The Wembley Stadium Dream Starts at AEW Forbidden Door for Will Ospreay [Exclusive]

The summer of Will Ospreay in AEW begins this Sunday at Forbidden Door.

At the event, Ospreay will compete in the men's Owen Hart Cup tournament finals against Swerve Strickland. The winner of that match will earn the opportunity to wrestle for the AEW Men's World Championship at All In.

As it were, All In this year takes place inside Wembley Stadium in Ospreay's home country of the UK. Stars aligned? More like dreams realized.

In an exclusive interview with The Takedown on SI, Ospreay talked about his road to All In. The surreal road included neck surgery and changes to his style, but the dream of wrestling for the world title at Wembley Stadium is a dream Ospreay has had for years.

The Wembley Stadium dream is real for Will Ospreay

In promos on AEW Dynamite in the build to this weekend's tournament final against Strickland, Ospreay has said he's always dreamed of kicking a winning goal at Wembley Stadium. That's not just a television storyline. It's real life.

"Everything I do comes from a feeling deep within," Ospreay said. "I can't script how I feel. Nothing that gets written down is something I act out on TV. Everything has to be a strong feeling, and it has to have a semblance of realism."

Ospreay's history with Wembley Stadium began because of soccer. Ospreay said he watched Premier League and FA Cup games that took place inside the stadium and that the culture in his country was "football heavy." Ospreay was a soccer fan and is going to live the dream of his childhood by kicking a goal at Wembley Stadium. It's just a different kind of goal he's scoring.

"(I'm) essentially in a World Cup final, representing my country, going into one of the most important battles — would be an amazing dream come true," Ospreay said. "For so many kids in my school, it was about scoring the winning goal at Wembley. For me, this is my chance to take that kick for everybody."

The road to Forbidden Door wasn't smooth

The road to this moment wasn't smooth for Ospreay. At the end of the summer last year, he underwent neck surgery to repair an injury. With that came uncertainty and a change to his in-ring style. Ospreay opened up on how he went about pivoting his ring work, while still achieving the ring success that he is known for once he made his return earlier this year.

"There's forward thinking in terms of prep," Ospreay said in terms of working through a comeback. "When I was able to do in-ring training — hitting the ropes, taking bumps — it was a case of, okay, what are my limitations? What are my comfort levels?

"I had to measure my anxiety. Do I feel nervous doing this move? If I do, let's stay away from it, because the risk isn't worth it anymore. But what I'm comfortable doing, a lot of people would never even imagine going down that route. I've got a lot of weapons in my arsenal, and that makes me stand out. Makes me unique."

Ospreay also detailed the psychological differences in his work because of the surgery. It's not something that he wants people to forget about when they watch him.

"I want people to feel every roadblock I had in my way during my neck surgery," Ospreay said. "I don't want people to forget the struggle I went through. This thing is going to be attached to me for the rest of my life, so I need to show that in my presentation."

History won't stand between Will Ospreay and Swerve Strickland

The man Ospreay will face at Forbidden Door on Sunday in the Owen Hart Cup tournament championship is Swerve Strickland. Unlike Ospreay, Strickland is a former world AEW champion and has a successful title defense over Ospreay, defeating him in a singles match at Forbidden Door in 2024. Ospreay said he and Strickland have history and respect for one another, but that neither would let that history slow them down on Sunday.

"Mine and Swerve's relationship is very real," Ospreay said. "We're two very close friends who will always have each other's backs, no matter what. But we're able to separate that when the stakes are high. I wouldn't have it any other way, and I'm sure he wouldn't either."

Ospreay said that the stakes at Forbidden Door were high for both him and Strickland. He's trying to win the big title in his home country. For Strickland, he lost the AEW Men's World Championship inside of Wembley Stadium at All In 2024. He lost the belt to Bryan Danielson at that event and has not held it since then.

Will the AEW summer of Ospreay become a dream come true? Time will tell. Regardless, since signing with the company in 2024, Ospreay has been a signature face of the brand. That will continue as AEW finishes out the back portion of its first decade of existence. What does that mean to him? Growth.

"I think the key is to expand the market," Ospreay said. "I've heard Tony (Khan) talk about that — there are avenues he'd like to explore to get AEW out there, and I'm very much of the mindset that travel broadens the mind ... If we're truly the best in the world, we should be competing on global stages."

#AEWxNJPW #ForbiddenDoor
8e/5p, HBO Max PPV
This Sunday, 6/28!#OwenCup Men's Final@SwerveConfident vs @WillOspreay
Ospreay and Strickland battle for a chance to fight in the Main Event of #AEWAllIn London for the AEW World Championship!
Swerve vs Ospreay
THIS SUNDAY, 6/28! pic.twitter.com/fZE29GzCwz
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) June 25, 2026

AEW Forbidden Door airs live on PPV and HBO Max on Sunday night from inside the SAP Center is San Jose. Other announced matches include the Women's Owen Hart Cup tournament finals between Mercedes Mone and Maya World, Adam Copeland and Christian Cage vs. The Dogs for the AEW Men's World Tag Team Championships, Kenny Omega vs. Zack Sabre Jr, and much more.

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