Kofi Kingston has reflected on the unusual and increasingly difficult effort to keep his AEW arrival alongside Austin Creed under wraps before AEW All In London 2026.
Kingston and Creed, now known in AEW as The New Level, made their debut at the London stadium event after months of speculation surrounding their next move. While the appearance was designed as a surprise, Kingston acknowledged that anticipation had grown to the point where many fans had already connected the dots.
Speaking on AEW Close-Up with Renee Paquette, Kingston described the final day or two before the event as a particularly surreal period. He called the debut “the worst-kept secret,” a fitting assessment given the volume of discussion that had surrounded the pair ahead of All In London.
“24 hours or 48 hours leading up was just wild because a lot of people don't realize even though I feel like it was the worst kept secret right?” Kingston said.
For more background on this topic, read Chris Jericho Announced For ‘Dead Of Night’ Q&A As AEW Dynamite Highlights Roll Out.
The comments underline the balancing act involved when major wrestling names are preparing for a debut at one of the industry’s most visible events. A surprise can be protected as closely as possible internally, but travel schedules, hotel arrangements, international flights and fan speculation can all make absolute secrecy difficult. In Kingston and Creed’s case, the intrigue had been building long before they arrived in London.
For Kingston, the journey itself also represented a major adjustment. He explained that taking a long-haul flight felt unfamiliar because it had been several months since he had traveled in that manner. Even a routine airport visit had taken on a different feeling after time away from that environment.
“I'd gone to the airport to get the rental car to go to upstate New York and then I realized like I hadn't been in the airport and it was unfamiliar to be in the airport,” Kingston said. “This is a place that I hadn't been in so long, so that was weird.”
That detail offers a glimpse into the personal side of a high-profile career transition. The public conversation around a potential debut naturally focused on where Kingston and Creed might appear and what their arrival could mean for AEW. For the wrestlers themselves, however, the days before the reveal involved practical changes as well: traveling again, navigating an unfamiliar routine and attempting to remain out of sight while headed toward one of wrestling’s largest stages.
The New Level took additional steps to avoid being spotted by staying at a hotel roughly 45 minutes from the airport rather than lodging with the bulk of the AEW roster. The arrangement was intended to reduce the chances of an accidental encounter or an early sighting that could spoil the plan.
Yet Kingston’s choice of travel clothing made the idea of blending into the background considerably more complicated. He had a hood up, but he was also wearing an outfit that was not exactly designed to disappear in a crowd.
“I had my hoodie on too, except I was wearing a lime green Tiffany green suit, full jumpsuit, not incognito, but I had the hoodie on,” Kingston said. “I'm just like, ‘What is going on?’ We didn't see anybody though.”
Kingston’s recollection captures the humor in the situation. The hoodie may have offered some degree of concealment, but a lime green, Tiffany green full jumpsuit was a memorable look for someone trying to travel quietly. Still, the pair apparently avoided any direct encounters that could have compromised the reveal before their intended appearance.
Keeping performers separate from the rest of a roster is a familiar precaution when a promotion wants to preserve a surprise. It is not simply a matter of preventing fans from seeing talent together. Hotels, airports and event-week activity can create countless opportunities for chance sightings, particularly around a major international show that draws wrestlers, staff, media and fans from around the world.
In this case, the challenge was amplified by the fact that Kingston and Creed were already widely discussed as possible AEW additions. Their eventual debut as The New Level at All In London did not arrive in a vacuum. The possibility had become one of the central talking points attached to the event in the months beforehand, leaving the pair to navigate a situation where secrecy was still important even if expectations were high.
Creed added another significant detail about the process: he and Kingston went to Wembley Stadium the day before All In London. During that visit, they signed their AEW contracts and met AEW President Tony Khan for the first time.
The timing is notable. Rather than presenting the signing as an extended public rollout in advance of the event, Kingston and Creed completed that pivotal step only a day before making their presence felt at All In London. The Wembley visit was therefore not only a contract meeting but also an early moment of connection between the incoming team and the setting that would host their AEW introduction.
Creed also said it was meaningful to have his family present. For a career development of that scale, the opportunity to share the moment with family added a personal dimension beyond the business significance of joining a new promotion and launching a new identity.
The move to AEW places Kingston and Creed in a different chapter from the one they spent as members of WWE’s New Day. Their history together gives The New Level an immediate foundation as a tandem, while the new name establishes that their AEW run is intended to stand on its own. Their debut at All In London put that transition in front of a major audience from the outset.
It also sets up a new range of possibilities within AEW’s roster. Kingston and Creed arrive with years of experience as a team, considerable individual name recognition and a shared history that does not need to be built from scratch for viewers. At the same time, the New Level presentation gives them a fresh banner under which to define their goals and relationships in AEW.
For now, their discussion with Paquette provides a look back at the logistical side of the debut rather than revealing any larger creative plans. The strongest takeaway is that the surprise was not effortless, even if it was widely anticipated. A distant hotel, carefully managed travel and an attempt at disguise were all part of the effort to make the All In London moment happen as intended.
Kingston’s story also illustrates how quickly the normal experience of traveling for wrestling can feel different after time away. What once may have been a standard airport routine became unfamiliar, and the long-haul flight to London carried added weight because it led directly to a new professional beginning.
Even with rumors circulating and Kingston himself joking about the secret being poorly kept, The New Level’s arrival at AEW All In London remained a landmark moment for both men. The next chapter began at Wembley Stadium, after a final hectic stretch that included a separate hotel, an eye-catching jumpsuit, a contract signing and a first meeting with Khan.
As Kingston and Creed continue their integration into AEW, the All In London story will stand as the beginning of that run: a debut that many expected, a reveal that still required careful planning, and a journey Kingston remembers as both chaotic and unmistakably strange.
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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.