Jeff Jarrett has worked in professional wrestling for decades, appearing for major promotions across North America and beyond while building a résumé tied to some of the industry’s most recognizable events and venues. Even with that history, Jarrett still has clear appreciation for opportunities that carry a special sense of scale, tradition, and personal significance.
During a recent appearance on The Mick And Kenny Show, Jarrett identified two such experiences: walking out at Wembley Stadium for AEW and competing at Arena Mexico as part of CMLL’s 93rd Anniversary show. For Jarrett, both appearances represented far more than another date on a busy wrestling calendar. They were bucket list milestones connected to the history of the buildings, the passion of the crowds, and his own family’s lengthy association with the business.
Wembley Stadium left a lasting impression
When asked to consider favorite matches and experiences from the many companies where he has competed, Jarrett pointed to his AEW appearance at Wembley Stadium. He was part of a Casino Gauntlet match at the stadium, and he emphasized that the setting itself made the moment especially meaningful.
“We’ll get into AEW. I’ve had some unbelievable [matches], but my favorite match to be in was walking out at Wembley Stadium. I was in a gauntlet. [The] response was great. It was kind of a bucket list item for me. So I feel very blessed.”
For more background on this topic, read CMLL Officials Reportedly Surprised by Split Crowd Response to Místico vs. Averno.
Jarrett’s comments underline the distinction wrestlers often make between a favorite match in a technical or storytelling sense and a favorite experience as a performer. The Casino Gauntlet format is built around entrants arriving at different points in the contest, which means a wrestler’s entrance can become an especially important part of the presentation. At Wembley Stadium, that walkout came in front of a massive crowd in one of the United Kingdom’s most famous sports venues.
For a veteran with Jarrett’s level of experience, the response he received was a key part of the memory. A large stadium changes the physical and emotional atmosphere of a wrestling entrance. The distance from the stage to the ring, the scale of the seating, and the sound generated by a crowd of that size can make even a brief appearance feel monumental. Jarrett specifically described the crowd reaction as great, and that reception clearly helped make the match stand out in his AEW tenure.
Wembley Stadium has become an important destination for AEW since the company brought its major event presentation to London. The building’s stature gives performers an opportunity to be part of a show that feels distinct from a standard arena event. Jarrett’s reflection shows that the significance of performing there was not lost on someone who has seen the wrestling industry evolve through multiple eras.
A career shaped by wrestling history
Jarrett also framed the Wembley milestone through the lens of gratitude. His use of the word “blessed” reflects an awareness that longevity in wrestling does not guarantee access to every landmark event or historic venue. A performer can have championships, acclaimed bouts, and years of television exposure, yet still carry a list of places they hope to work before their in-ring career is complete.
That perspective is especially relevant in Jarrett’s case. He comes from a family deeply rooted in professional wrestling, and he noted that his family has been involved in the industry for 80 years. He also referenced his grandmother entering the business in 1946. That family legacy provides another layer to appearances at venues with major importance to wrestling fans and wrestlers alike.
Rather than treating those opportunities as routine accomplishments, Jarrett has presented them as experiences connected to the larger story of the profession. Wembley Stadium represents the scale of a modern international event. Arena Mexico represents a much older and equally powerful wrestling tradition, one with a central place in the history of lucha libre.
Competing at Arena Mexico completed another goal
Jarrett’s second bucket list venue was Arena Mexico, where he competed in connection with CMLL’s 93rd Anniversary show. He described the opportunity in similarly enthusiastic terms and connected it directly to CMLL’s long history.
“It’s another unbelievable bucket list. My family’s been in the business 80 years. My grandmother broke it in 1946, but 93 years ago this week, CMLL started their promotion, the promotion to Mexico. I’m on the CMLL 93rd Anniversary show.”
CMLL’s anniversary events carry a unique level of meaning within Mexican wrestling. The promotion’s history stretches back generations, and its legacy is closely linked to the development and preservation of lucha libre as a major cultural and sporting tradition. For a wrestler whose own family history is central to his identity, appearing on an anniversary card for a promotion with that kind of lineage offered a rare convergence of personal and industry history.
Arena Mexico is not simply another venue on the international wrestling circuit. It is widely regarded as one of the defining homes of lucha libre, with generations of wrestlers creating memorable moments in front of its crowds. The building is associated with masks, apuestas matches, championship contests, and the particular rhythm of CMLL’s presentation. To compete there is to step into an environment shaped by a wrestling culture that has developed on its own terms for decades.
Jarrett’s comments make clear that the appeal was not based only on adding an international appearance to his career. He focused on the anniversary setting and CMLL’s long-standing place in Mexico. The timing of the show, occurring 93 years after the promotion’s start, elevated the occasion beyond an ordinary card.
Two venues, two different forms of wrestling prestige
Wembley Stadium and Arena Mexico are dramatically different buildings, and they symbolize different kinds of prestige in professional wrestling. Wembley is a global sporting landmark associated with huge crowds and major-event spectacle. Arena Mexico is a wrestling-specific institution, steeped in the traditions of Mexican lucha libre and the history of CMLL.
For Jarrett, however, the common thread is apparent. Each venue gave him the chance to participate in something larger than a single match result. At Wembley, he was part of an AEW stadium presentation and received a strong response during the Casino Gauntlet. At Arena Mexico, he took part in a historic anniversary event for a promotion that has endured for 93 years.
Those experiences also illustrate the increasingly international nature of a wrestler’s career in the modern landscape. Jarrett has long been associated with American professional wrestling, but his recent milestones have placed him in two very different global settings: a major British stadium show and the centerpiece venue of Mexican lucha libre. The opportunities demonstrate how performers with established reputations can continue to find new career-defining moments well after they have already accomplished a great deal.
Jarrett continues to value the moments beyond wins and losses
Professional wrestling is often measured through titles, pay-per-view main events, rivalries, and match results. Jarrett’s reflections offer a different measure of success. His comments did not center on a championship victory or a particular storyline payoff. Instead, he highlighted the feeling of walking into Wembley Stadium and the honor of appearing on CMLL’s anniversary event at Arena Mexico.
That does not diminish the importance of competition. Rather, it speaks to what can remain meaningful across a long career. The chance to hear a stadium crowd react, represent a promotion on a landmark event, or work in a building regarded as sacred by another wrestling culture can become the type of memory that endures long after the bell has rung.
Jarrett called both appearances unbelievable bucket list items, and the description fits the weight he placed on each moment. One was tied to the modern reach of AEW and a historic stadium in London. The other was tied to CMLL’s 93-year legacy and an iconic Mexican venue. Together, they represent two distinct but equally significant chapters in the continuing career of a wrestler who still finds fresh meaning in the places professional wrestling can take him.
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.