Disney’s ESPN will soon become the exclusive streaming platform to watch all of World Wrestling Entertainment’s biggest events.
The reported billion-dollar deal, announced Wednesday, will give the Walt Disney Company subsidiary ESPN exclusive U.S. streaming rights for all of WWE’s major two-night events, including WrestleMania and SummerSlam, beginning in 2026, the companies said.
WWE’s major live events, including Royal Rumble, Survivor Series and Money in the Bank, will also be featured on the network. The wrestling events are set to be part of ESPN’s new streaming service, which is set to launch later this month.
The five-year deal is valued at over $1.6 billion, according to The Wall Street Journal.
It’s a major bump up from WWE’s current five-year deal with Peacock, set to end this year, which was valued at $900 million, according to the report.
"WWE has an immense, devoted and passionate fan base that we're excited to super-serve on our new ESPN DTC platform," ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro said. "This agreement, which features the most significant WWE events of the year, bolsters our unprecedented content portfolio and helps drive our streaming future."
The deal also means that all of WWE’s pre- and post-event shows for all premium live events will be available to be streamed on ESPN.
"We are proud to reinforce the 'E' in ESPN at such an exciting juncture in its direct-to-consumer journey," Mark Shapiro, president and chief operating officer of TKO, which owns WWE, said in a statement.
He continued: "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."
WWE had launched its own streaming service in 2014 called WWE Network, which lasted until 2021 when the company reached a deal to stream on Peacock. WWE content helped Peacock establish itself as a streaming platform, and the network has since added more sports-related content.
The popular wrestling promotion also struck a deal with Netflix last year for its weekly show, “Raw” which is valued at over $5 billion and become a solid performer for the streamer.
WWE is as popular as ever, with captivating storylines drawing in increased viewers across all shows, according to data published by Fox News. As of last summer, viewership for Raw was up 4 percent, Smackdown was up 10 percent and NXT was up 28 percent.
Its popularity continued this year, as nearly 70,000 people attended the Royal Rumble in Indianapolis, Indiana, according to Dual Shockers.
The announcement marks the second deal for ESPN within a matter of days. On Tuesday, the sports network acquired NFL Network and RedZone from the NFL and the league will get a 10 percent equity stake in ESPN.
The WWE events will be available on ESPN’s new streaming service, set to debut on August 21 and cost $29.99 a month.
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