon, he went to some other classic moves of his:

Ouch. Yet, the story of this match was about how Jon Moxley refused to give up, even when his body was failing him. Many have noticed the “slow babyface turn” that he was going through in the C2, and it played out in full here, for with each burst of energy, with each rally that he put on, the crowd kept getting behind him, until we finally got to the point where they were chanting “Moxley! Moxley!” at the top of their lungs and the Ace went to work:

…oh, and he flipped him off, too:

The whole turnaround of Jon Moxley was masterfully handled, and for them to put in the story beat of Kyle being the one to put the screwdriver in the ring cable padding and not Okada added even more layers to an already incredible in-ring story.

Kyle feared he couldn’t beat Mox, and thus planned to cheat. Mox would’ve cheated to beat someone like Kyle previously, but thanks to the C2 rules, and his mindset of “dying on this hill,” he didn’t need to, and so he choked Kyle out, getting the victory, and ensuring he would be in the finals, and now, he’s the Continental Champion…and pretty much everyone is happy about that.

What a turnaround, right?

And now…for my “Match of the Night.”

Oh yeah, I’m very happy about this being at the top of the list of my “Best Matches From AEW World’s End” list. Going into World’s End, Jamie Hayter vs. Kris Statlander felt like a “heavyweight bout” between two of the best on the roster, but the hype wasn’t as grand as it arguably should have been.

Then the match happened, and I instantly wanted a rematch just so I could watch these two go at it again.

From pretty much the opening bell, these two were trying to one-up each other, and it was awesome. Then, they got more physical in their strikes, and it was even more awesome:

The line is always “styles make fights,” and the Continental Classic proved that many times over. Yet, sometimes, you want a fight that features “mirror images” of one another, because it delivers its own unique bout. Kris and Jamie are two of the strongest women in the AEW roster, and thus, they can do all sorts of high-impact moves to make the other hurt, and then get back up to take more punishment, and that was fun to watch, as the two had to go deep into their wells to try and deliver the move that would put the other down:

Ouch x2! Oh, and that last one had a LOT of people worried about Jamie, and yet, she was fine! What a woman, right Toni?

Another element I enjoyed was the psychological warfare going on between the two, as this exchange perfectly highlighted.

Poetry. Pure poetry…again.

I could’ve watched them go on for a long time, and maybe in the future they’ll have an even longer bout (I really wanted this one to go 20+ minutes, but I’ll accept 18 minutes, as it was a really good 18 minutes).

In fact, the only negative about this match was…just like at Full Gear…the crowd. They should’ve chanted “This Is Awesome” and “Fight Forever!” multiple times over because these women brought it, and I absolutely want to see another PPV match between them in the future.

In the end, though, Hayters hate, and Big Stat Daddy wins.

What will be in our champ’s future? It’s hard to say (Thekla), but I look forward to the matches that come with her continued reign!

And with that, my breakdown is done. What were YOUR “Best Matches From AEW World’s End?” Are you already excited for what All Elite Wrestling will do in 2026 when they return to PPV via Revolution? Let me know below!

Plus, as a heads up, this Wednesday, I’ll be dropping a special feature breaking down my favorite matches from EVERY AEW PPV in 2025! Stay tuned and enjoy wrestling, everybody!

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A self-proclaimed Nintendo fanboy, born, bred, and Mushroom fed! He’s owned every Nintendo handheld and every console since the SNES. He's got a degree in video game development, is a published comic book writer and an author of several novels!