WWE's new ESPN deal is its latest endeavor to separate fans from their money
But those events won't necessarily be part of the network's traditional offering. You may not be able to sit down on a spring weekend, navigate to ESPN on whatever streaming or cable provider you prefer and watch Gunther chop Seth Rollins into oblivion with a world title on the line. If you want to watch WrestleMania, you'll need ESPN's direct-to-consumer streaming service.
Starting at $29.99 per month (or $299.99 per year).
That's a significant departure from the current home of WWE. Peacock, NBC's streaming platform, broadcasts WWE premium live events at a cost starting at $10.99 per month or $109.99 for the year. If you kept an eye out on Black Friday, you could get a deal to drop it as low as $1.99 per month. Before that, the WWE Network housed archived shows from the federation's illustrious history and the promise of live events for just $9.99. This effectively charges fans triple the going rate after more than a decade of inexpensive broadcasts.
The issue isn't just ESPN. Earlier in 2025, Monday Night Raw, the company's flagship weekly show, moved to Netflix. That means keeping up with major storylines will cost you another $7.99 monthly — or $17.99 if you want to spring for the ad-free package. If you're looking for Smackdown, WWE's other weekly program, you'll need access to USA Network. That's provided through Peacock, but each episode runs on a four-week delay, so it's not especially helpful.
Let's say you're getting that through YouTubeTV. That starts at $82.99 per month. Thus, if you're doing this as inexpensively as possible, watching WWE's weekly programming and premium live events will run fans about $121 each month. More than $1,400 per year.
Meanwhile, you can bundle NFL's Sunday Ticket and RedZone for $420 total. That gives you every single NFL game for a cost of about $70 per month.
There's some value here. WWE has created a spectacle. Its wrestlers are some of the best in the world. The presentation is unparalleled. And since pay-per-views used to cost between $50 and $60 before the age of streaming, there's at least some logic to paying half that on a monthly basis while getting access to a host of other live sports.
But a big part of the WWE's resurgence has been access. The company undoubtedly stepped up its game over the last decade. It brought in beloved wrestlers, entangled them in engaging storylines and allowed a myriad of talented grapplers who would have been overlooked in the past to shine. They shined brightest because it was easy to see them at the peak of their powers. Want to watch Money in the Bank? That'll only cost you ten bucks for the month. Want to watch old Money in the Banks? No problem; that's included too.
Ten dollars per month for that felt like a steal. It helped justify splurging on live shows, which are getting absurdly expensive in their own right. At $30? That's tougher to rationalize.
Partnering with ESPN and raising the price will be an immediate boost to profits, which is exactly what Endeavor Group Holdings (WWE's parent) wants as a publicly traded company. It also threatens to turn customers away, especially if the quality of the product drops — a cycle ingrained in pro wrestling. WWE is cutting deeper than ever in its attempt to fleece the sheep that pay for its product. Cut too deep and you risk skinning those customers. You can only do that once.
This move to ESPN could be WWE's skinning moment. A partnership with a cable Goliath and a place in the cabinet of its new flagship streaming service is a legitimizing event. It also threatens to shrink a loyal audience in search of greater profit. In a search for more cash and new fans, the corporation is making it more difficult to be an old one.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Boston Globe
22 minutes ago
- Boston Globe
Asher Hong rolls to US all-around gymnastics title ahead of Stoughton's Frederick Richard
Hong finished with the top scores on floor exercise, vault, and still rings, events where the rising Stanford senior's power easily translates. Asher Hong is dialed in at nationals with an incredible performance on pommel horse. 💪 📺 CNBC & Peacock | — NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) The real race was for second, where Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Rather than don the stirrup pants that have long been the norm, Richard wore gray shorts with matching leggings underneath, a small sacrifice the 21-year-old says he's willing to make while competing at domestic elite meets in hopes of making the sport a little 'cooler' to potential fans. Advertisement Frederick Richard competed on the pommel horse in his nonconforming gear. Gerald Herbert/Associated Press Colt Walker was fourth in the final meet before the world championships in Jakarta, Indonesia, in October. Two-time national champion Brody Malone, who skipped floor exercise and vault to put a little less stress on his surgically repaired right knee, placed first on parallel bars, second on rings, and third on pommel horse to put him in a strong position to return to worlds for the first time since 2022. Advertisement While Hong, Richard, Malone, and Nedoroscik are pressing on, the fifth member of the 2024 Olympic team — Paul Juda — announced his retirement Saturday night. Related :
