WWE Raw to Netflix in 2025, Leaves Linear TV for 1st Time Ever Since Debut in 1993
Mike Chiari@@mikechiari
Featured Columnist IVJanuary 23, 2024
WWE announced Tuesday that its flagship show, Monday Night Raw, will stream exclusively on Netflix starting in January 2025.
The Netflix agreement brings an end to a longstanding partnership between Raw and NBCUniversal, as Raw aired on USA Network from 1993 to 2000 and again from 2005 to present, although USA Network will be the new home to SmackDown starting in October.
WWE @WWEWWE Raw is coming to Netflix!<br><br>Starting in January 2025, <a href="https://twitter.com/netflix?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Netflix</a> will exclusively stream <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WWERaw?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WWERaw</a> (in the US, Canada, UK, & Latin America) every single week, all year long! <a href="https://t.co/SOSACjfp7w">https://t.co/SOSACjfp7w</a> <a href="https://t.co/lTdSXMep9K">pic.twitter.com/lTdSXMep9K</a>
"The 10-year deal is valued at more than $5 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter," reported Alex Sherman and Jacob Pramuk of CNBC.com.
WWE bills Raw as the longest-running weekly episodic television show of all time, but by virtue of the new deal with Netflix, Raw is moving from linear TV to streaming for the first time in its 31-year history.
Raw is the final domino to fall for WWE in terms of new rights deals for its three main weekly shows.
WWE previously struck a deal to take SmackDown from Fox to USA Network, and it also reached an agreement to move NXT from USA to The CW. That means WWE will have a weekly show on broadcast television, cable television and streaming beginning in 2025.
The Netflix deal continues an unprecedented few months of business for WWE, which officially merged with UFC to form TKO Group Holdings in September.
WWE's Netflix announcement came shortly after another huge announcement Tuesday in the form of WWE legend and Hollywood megastar Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson joining the TKO board of directors.
WWE legend and head of creative took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to tout the company's new partnership with Netflix on Tuesday:
Triple H @TripleHThis partnership is one that will break new ground, and take <a href="https://twitter.com/WWE?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WWE</a> to new heights. Thrilled to bring <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WWERaw?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WWERaw</a> to <a href="https://twitter.com/netflix?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Netflix</a>, coming January 2025. <br><br>Now we change the game!!!! <a href="https://t.co/ridOlqq0Gc">https://t.co/ridOlqq0Gc</a>
TKO president and COO Mark Shapiro also commented on the Netflix move, saying:
"This deal is transformative. It marries the can't-miss WWE product with Netflix's extraordinary global reach and locks in significant and predictable economics for many years. Our partnership fundamentally alters and strengthens the media landscape, dramatically expands the reach of WWE, and brings weekly live appointment viewing to Netflix."
The introduction of Raw in 1993 was groundbreaking, and it has continued to grow for more than 30 years since then, becoming a weekly staple in the world of pro wrestling and television as a whole.
By joining Netflix, WWE is following in the footsteps of many major professional sports leagues, including the NFL.
The NFL notably moved Sunday Ticket to YouTube TV this season, plus its Thursday Night Football games air exclusively on Amazon Prime Video, and one playoff game was exclusive to the Peacock streaming service this season.
WWE already has a streaming presence, as its monthly premium live events stream on Peacock, plus its entire video library exists on Peacock as well.
Netflix's live streaming has been somewhat limited thus far, meaning Raw figures to be a flagship for the service and possibly the start of an expanded menu of live streaming offerings.
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