Sheamus has officially been free to negotiate with any promotion since the start of October. After nearly two decades with WWE, he could be close to beginning the next phase of his career, and AEW has emerged as a strong possibility.
As previously reported, there is interest among AEW wrestlers in Sheamus signing with the company, though negotiations have not advanced much so far.
But Tony Khan would need to be careful. At 48, Sheamus cannot come in just to have a few dream matches and then disappear from TV. Signing him would have to add something to the current roster. With that in mind, the five opponents below were picked for their potential to turn Sheamus’ arrival into meaningful feuds, with the main emphasis on what each pairing would mean for his career and for AEW’s future.
5. Hechicero
Hechicero may not be the first opponent fans would picture for Sheamus. But he offers something few wrestlers on the AEW roster can give him. The current CMLL World Heavyweight Champion, Hechicero beat Claudio Castagnoli and Zack Sabre Jr. in a three-way match on September 18 at CMLL’s 93rd Anniversary Show.
In August, Hechicero also beat Brian Cage in AEW’s Continental Challenge Cup. What would set the pairing apart is the physical contrast. Sheamus built his reputation on overpowering opponents, while Hechicero relies on an arsenal of submissions and counters that can neutralize bigger wrestlers.
A feud between the two could even reach beyond AEW, with the promotion taking advantage of its partnership with CMLL to bring Sheamus to Mexico. That would be a chance to introduce him to a different audience, one WWE rarely tapped into during his time there.
The pairing lands at No. 5 because it would offer tremendous value in the ring but would need more buildup to win over fans.
4. Samoa Joe
Samoa Joe and Sheamus belong to a generation of wrestlers who earned respect without needing to hit acrobatic moves every five minutes. That makes a potential match between them particularly interesting.
Joe made his in-ring return for AEW at Grand Slam France on October 6, beating Jack Perry to earn a spot in the Clockwork Carnage match for the AEW World Championship at WrestleDream. The return ended an in-ring absence that dated back to May.
Sheamus is also looking to resume his career after undergoing shoulder surgery in December 2025. His last match was on Raw in November 2025. But the pairing offers something more interesting than two veterans trading strikes.
Joe occupies exactly the position Sheamus would need to claim in AEW as a respected, physically imposing veteran who can contend for major titles. A win over Joe would put Sheamus on that level right away and could be a good way for him to hit the ground running in AEW.
3. Claudio Castagnoli
Claudio Castagnoli would be impossible to ignore. But AEW should resist the most obvious idea, a reunion of The Bar. In 2016, Sheamus and Castagnoli met in a best-of-seven series that finished in a 3-3 tie after the seventh match ended without a winner at Clash of Champions. Months later, they won the Raw Tag Team Championship from The New Day, ending a 483-day title reign.
A reunion would carry commercial value on its own. In fact, Jim Ross recently came out in favor of reuniting the former partners.
“I think putting him back together with Cesaro is a good thing.”
But Castagnoli is now a member of the Death Riders, and it would not make sense to pull him from the group just to reunite him with Sheamus. That affiliation, however, would open the door to a much better story.
Sheamus could arrive hoping to revive their partnership, only to find that Castagnoli has built a new identity and has no plans to give it up. The conflict between their old friendship and Castagnoli’s loyalty to the Death Riders would carry several episodes of TV before their first match.
2. ‘Hangman’ Adam Page
Hangman Page would be one of the most important opponents in shaping how AEW fans view Sheamus. Page returned to AEW TV in July and reaffirmed his vow never to challenge for the AEW World Championship again.
Since then, Page has set out to win other championships. He is feuding with Swerve Strickland and will team with Bandido and Brody King in a two-out-of-three falls match for the AEW World Trios Championship at WrestleDream.
Page’s character brings together many of the qualities that helped AEW win over a unique audience. He built a career marked by personal struggles, losses and rebuilds, without relying on a previous WWE run. That contrast is precisely what would make Sheamus’ arrival interesting.
Sheamus brings a more decorated résumé from WWE, including four world championships. Page, however, represents a company where that track record should not come with automatic privileges.
The feud could begin with Sheamus demanding respect for his career and Page questioning what Sheamus has actually done to earn a spot at the top of AEW.
There would be no need to turn Sheamus heel. It would be enough to put two visions of success head to head and give fans genuine reasons to get behind either side.
1. Kyle Fletcher
Kyle Fletcher takes the top spot for a reason that goes beyond the quality of a potential match. No opponent would do more to help AEW turn a Sheamus signing into an investment in its own roster.
Fletcher won the AEW International Championship on July 8 by defeating Konosuke Takeshita. His reign lasted 53 days and ended at All In London, where Kazuchika Okada won a three-way match that also included Takeshita.
More recently, Darby Allin beat Fletcher in a TNT Championship match on October 6. Even so, Fletcher remains a featured act and will team with Kevin Knight to face The Young Bucks for the AEW World Tag Team Championship at WrestleDream.
Sheamus has shown that he can elevate opponents even in defeat. That is what happened against Gunther at Clash at the Castle in 2022, when Sheamus received an ovation from fans after losing their Intercontinental Championship match.
Fletcher could deliver something similar, but with an interesting twist. Sheamus could win the first match, establishing his dominance and showing he came to AEW to do big things, while Fletcher would then chase a rematch to prove that his generation is the better one.
The ideal outcome would be Fletcher beating Sheamus in a stipulation match of some kind, without interference from the Don Callis Family. AEW would come out ahead in two ways. Sheamus would get a high-profile feud soon after arriving, while Fletcher would gain even more prominence against someone whose résumé fans already recognize.
Tony Khan’s main challenge would be keeping Sheamus from becoming just another former WWE wrestler on a crowded roster. If there is a plan to give Sheamus meaningful feuds while elevating current talent, signing him makes complete sense.