WWE signed a landmark deal with Netflix to air “WWE Raw” on the streaming platform, and TKO President Ari Emanuel is optimistic about the deal.
Starting January 6, 2025, WWE’s Monday night show will stream on Netflix, which will be a first for pro wrestling. The 10-year deal with the pro wrestling giant opens the door for Netflix to broadcast other live sports on their platform, with Emanuel claiming that the red brand will do well on the streaming service.
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“You can see that Netflix wants to be in the live sports business. I think they [WWE] will perform very well for them [Netflix],” Emanuel said during an interview with “Bloomberg.” There’s a huge chunk of the audience that are WWE fans that are not right now, based on our research, Netflix subscribers. If they capture a portion of those, it’s a huge win for them and a huge win for us.”
Emanuel also touched on the possibility of TKO’s other brand, UFC, possibly joining “Raw” on Netflix from their current broadcast partner, ESPN. The TKO President is seemingly positive about UFC’s current deal with ESPN, which expires next year.
“Listen, ESPN has been an incredible partner. First quarter we’ll see, that’s where we can start. We would love to be back in ESPN. They have been incredible to us,” declared Emanuel.
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Netflix recently aired the boxing fight between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul, which had its share of teething technical issues, which could be a worry for WWE. But, reports have suggested that those glitches will be rectified before “Raw” makes the big switch to the platform.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Bloomberg” with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
