QT Marshall has expanded his business interests beyond professional wrestling, joining the ownership group of the Rome Red Cats alongside fellow One Fall Wrestling partner Tripp Bennett.
The Rome, Georgia-based indoor football organization announced on October 26 that Marshall and Bennett have become partial owners. The Red Cats compete in the American Arena League, an eight-on-eight indoor football league, and the new partners are expected to support the team’s continued development through marketing, sponsorship efforts, local outreach, business development and fan engagement.
Marshall is widely known to wrestling audiences for his on-screen career and his executive work with All Elite Wrestling. His real name is Michael Cuellari, and he currently serves as AEW’s Senior Vice President of Creative Coordination. The role places Marshall among the company’s key behind-the-scenes personnel, drawing on experience he has built as a wrestler, producer, promoter and live-event operator over more than two decades in the industry.
While Marshall’s new investment is outside the wrestling business, the announcement reflects how closely sports, entertainment and community events can intersect. Marshall and Bennett have already developed a working relationship through One Fall Wrestling, also known as 1FW, the Georgia-based promotion in which both are partners. Their move into ownership with the Red Cats brings that partnership into a different corner of the live-entertainment landscape.
For more background on this topic, read Andrade Says His AEW Return Is About Repaying Tony Khan With His Work.
Marshall and Bennett Add to the Ownership Group
The Red Cats described Marshall and Bennett as experienced entrepreneurs with backgrounds that can complement the existing ownership group. Rather than positioning the pair as a replacement for current leadership, the organization said their involvement will be focused on helping create new opportunities while supporting the franchise’s established direction and community-oriented identity.
Marshall said his early experience bringing 1FW to Rome made a major impression on him. One Fall Wrestling staged Rumble in Rome at the Forum River Center earlier in 2026, drawing more than 1,300 fans. The turnout led to plans for 1FW to return to the city on November 20 for Rome Rampage.
“Rome is a community that takes tremendous pride in its sports and entertainment,” Marshall said. “When we brought 1FW here earlier this year, the response was incredible. It showed me how passionate the people of Rome are about supporting something they believe in.”
Marshall explained that the opportunity to be involved with the Red Cats appealed to him because of the city’s enthusiasm and because it offered a new avenue to work with Bennett. He emphasized that the pair intend to collaborate with the franchise’s existing ownership group rather than operate separately from it.
“Tripp and I have built a successful partnership through professional wrestling, and we’re excited to bring our experience, creativity, and business relationships to this organization,” Marshall said. “We want to work alongside the existing ownership group to help create something special for the city of Rome.”
For Marshall, a partial stake in the Red Cats is another example of his growing profile as a sports-entertainment executive. His AEW responsibilities have included creative coordination, while his work in wrestling has also given him experience with talent development, television, event presentation, promotion and operating live shows in different markets. Those skills are not identical to running a football franchise, but they are highly relevant to a team looking to expand its visibility, strengthen its connections with sponsors and create an appealing game-night product for local fans.
One Fall Wrestling Partnership Extends Beyond the Ring
Marshall and Bennett’s relationship has been built through 1FW, which produces more than 100 live events each year. The promotion has focused on bringing professional wrestling events to communities around the Southeast, with an emphasis on accessible, family-friendly shows. Its Rome debut demonstrated that the city could be a productive market for that approach, and the upcoming Rome Rampage event will provide 1FW another opportunity to build on its momentum there.
The Red Cats investment does not change Marshall’s AEW position or his role with 1FW. It does, however, further connect his business activity to Georgia and to the Rome area in particular. Wrestling promoters often rely on relationships with venues, sponsors, civic groups and local businesses to make regular events successful. Those same relationships can be valuable to a sports franchise seeking a bigger presence in its home market.
Bennett brings a different set of experience to the ownership group. Before his current work as an entrepreneur and 1FW co-owner, Bennett served as a PGA Golf Professional. His background includes athletic development, coaching, operations and team-building, areas that can naturally translate to the organizational side of sports. He is a Campbell University graduate with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in PGA Golf Management.
Outside of sports management, Bennett has founded a custom woodworking and art studio, adding another entrepreneurial element to his résumé. He also remains involved in civic and charitable initiatives alongside his wife, Katherine, an equestrian show jumper and trainer. The Red Cats highlighted Bennett’s business experience and community connections as important assets for the franchise moving forward.
“Having the opportunity to become part of the Rome Red Cats ownership group is incredibly exciting,” Bennett said. “Sports have always been an important part of my life, and I understand the impact a successful team can have on a community.”
Bennett said that his partnership with Marshall has been rooted in a shared approach to growing businesses, supporting local communities and developing opportunities. That philosophy will now be applied to the Red Cats as the franchise works to establish its long-term future in the American Arena League.
Community Engagement Is a Central Focus
The announcement repeatedly stressed the potential impact a local sports team can have beyond the field. Indoor football franchises depend heavily on their connection to a regional audience. A successful organization is not simply selling tickets to games; it is building relationships with families, schools, area businesses, sponsors and fans who want to see their city represented.
Marshall and Bennett have identified that community component as a central part of their plans. The pair believe the Red Cats can function as a gathering point for the Rome area while creating opportunities for local partners. Their stated objectives include helping grow the team’s brand without losing the hometown values that are central to the appeal of minor-league and arena-level sports.
That goal closely mirrors the approach Marshall and Bennett have taken through 1FW. Professional wrestling and indoor football are different products, but both are live experiences that benefit from strong local promotion, recognizable personalities, repeat attendance and a sense that the event belongs to its host community. The ability to create a consistent entertainment identity could be especially important for the Red Cats as they seek to grow their fan base.
The team has not announced specific new initiatives, game plans or commercial arrangements tied to Marshall and Bennett’s arrival. Still, the areas identified by the organization — including sponsorships, marketing, community outreach and fan engagement — indicate where the new owners’ influence may be felt most immediately.
What the Investment Means for QT Marshall
Marshall remains an active figure in AEW’s executive structure, and his ownership stake with the Red Cats adds another business role to a career that has already moved well beyond in-ring competition. His experience has included working internationally in wrestling and helping produce events designed for both television and live crowds. The Rome Red Cats role represents a chance to apply that event-minded perspective in another sport.
There is also a natural local connection. The 1FW success at the Forum River Center provided Marshall with direct evidence of the audience that exists in Rome for live entertainment. With Rome Rampage scheduled for November 20, the promotion will return to the same market shortly after the Red Cats ownership announcement, giving Marshall and Bennett an active presence in the community through both ventures.
For the Red Cats, adding figures with experience in presentation, promotion and local-event development could provide a useful boost as the club pursues growth. For Marshall and Bennett, the investment offers a new way to contribute to a city where their wrestling promotion has already found a receptive audience.
The next chapter for the Rome Red Cats will be shaped by how those plans develop in practice, but the organization has made its immediate direction clear: it sees Marshall and Bennett as partners who can help strengthen the franchise’s relationship with fans and the broader Rome community. As the team looks ahead, its new partial owners will bring a wrestling-promoter’s eye for live entertainment and an entrepreneur’s focus on building sustainable local support.
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.