Netflix is quickly expanding its live sports programming slate, launching weekly live broadcasts of the WWE “Raw” program on Monday with a star-studded premiere episode, just weeks after streaming NFL Christmas Day games and the Mike Tyson-Jake Paul fight.
Key Facts
- Netflix will kick off its partnership with WWE with a premiere episode set to air Monday, which will feature a star-studded slate of guests including an appearance from rapper Travis Scott, who wrote the new WWE “Raw” theme song.
- Other wrestling stars slated for appearances at the premiere include John Cena, the wrestler-turned-actor who said he will formally retire from wrestling this year, as well as Logan Paul, Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns.
- The premiere launches Netflix’s weekly broadcasts of WWE “Raw,” one of its flagship wrestling programs that previously aired Mondays on the USA Network, which still retains the rights to another major WWE program, “SmackDown,” in the United States.
- Netflix will, however, broadcast “SmackDown” to viewers in some non-U.S. territories, as well as specials like “WrestleMania,” “SummerSlam” and “Royal Rumble” for international viewers.
- Netflix and WWE struck the deal, valued at $5 billion according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, for a 10-year period, though Netflix has the option to exit after the first five years.
When Does The Premiere Episode Air?
The first WWE “Raw” stream will begin at 8 p.m. EST on Monday, January 6. The event will be broadcast live from the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles. For viewers who missed the live broadcast, Netflix says episodes of WWE “Raw” will be available immediately after the show ends.
The premiere episode will feature a match between reigning women’s world champion Liv Morgan and Rhea Ripley. Other matches in the episode include Roman Reigns vs. Solo Sikoa, Drew McIntyre vs. Jey Uso, and CM Punk vs. Seth “Freakin” Rollins.
Surprising Fact
WWE also collaborated with X last year to show 5-minute wrestling matches on Elon Musk’s social media platform. WWE has a sizable audience on X, with over 14 million followers.
Tangent
Billionaire Vince McMahon and his wife Linda McMahon co-founded WWE in 1980 and have since separated but not divorced, with Linda leaving the company in 2009 to pursue a political career that included two failed Senate campaigns and a stint as the Small Business Administration’s head.
President-elect Donald Trump appointed Linda as Secretary of Education in November. Vince McMahon resigned as CEO and chairman of WWE in 2022 after an investigation revealed that he had made more than $12 million in hush money payments to four women, all of whom were previously affiliated with WWE, in order to prevent them from filing sexual harassment claims against him.
McMahon was re-elected as executive chairman in January 2023, but resigned again in January 2024 following a lawsuit filed by a former employee accusing him of sex trafficking, abuse, and sexual assault, which McMahon denied as “lies.” The United States Department of Justice is reportedly investigating McMahon’s sex trafficking allegations.
Another lawsuit filed in October accused Vince and Linda McMahon, as well as the WWE and its parent company TKO Holdings, of knowingly allowing former ringside announcer Melvin Phillips, Jr. to sexually exploit children during the 1980s.
Key Background
The WWE partnership is Netflix’s latest foray into live programming, following a series of failed attempts and its first forays into sports streaming. The streaming service began livestreaming in 2023 with a Chris Rock comedy special, but bungled a live “Love is Blind” reunion that crashed and aired hours later that year.
The company’s first sports broadcast, the highly anticipated fight between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul, drew 60 million viewers but was marred by glitches and delays, frustrating viewers and sparking a firestorm of online concern among sports fans about Netflix’s ability to stream NFL Christmas Day games and WWE “Raw” broadcasts.
Aside from minor reported buffering and audio issues, the NFL broadcast, which averaged 30 million viewers for its two games and a Beyoncé halftime performance, ran smoothly.
