Though he technically hasn't wrestled a match since all the way back in 2022, when he lost to Roman Reigns at the Elimination Chamber, Bill Goldberg technically isn't retired; he just isn't a member of the WWE Universe anymore, as his contract expired earlier this year after failing to come to terms on an extension with the billion dollar brand.

While this fact has led to incredible speculation about the former WCW standout's future, with AEW serving as the logical landing spot should he decide to return to wrestling in any regular fashion, the host of Knife or Death decided to set the record straight once and for all and detail his plans for the future on an episode of Busted Open Radio.

“I'll stop the rumor mill right now,” Goldberg declared via F4W. “The reason why these rumors are out there is because Vince McMahon and I had a handshake understanding that after the Roman Reigns match, I would have a proper retirement match, and that hasn't come to fruition through them, and so, therefore, nobody puts a stamp on my career, nobody tells me when I'm done, period, end of story. And when somebody tells me that, I kind of like to fight against it. I like to do things my own way, and I go out my own way, and I certainly don't go out under Roman Reigns three weeks after I have COVID and agreed to a match.

“So, if I go on a world tour and promote it myself, that's a possibility. Hey, I'm a businessman, and I'm fortunately in the position, I firmly believe, to where I can still make it happen. At the end of the day, like I said, I do believe that my character deserves a proper send-off, and until that happens, I don't believe I'm hanging them up. So, anything and everything is an option.

“I'm very much leaning toward promoting it myself and doing a four-city world tour. So, let the rumor mill start up after that.”

Could Goldberg be coming to a city near you for a match in the not-too-distant future? Potentially so, but with a certain show coming up at Wembley Stadium in London, don't be too surprised in the first-ballot WWE Hall of Famer ends up leaving his boots in the middle of the ring in front of a packed international crowd excited to see him put over some young, hungry start.

Tony Khan thinks Goldberg would be “interesting” for AEW.

Afforded a chance to take questions from journalists after Ring of Honor's recent SuperCard of Honor Pay-Per-View, Tony Khan was asked about the prospects of bringing Goldberg into ROH, and though he declined that idea for fairly obvious reasons, he presented a proposal of his own; one that looks very interesting now in hindsight.

“Goldberg in Ring of Honor is never going to happen,” Khan said via Wrestling Headlines. “However, I do think that would be interesting for AEW. That is another great example of the differences between AEW and Ring of Honor. AEW has a bigger budget, but I try to take the production values of AEW and use some of the synergies so ROH can leverage AEW’s great production team and assets. But, at the same time, it’s also great for AEW to develop young wrestlers, to have some of the top stars come here and represent that company. At the same time, there are things I would do in AEW that are more expensive. There are things in ROH that are more catered to a hardcore fanbase. I know we can bring in wrestlers that people will be excited to see, but that might not necessarily translate to a huge Nielsen rating. Although ROH has done record live gates and revenue over the past year or so, I don’t want to do something out of character.”

While Goldberg in Ring of Honor makes very little sense, as the promotion isn't on television and only runs a few PPVs per year, bringing in the WCW legend to AEW does present a very different opportunity both in terms of weekly viewership numbers and for ticket/PPV sales over the summer. With Double or Nothing, Forbidden Door II, All In II, and All Out all on the books before the start of the 2023-24 school year, the proposition of a “Summer of Goldberg” could be just what the doctor ordered to get a few more eyes on AEW, sell some tickets, and ultimately garner some positive headlines from inside the wrestling sphere and beyond.