WWE’s third brand now officially has a new home.
Just a few hours ago, PWInsider reported that, following conversations with multiple wrestling promotions regarding series programming for both the network and the CW App, the CW Network are close to agreeing a deal with WWE to become the new home of NXT, with a potential 5-year deal beginning late next year being the biggest increase for the developmental brands media rights fees in history.
“Multiple sources in the broadcast industry have confirmed that the CW Network and WWE have been in deep discussions for weeks about NXT shifting from its current basic cable home on the USA Network to a traditional broadcast television home, airing live weekly on the CW Network when the brand’s current media rights deal ends in September 2024. The belief among some spoken with is the deal is VERY close to being completed with the deal expected to be around 5 years in length. Once signed, it would easily be the biggest increase for WWE NXT media rights fees ever.”
-PWInsider
It now appears as though the deal was “VERY close” indeed, as within an official press release, WWE have now confirmed the deal, including comments from both WWE President Nick Khan and his counterpart at The CW, Dennis Miller.
THE CW NETWORK TO BECOME THE EXCLUSIVE BROADCAST HOME TO WWE NXT
-WWE Corporate
NXT Makes Broadcast Television Debut with Five-Year Deal Beginning October 2024
Network to Air Live Events Featuring WWE’s Next Generation of Superstars 52 Weeks a Year
November 7, 2023 (Burbank, CA & Stamford, Conn.) – The CW Network will become the official broadcast home to WWE NXT in October 2024. The five-year agreement marks the first time in its 13-year history that WWE NXT – which showcases WWE’s hottest up-and-coming Superstars – will air on a broadcast television network. WWE NXT will debut on The CW Network in October 2024 and air 52 live weekly events throughout the season.
“We are thrilled to welcome the WWE brand into the CW Sports portfolio as they play an integral role in our mission to bring live sporting events to the network year-round,” said Dennis Miller, President, The CW Network. “WWE NXT is a perfect fit for The CW thanks to its dynamic young talent featuring the hottest rising stars in the sport and exhilarating, unpredictable weekly events. The passion and engagement of WWE’s fanbase is unmatched, and we are eager to grow that audience as WWE NXT’s new home on broadcast television.”
“The CW has made impressive moves over the past year with its live sports programming schedule,” said Nick Khan, WWE President. “It’s a truly exciting opportunity to expand NXT’s audience by bringing the show to broadcast television for the first time in NXT’s history.”
Launched by WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque, WWE NXT has aired weekly since 2012 and features the brightest young talent in sports entertainment. Nearly 90% of the participants in last year’s WrestleMania were developed under the NXT banner. Led by WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels, NXT is popular with younger audiences, ranking No. 1 in cable primetime on Tuesday nights last quarter among adults 18-49 and 18-34. Year to date, NXT’s average viewership is up 30% among adults 18-49. WWE Superstars, such as Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch, have come up through NXT.
WWE NXT joins a growing roster of live sports on The CW Network, including ACC football and basketball games airing every Saturday throughout the season and LIV Golf. The CW is also the new home of the Emmy-award winning weekly studio series “Inside the NFL” and will broadcast NASCAR Xfinity Series beginning in 2025. The network will soon offer more than 500 hours of sports programming year-round.
About The CW Network
The CW Network, LLC is one of America’s major broadcast networks and reaches 100% of US television households. The CW delivers 15 hours of primetime entertainment programming per week in addition to over 300 hours of sports per year as the broadcast home to LIV Golf, ACC football and basketball games, “Inside the NFL” and the NASCAR Xfinity Series beginning in 2025. The fully ad-supported CW App, with more than 96 million downloads to date, is available for free to consumers on all major platforms and is home to the latest episodes and seasons of The CW’s primetime programming, live streaming of LIV Golf tournaments and a library of entertaining film and television content for on-demand viewing. The CW is 75%-owned by Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: NXST), a leading diversified media company and largest CW affiliate group with 42 CW and CW Plus affiliates, covering 39% of the population. For more information about The CW, please visit www.cwtv.com.
About WWE
WWE, part of TKO Group Holdings (NYSE: TKO), is an integrated media organization and the recognized global leader in sports entertainment. The company consists of a portfolio of businesses that create and deliver original content 52 weeks a year to a global audience. WWE is committed to family-friendly entertainment on its television programming, premium live events, digital media, and publishing platforms. WWE’s TV-PG programming can be seen in more than 1 billion homes worldwide in 25 languages through world-class distribution partners including NBCUniversal, FOX Sports, TNT Sport, Sony India and Rogers. The award-winning WWE Network includes all premium live events, scheduled programming and a massive video-on-demand library and is currently available in approximately 165 countries. In the United States, NBCUniversal’s streaming service, Peacock, is the exclusive home to WWE Network.
NXT first began airing on USA Network in September 2019, with the show initially being aired on a Wednesday, head-to-head with AEW Dynamite, before moving to Tuesday nights in April 2021.
The CW Network’s deal with NXT follows reports that the network was in talks with the NWA, with owner Billy Corgan teasing signing two separate deals. The most recent report indicated that the cocaine spot at NWA Samhain could negatively affect NWA TV deal with CW, and thus it’ll be interesting to see whether more new emerges in light of WWE’s deal being agreed.
As always, we’ll aim to provide any further updates on NXT moving to the CW Network as soon as we hear more.
