CMLL talents look to increase popularity among American pro wrestling fans with latest opportunity

Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) is one of the most historic pro wrestling promotions on the planet. The company was founded in 1933 and continues to honor Lucha Libre style wrestling to this day.

As pro wrestling’s popularity has increased dramatically over the years, CMLL has had the need to get more eyeballs on its product. Among the steps the company has taken, CMLL partnered with All Elite Wrestling (AEW) to feature its superstars on its programming. The partnership has allowed CMLL legends like Místico to appear at AEW and Ring of Honor shows while still being the generational figure that he is in Mexico. The same has held true for a lot of CMLL talent.

The next step was to find a footing in the United States. With immense potential, CMLL held its first solo event in Las Vegas as part of Slam Fest during WrestleMania weekend. The action-packed event saw the likes of Blue Panther, Ultimo Guerrero, Persephone, Tessa Blanchard, Místico, Hechicero, Templario, Angel de Oro and others showcase their talent.

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Passionate pro wrestling fans could easily get hooked on the athleticism and storytelling that CMLL brings in the ring. But what about watching it at home? Where can the average pro wrestling fan watch incredible Lucha Libre? MyAEW was launched with that concept in mind – giving fans access to events they normally wouldn’t be able to find elsewhere.

CMLL’s New Japan Pro-Wrestling Fantastica Mania Mexico 2026 was added to the event schedule. Several more shows were added to the docket after that, including the company’s anniversary event which was held back on Sept. 18.

"This is a huge deal," CMLL Mexican national champion Thunder Rosa told OutKick Dropkick in a recent interview. "A lot of people have been asking for a long time, how can they watch CMLL, right? And I think right now CMLL is at a point in where it's known globally. I mean, it's known globally like people every time that they come to Mexico City, they come to Arena, México to experience what Lucha Libre is. But it's always been like this dark area and like, Where can I watch this? And they were like you can go on YouTube. CMLL has had a subscription based activity with YouTube and where you can watch all the CMLL stuff in there but now they partner with AEW with this big partnership that we have had on this almost for two years and now people in America, if you have access to MyAEW.com you can watch the shows.

"It excites me because as someone who works in both companies, now I can tell people, if you have MyAEW.com now you can watch CMLL and I hope that a lot of the other programming from CMLL is there too because there's been fantastic matches in the last I want to say last year. CMLL just in general has the best wrestling in the world. Just like AEW where the best wrestle, CMLL is we're the best wrestle."

Miguel Castro wears many hats for CMLL. But most who tune into the English-speaking commentary will hear his voice on the broadcast.

Castro said that while AEW has given CMLL as platform to showcase the best it has to offer, trying to carve out an audience and build a brand in the United States is a challenge in and of itself.

"Mostly brand recognition," Castro told OutKick Dropkick when asked what were some of the obstacles in the way of growth in the U.S. "I believe that our talents’ work speaks for itself. Anyone that enjoys wrestling, even if you like it by 5% compared to a fan, you will enjoy a CMLL show. It's not all about the drama and the storytelling, and that, I think that's what has made such a good connection with AEW and with New Japan Pro-Wrestling, we're heavily focused on the sports. So, even if you've never seen wrestling and you go to a CMLL show, you will enjoy it. It's fun. It'll make you gasp, it will make you scream, you'll have fun, and then you're gonna want to know more."

Castro added that CMLL has very little, if at all, advertising budget and still sells out Arena México for its shows. He credited AEW for giving CMLL a showcase for its talent, brand and helping create stars in the U.S. If Místico is on the card in an AEW or Ring of Honor show, fans will sing his entrance music "Me Muero." Persephone has become a rising star in AEW as she won the TBS Championship at All In.

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Ultimately, Castro said the biggest obstacle is doing something CMLL has never done before and if fans can get eyes on the product, they will return.

But what would success look like to Castro come September 2027?

"I would love to increase the pay-per-view numbers 10 times on MyAEW and I know that's going to happen as they also grow their base in the platform," he said. "My main focus right now would be to have a media deal in the States. And ideally not in Univision or Telemundo. Like I don't want it to be part of a TV station just because it's Mexican. That, for me, would be huge. It's very probable that we're not going to get there so soon, especially because we haven't even started trying to have those conversations with people.

"But we just started three months ago with Fox Sports in Mexico and I can tell you that we're getting about a million pairs of eyeballs every month. That's been huge because we had our YouTube, like that's the thing. If we could do that, I would think I would consider that very successful. I would also love that during next year."

Fantastica Mania is next on the CMLL docket. It will partner with RevPro on the showcase, which takes placet Oct. 17 and 18. Both shows are available for purchase for $14.99.