Tom's Guide
an hour ago
- Tom's Guide
I was totally ready to loathe Jennifer Lopez's new to Netflix rom-com movie, but it warmed my cynical heart
It's fair to say I typically like pretty dark movies. My current top 10 movies of 2025 ranking includes five horror movies, and 'Alien' is my favorite movie ever. I also adore thriller flicks. While I have a soft spot for indie coming-of-age comedies, I'm not typically one for romantic comedies. So back in 2022, when 'Marry Me,' a bubbly rom-com starring Jennifer Lopez and Owen Wilson, arrived in theaters (and day-and-date on Peacock), based on the vibes the trailer gave me, I was pretty confident I was going to not just mildly dislike it, but outright loathe it. As the old saying goes, 'never judge a book by its cover,' or a rom-com by its glossy marketing materials, because while 'Marry Me' is certainly not a trailblazer for the genre, it's an effective crowd-pleaser and managed to mine a lot of charm from its leads' chemistry. If this movie passed you by at release, it's just arrived on Netflix this weekend, and even if you're a cynic like me, you might be pleasantly surprised at this rom-com's heartfelt nature. Pop megastar Kat Valdez (Jennifer Lopez) is set to marry her musical collaborator Bastian (Maluma) on stage at a concert event streamed to millions around the globe. However, moments before saying 'I do' in front of a sold-out crowd, she discovers her fiancé has been having an affair with her assistant. Humiliated, and in a moment of complete madness, she decides to pluck a stranger from the crowd, a single dad named Charlie (Owen Wilson) at the concert with his young daughter, and marries him instead. With the media speculating that she only pulled the stunt out of desperation, she decides to stay married to Charlie for just a few months to save face. However, as Kat and Charlie pretend to be a loved-up couple in front of the cameras, they start to discover some common ground, and real sparks fly. But they come from completely different worlds, and their blossoming relationship is threatened by intense public interest. There really is nothing new about 'Marry Me.' Its central hook of two people pretending to be in a relationship only to slowly fall in love for real has been seen in everything from 'The Proposal' to 'What Happens in Vegas.' Even the wrinkle of a 'normal' person dating a popstar doesn't feel unique following 2023's 'The Idea of You,' though in fairness, 'Marry Me' did get there first, but I'd wager more people have seen the Anne Hathaway Prime Video original movie than have watched "Marry Me." So don't come to 'Marry Me' for bold new ideas, but what you will find is plenty of charm and delightful chemistry between its leads. Jennifer Lopez and Owen Wilson bounce off each other wonderfully. Naturally, Lopez is extremely well suited to playing a global popstar (little acting required), and Owen has been playing an affable everyman for decades. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. Even when it follows a well-worn rom-com pathway, it keeps you invested because its two leads are so likable, and you'll find yourself rooting for their relationship to work out in the end. The supporting cast also includes 'Game of Thrones' alumnus John Bradley and former SNL cast member Sarah Silverman, the latter adding comedy chops to the mix. 'Marry Me's' ultimate message about embracing life and saying yes to the unexpected is, again, nothing original for the genre, but it's a well-meaning one, and just because something is a bit cliche doesn't mean it can't still resonate. And that's sort of 'Marry Me' in a nutshell, lacking fresh ideas, but packaged up in such pretty wrapping you don't mind. Critics often slaughter rom-coms, but 'Marry Me' enjoyed a respectable reception, scoring 61% on Rotten Tomatoes, which is enough for a fresh rating. Meanwhile, viewers loved this one, awarding it a 92% score on the review aggregate site. See what I mean about it being a crowd-pleaser? 'Marry Me' isn't going to challenge you, and it's certainly not going to be the most memorable movie you watch this month, but it has an easy-going attitude, a few chuckle-worthy moments and characters you will care about. When it comes to rom-coms, that's enough in my book, so apologies to 'Marry Me' for writing you off before watching. Looking for something else to watch on Netflix this week? Here's a guide to everything new added to the streaming service this month, which includes more movies and TV shows. Watch "Marry Me" on Netflix now
