Who Will Be In Will Ospreay’s AEW United Empire Faction?

Will Ospreay is the brand new AEW World Champion, and while he climbed the mountain at AEW All In: London 2026 alone, he is seeking to conjure up some support in the coming months. Ospreay is a current member of NJPW faction United Empire, but he revealed that he’s looking to create his own AEW sub-group in the states. In the past, the likes of the NWO, Bullet Club, La Faccion Ingobernables, and more have had sub-groups in different companies and countries.

When looking across the current AEW roster (and potential names yet to come into the promotion), there are certain names who stand out as being promising picks for Ospreay’s new act.

5

Ilja Dragunov

• Dragunov is expected to sign with AEW.
• Putting him in the United Empire gives him a clear direction.
• Dragunov & Ospreay teaming up would be electric.

Ever since parting ways with WWE, Ilja Dragunov has been heavily rumored to turn to AEW, especially since he’d be the perfect sort of fit for the promotion with his stiff, frenetic style of in-ring work. Becoming one of the first members of the AEW World Champion’s new AEW-based United Empire sub-group would be one hell of a way to have him introduced to the AEW fans, giving him a platform straight away to showcase what he can do.

The United Empire has always been full of hard-hitting and stiff styles of wrestling plus wrestlers from a whole bunch of different countries worldwide – the faction has seen wrestlers from the UK, US, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Italy, Mexico, and more, so adding another European into the mix would very much follow the whole point of what United Empire has been all about.

4

Buddy Matthews

• Matthews has been out of action for over a year.
• He was formerly a member of AEW’s House Of Black.
• Returning to join the United Empire would be a good direction.

Buddy Matthews has been out of action since AEW Grand Slam: Australia 2025, but in recent weeks he’s been cleared to return to action. Fans expected a return at AEW All In: London 2026, but he did not show up. With Matthews’ old House Of Black faction no longer a thing in AEW with Malakai Black leaving the company to both sign and get fired by WWE, and with Brody King now in a team with the likes of Bandido and Adam Page, Matthews will be without any friends upon his comeback to television.

Returning to AEW to join Will Ospreay’s new version of the United Empire can be a strong way to reintroduce him and give him some serious direction immediately. This group has had several other Australian members in the past such as Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis, and Matthews as the next one would be a very solid pick.

3

Top Flight

• Top Flight has been directionless for years in AEW.
• Their style would work well with Will Ospreay.
• Tony Khan needs to give Top Flight a chance.

Will Ospreay’s new AEW version of United Empire needs to not only consist of made stars, but it should also be used to elevate wrestlers who have been out of favor with Tony Khan in the company. Dante & Darius Martin of Top Flight have been misused and not pushed for several years at this point, despite showing a lot of talent and potential when they first arrived in AEW and impressing against several other established tag teams.

Top Flight have a high-flying, frenetic style when competing at their very best; something which is reflective of Ospreay’s early career in professional wrestling. Having him take the pair under their wing can do wonders for their careers – perhaps even getting them reintegrated into the AEW tag team division where they once looked like future AEW World Tag Team Champions.

2

Jack Perry

• Perry needs some direction in AEW.
• His singles run has been strong, but joining a faction can help Perry.
• Perry & Ospreay is a unique pairing.

In 2026, Jack Perry reigned as the AEW National Champion and has wandered around having pretty good TV matches, though not doing too much of note in terms of storylines and character development. He has retained a good connection with the crowd, but he is in dire need of some serious direction… which is exactly where Will Ospreay and the United Empire comes into the equation.

Ospreay bringing Perry in can give him support, allies, focus, and more, becoming one of the key figures in the group. This can see Perry pursue singles, tag team, and trios titles in the coming months with his United Empire allies. Perry is no stranger to factions, previously being affiliated with the Jurassic Express, The Elite, and the House Of Torture.

1

Brawling Birds

• Alex Windsor & Will Ospreay are married.
• United Empire can feature both the men’s and women’s divisions.
• Mixed factions have worked well in AEW.

Several factions in AEW over the years such as the Death Riders, Conglomeration, House Of Black, Dark Order, Jericho Appreciation Society and others have successfully implemented mixed gender members, and the United Empire can be no different. Alex Windsor and Jamie Hayter, the brand new AEW Women’s Tag Team Champions, not only have ties to Will Ospreay (with Windsor and Ospreay being married), but would also fit in well with a hard-hitting, workrate-style of group such as this one.

The Brawling Birds can bring a lot to the United Empire and allow them to dominate over even more divisions within AEW, so they should become the first ever women’s division members of this act. Mixed tag team matches in AEW are almost always massively enjoyable, and their involvement here opens the door to even more potential matchups going forwards.