As ESPN prepares to launch its new direct-to-consumer streaming service priced at $29.99 per month, the company has struck a deal to begin broadcast all of WWE’s premium live events starting in 2026.
The deal includes all of the major shows from WWE including events such as WrestleMania and SummerSlam. The WWE was previously with Peacock but now the professional wrestling outfit, which shares the same ownership group as UFC, is moving to ESPN.
It’s a five year deal reportedly worth $325 million per year, a significant increase from the current deal WWE had with Peacock at $180 million per year.
The new ESPN streaming service, which is set for launch on Aug. 21, is set to air all of the major WWE events with select events simulcasting on ESPN linear platforms.
“We are proud to reinforce the ‘E’ in ESPN at such an exciting juncture in its direct-to-consumer journey,” TKO Group Holdings president and chief operating officer Mark Shapiro said in a release. “WWE Premium Live Events are renowned for exactly the type of rich storytelling, incredible feats of athleticism and can’t-miss, cultural tentpole experiences that have become synonymous with ESPN.
“Through our UFC relationship, we have experienced firsthand how transformational an ESPN presence can be, and we know this will be an exceptional partnership at a time of great innovation for both companies.”
The deal bulks up ESPN’s new streaming service, which is the first time the company is including all of its linear channels and online options in one package for consumers to purchase with unlimited access starting at $29.99 per month. Users with access to ESPN through traditional cable or satellite packages plus streaming services such as YouTube TV will have access to the new streaming service after verifying through their existing cable/satellite package.
ESPN also just recently inked a massive deal with the NFL to add even more content to the new service with the sports-first network taking over ownership of the NFL Network and all of its programming.
The addition of WWE events comes just four months before the UFC’s broadcast deal with ESPN is coming to an end. The UFC has been negotiating with multiple potential partners with speculation that the promotion likely ends up splitting its package between several outlets.
As of now, WWE programming is effectively split between Netflix for Monday Night Raw, the USA Network for Smackdown and now ESPN with the premium live events. That could give some indication on where the UFC eventually lands, especially if TKO could potentially stay with the same partners for both companies.
