Callum Newman has laid out his frustration with Will Ospreay’s decision to establish a United States branch of United Empire, saying he was not informed beforehand despite having taken on the responsibility of leading the group in New Japan Pro-Wrestling.
The issue adds a sharp personal layer to the upcoming pairing of Newman and Ospreay at NJPW Power Struggle, where the two are set to challenge for the IWGP Tag Team Championships. While they will be aligned in pursuit of gold, Newman’s comments make clear that there is lingering resentment over Ospreay’s relationship with the faction he formerly led in Japan.
Ospreay officially joined AEW after departing NJPW in February 2024, leaving United Empire without its most prominent central figure. The faction had long promoted a structure that did not necessarily depend on a single leader, but Newman argued that the reality of the group’s history was different. In his view, somebody has always needed to be the person who sets the direction and accepts the pressure that comes with it.
“Look, when he left the group… I know people say oh the whole thing is there’s no leaders in Empire, but that just isn’t true,” Newman said. “There’s always been someone that’s the guy. That guy was Will, and when Will left, TJP stepped up, and when TJ left, nobody wanted to step up.”
For more background on this topic, read Callum Newman Details Shoulder Scare During G1 Climax Match With Aaron Wolf.
Newman described that period as a moment when United Empire risked losing its momentum. He said the situation became more difficult as injuries affected HENARE and Francesco Akira, leaving the stable in need of someone prepared to carry its identity forward. Newman said he believed he had become the group’s hardest worker and ultimately decided that waiting for another member to assume that position was no longer an option.
Newman says he chose to carry United Empire forward
For Newman, taking a larger role was not presented as a ceremonial promotion or a position simply handed to him. He framed it as a decision born from necessity. With the group’s future uncertain, he said he directly confronted his stablemates and warned them that United Empire could decline if no one was willing to take charge.
“It was just an open space, and then HENARE got hurt, Akira got hurt, and I was the hardest worker,” Newman said. “I said to them, to their faces, somebody has to do something or this group is going to go downhill. And they didn’t want to. So I was like f*** it, it’s got to be me.”
Newman’s assessment was that he made significant personal sacrifices in order to keep the United Empire banner visible during that stretch. He said every match became an opportunity to represent the faction and demonstrate that it still had an active force within NJPW. That mentality helped define his rise, as he increasingly positioned himself not just as a member of the unit but as the wrestler willing to put its future on his shoulders.
He also pointed to the moves that followed as evidence that he had sought to build, rather than merely preserve, United Empire. Newman cited the returns of injured members and the additions of Jake Lee and Andrade El Idolo as key developments that helped the stable regain strength. He praised both signings while arguing that the group had reached a particularly strong point by the time Ospreay sought to become more involved again.
“And then the boys came back from injury, I brought in Jake Lee, who’s a phenomenal wrestler, Andrade El Idolo, one of the best wrestlers in the world,” Newman said. “So then Will wants to come back when the group is peaking. He said he’d do things my way but he didn’t. And then he made his own group in America without telling us.”
A transatlantic expansion created a fresh divide
Ospreay’s AEW success has naturally kept him connected to wrestling outside of NJPW, and his creation of a United States-based version of United Empire expanded the faction’s name into a new setting. However, Newman’s issue is not simply that the stable has grown beyond Japan. His objection is that the expansion was apparently undertaken without communication with the person who believes he had been carrying the group’s leadership duties.
Newman said he was not given advance notice that wrestlers including Mike Bailey, Alex Windsor and Jamie Hayter had joined the U.S. version of United Empire. Instead, he said the information came to him secondhand through other members. He described receiving messages asking whether he knew Bailey was part of the group, followed by the news regarding Windsor and Hayter.
“Nobody did,” Newman said when asked whether he had been informed. “I got a message from one of the other boys saying ‘you know Mike Bailey’s in the group?’ and I’m like, ‘no, I didn’t’. They go ‘do you know Alex Windsor’s in, Jamie Hayter’s in?’ I didn’t know, no. The only way I would find out is looking on f***ing Twitter.”
That lack of consultation is central to Newman’s anger. From his perspective, he had committed himself to keeping United Empire alive during a difficult transition, invested in its roster and helped elevate its standing. Learning of a major new branch through social media made him feel that the work he put into the faction had not been respected.
“So thanks, I guess. All the hard work, all the sacrifice means f*** all,” Newman said.
The comments offer a notably different perspective on United Empire’s evolution from the one that might be expected from a faction expanding internationally. A U.S. chapter could be viewed as an extension of the name Ospreay helped make prominent, but Newman sees it through the lens of ownership, responsibility and recognition. He does not dispute Ospreay’s historic importance to the group. In fact, he plainly acknowledges that Ospreay was the central figure before leaving. What Newman rejects is the idea that Ospreay can resume influence over the stable’s identity without respecting what happened after his exit.
The tag title challenge now carries more intrigue
Newman and Ospreay will nevertheless have to operate as partners at Power Struggle when they challenge for the IWGP Tag Team Championships. On paper, their shared history and individual ability could make them a formidable tandem. Ospreay remains one of the most accomplished wrestlers of his generation, while Newman has emerged as a defining figure for United Empire’s present direction in NJPW.
Yet a championship match demands coordination, and Newman’s remarks suggest that trust cannot be assumed. He says Ospreay promised to work within his vision for the group, only for Ospreay to form a separate American contingent without informing the existing United Empire members. That dispute could remain in the background if the two are united by the goal of winning the titles, but it is difficult to ignore when their partnership is built around a faction whose control and future are now openly contested.
There is also a broader question about whether United Empire can genuinely function as one worldwide entity if its Japanese and American sides are being formed and managed without shared communication. Newman’s comments do not establish what Ospreay’s long-term plans are for the U.S. unit, nor do they indicate whether the two branches will formally work together going forward. They do, however, establish that Newman does not see the expansion as a collaborative step.
For now, the immediate test comes at Power Struggle. Newman and Ospreay will enter the IWGP Tag Team Championship challenge with a common objective, but with an unresolved disagreement over who has earned the right to shape United Empire. Newman believes he stepped into a vacuum when no one else would. Ospreay’s decision to create a new group under the same banner has made that claim to leadership impossible to separate from their impending title pursuit.
Darryl Polo
Darryl Polo is a passionate wrestling fan covering WWE, AEW, TNA and beyond. He loves great rivalries, breakout stars and the moments that keep fans talking long after the bell. How we work.