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Mickey Mouse is now clear to make his WrestleMania debut.
According to the Wall Street Journal, ESPN and WWE have signed a five-year, $1.6 billion deal that grants ESPN exclusive rights to broadcast WWE’s top live events starting in 2026. This is part of ESPN’s new direct-to-consumer streaming service, set to debut later this month.
The events covered in the deal include the two-night WrestleMania and the major shows SummerSlam, Royal Rumble, Survivor Series, and Money in the Bank, as announced by ESPN.
ESPN’s chairman, Jimmy Pitaro, told the Journal, “I felt like this deal makes perfect sense for ESPN. It’s a major content acquisition that we believe will significantly enhance our direct-to-consumer launch and advance our future in streaming.”
WWE previously had been airing its PLEs through Peacock, with the sides having partnered on a five-year, $900 million deal, per the Wall Street Journal.
This ESPN pact continues WWE’s venture into streaming, having previously signed a 10-year deal worth more than $5 billion with Netflix to host “Raw” each Monday night.
WWE’s chief content officer, Paul “Triple H” Levesque, said WrestleMania, Royal Rumble and Survivor Series will be “bigger than ever” and “more of a spectacle than ever” following this merger.
“What we consider the worldwide leader in sports entertainment to be with the worldwide leader in sports — and entertainment — ESPN, there’s nothing bigger, there’s no bigger opportunity than this for us right now,” Levesque said on “Get Up” on Wednesday.
“To be in the Disney family, so to speak, we’re thrilled and can’t wait to get rolling.”
ESPN’s new streaming service is debuting Aug. 21 and will cost $29.99 per month, and this agreement will include WWE’s pre- and post-card shows for the PLE, per the ESPN release.
The network already had a working relationship with WWE’s parent company, TKO, to air UFC via a deal worth $300 million each year, per the Wall Street Journal.
“We are proud to reinforce the ‘E’ in ESPN at such an exciting juncture in its direct-to-consumer journey,” TKO president and chief operating officer Mark Shapiro said in a statement posted by ESPN. “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.”
This deal continues what has been a busy stretch for ESPN, having previously acquired NFL Network and other assets in another billion-dollar deal.