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Ex-WWE Champion Fires Shot At Brody King Over Abolish ICE Merch

By Sridhar Krishnan • Published Feb 19, 2026 15:31 EST
Brody King on AEW Dynamite

The anti-ICE chants may soon become a headache for Tony Khan and AEW.

At the heart of the controversy is the promotion’s former World Tag Team Champion, Brody King, who caught the world’s attention when he wore an ‘Abolish ICE’ t-shirt at last year’s Grand Slam Mexico event.

Not only did King wear the tee on TV, but he also released the merchandise and raised over $27,000 for families that were affected by ICE raids.

In February 2026, he released the merch again, this time raising $59,000 for the Minnesota Rights Action Committee.

His actions have snowballed into something unprecedented and political, while at it, something that has been uncommon at wrestling shows since the late 90s.

After the audience chanted “F**k ICE” during the February 4 episode of Dynamite, the cry was heard again during the February 18 taping of the show in Sacramento, California.

Surprisingly, Brody King was not even a part of the show, and the chants came when AEW ran a vignette that showed the 38-year-old react to his loss to MJF at Grand Slam Australia recently.

Val Venis Takes A Dig At Brody King

When politics gets mixed with sports, or in this case, sports entertainment, it leaves a particular section of society feeling annoyed, as they staunchly believe that both niches have their separate places in society.

A few days ago, former WWF/WWE Intercontinental Champion Val Venis gave his two cents about the Brody King and ICE controversy, claiming that creating merchandise with political messages was merely cosplay and not justice.

He has not taken another shot at King, claiming nobody was paying to see him anyway and that all eyes were on the Salt of the Earth.