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
John Cena Shares the One Regret He Has About His Hair Transplant (Exclusive)
The wrestler-actor tells PEOPLE the surgery "completely changed the course of my life"NEED TO KNOW John Cena opens up in PEOPLE's cover story about undergoing a hair transplant He shares the one thing he would do differently regarding the decision The WWE superstar is currently on his farewell tour as he nears retirement from the ring. He's also starring as Peacemaker in the HBO Max series, returning Aug. 21John Cena has a whole new perspective after undergoing a hair transplant in November 2024. In a candid interview in this week's cover story, the wrestler-actor, 48, gets vulnerable about a topic most shy away from: hair loss. He admits he started taking his hair health seriously after a push from his WWE fans. "They've held me accountable. They don't let you get away with phoning it in, because they'll eat you alive," he says. "That's what a good support system does." 'As I was trying to hide my hair loss, the audience was bringing it to light," he continues. "I saw their signs that said 'The bald John Cena.' They pushed me into going to see what my options were and actually do some homework to learn about scalp health, hair health, follicle health. I now have a routine: red-light therapy, minoxidil, vitamins, shampoo, conditioner and I also got a hair transplant." He's quick to clarify he doesn't consider anything the fans did as "bullying." "Just like a good friend, when you have something in your teeth, they pull you aside and are like, 'You have something in your teeth,' " he says. Cena loves his new look but only has one regret: "I hate the fact that if there wasn't so much shame around it, I'd have gotten it done 10 years ago," he says. "I thought I was alone, but seven or eight out of 10 [men] suffer from thinning or baldness." He pauses to remark how 'fired up' he gets about the topic. "They don't do anything except move your hair, one by one, from one area to another. It's my hair and I'm not using this stuff [on the side] and I'd like to put it up [on the top]," he says. "If somebody's going to sweat me for that, I don't think there's any shame in that. It completely changed the course of my life.' After his surgery in November, he notes there was a tough period when progress was slow to show. "I came back for the [WWE] retirement tour starting in January — these are the deets you guys don't know — there's what's called a dormant phase, where the little hair [that was left] falls asleep and the new hair falls asleep. So boy, do you get bald," he says. "And January, February, early March was my dormant phase. And boy, did [the fans] let me have it. So every day I knew I went out there with so much more of a bald spot. It was not easy." He still has about five or six months in his growth cycle until he'll fully praise his doctor publicly, but he's passionate about sharing his story in the hopes that it helps others. "There's definitely a lot of folks out there that are wearing that blanket of shame where, man, maybe you don't want to shave your head. And if this resonates with anybody out there and they're like, 'Man, I'd like to research that too,' then cool. Maybe we have curbed the shame and the guilt about somebody wanting to correct themselves." He's also appreciative his new look will give him more range as an actor. "A different hairstyle can identify a part that can get me more work, do the thing I love to do," he says. "So I can continue to follow my passion just by moving [my hair] up here." He's equally passionate about sun safety — he revealed his past skin cancer diagnosis in March and recently had his third spot removed. 'I know, eventually, we're all going to close our book, but if a little bit of sunscreen and a little bit of minoxidil, some vitamins, is going to keep me feeling pretty good and keep my health — those are good things,' he says. 'I love life, and I got love in my life, and I want to keep all that stuff.' The love in his life these days includes wife Shay Shariatzadeh, an engineer he met while watching the Super Bowl in Vancouver in 2019. 'My health and my dedication to my partner are the tip of my spear in life right now," he says. Fans can still see Cena hitting the WWE ring ahead of his retirement by the end of the year. He's also reprising his role as Peacemaker in season 2 of the hit HBO Max show of the same name, premiering Aug. 21. 'It's a great show that's more than just action. It's a love story. It's a workplace comedy. We're the long shots, the lovable losers," he says of the series. He and costars Danielle Brooks and Jennifer Holland 'support each other and allow each other to take big swings. It's fun.' Peacemaker season 2 premieres August 21 at 9 p.m. ET on HBO Max. Read the original article on People
