A new report sheds light on the future of WWE's TV rights discussions now that the exclusive negotiation windows with NBC and Fox have expired.
Andrew Marchand of the New York Post reports that WWE's exclusive media rights negotiation windows with NBCUniversal, the parent company of the USA Network, and FOX with the companies, have expired. This allows them to engage in discussions with other potential media partners. The current contracts for WWE Raw and SmackDown, on the USA and FOX networks respectively, end in October 2024.
Per the report, there is interest from both Amazon and Disney in picking up WWE's programming, with Disney reportedly considering FX as a potential landing spot as opposed to ESPN. In addition to the predetermined nature of WWE, the reported reason given for why FX makes more sense than ESPN is that ESPN cannot promise a weeknight for WWE. It has too many game obligations to just declare "Mondays as WWE days."
Amazon's Prime Video streaming service will also be in talks to acquire WWE programming. Should a deal be made on that front, it would see WWE move from cable to a streaming platform for the first time. In the recent past, Amazon has demonstrated a willingness to spend for significant, stand-alone events, most notably, "Thursday Night Football," costing a billion dollars annually.
This report lists Apple and Warner Bros. Discovery as "Dark Horse" suitors. WBD is, of course, the media partner of All Elite Wrestling in the United States.
These media rights discussions come on the heels of Endeavor acquiring majority ownership of WWE. Endeavor is currently merging WWE and UFC under one corporate umbrella under the name of TKO Group. Learn more here.
Fightful will continue to report on WWE media rights discussions as more information is known.
