Jake Hager’s AEW contract has reportedly expired

A member of the roster since the first episode of Dynamite, Jake Hager’s time with AEW has come to an end for the time being as his contract has reportedly expired, making him a free agent.

The news was first reported by Bodyslam Tuesday, coming on the same day Arn Anderson said his time with AEW is over and a day after Mark Henry said the same.

According to the report, the decision was mutual between the former WWE World Heavyweight Champion and AEW to part ways. He has yet to acknowledge the news on social media, but earlier this month, he revealed he will take on James Storm for Battleground Championship Wrestling this July in Philadelphia.

The 42-year-old debuted for the company on the aforementioned debut Dynamite in October 2019, joining Chris Jericho’s Inner Circle. His in-ring debut came at March 2020’s Revolution with a win over Dustin Rhodes.

He had 62 total matches over his near-five years in the AEW ring, but never held a title while competing for the AEW World title, the TNT title and the former All-Atlantic title. As part of several Jericho factions, Hager competed in the first-ever Stadium Stampede match (and later another), the first-ever Blood & Guts match (and later another) and the first-ever Anarchy in the Arena match.

Used sparingly this year, Hager only wrestled twice in 2024 and was last seen in a defeat to Roderick Strong on a late-February edition of Rampage. He signed a contract extension in 2022, but the years were never disclosed.

During his time in AEW, he also competed in Bellator MMA on a handful of occasions but retired from the sport last year.