“WWE Moves to ESPN Streaming in 2026: What Fans Need to Know About the $1.6B Deal and New ESPN App”

🎤 WWE Just Made Streaming History (Again)

Holy smokes, wrestling fans—big news just dropped! Starting in 2026, WrestleMania and all WWE Premium Live Events are jumping ship from Peacock to ESPN’s brand-new direct-to-consumer streaming service. This jaw-dropping WWE–ESPN deal is a five-year, $1.6 billion contract, making ESPN the exclusive U.S. home for every marquee WWE show (WrestleMania, SummerSlam, Royal Rumble, Survivor Series, Money in the Bank, and more). In other words, after March 2026 the days of ordering PPVs or watching WWE events on Peacock will be over – ESPN will be where it’s at. The news has me way hyped (and yes, a little tearful for Peacock 🤣), because this is literally a new era for WWE streaming. If you’re not already buzzing, you’re definitely missing out on the ride!

💰 What’s the Deal? $1.6 Billion Says It All

• 💰 Massive Contract: ESPN agreed to a roughly five-year deal valued around $1.6 billion, which breaks down to about $325 million per year. That’s a huge upgrade from Peacock’s deal – WWE notes this is nearly double the ~$180M/year NBCUniversal was paying! In short, ESPN is investing major dough to lock up WWE’s top content.
• 🏠 Exclusive Home: Beginning in 2026, ESPN’s new streaming service will be the exclusive U.S. home for all WWE Premium Live Events. That includes two-night spectacles like WrestleMania and SummerSlam, as well as Royal Rumble, Survivor Series, Money in the Bank, and every other paid show. No more split PPV buys – the only place to watch WWE’s biggest year-round parties will be on ESPN’s platform.
• 🎙 Pre/Post Show Access: On top of the events themselves, ESPN gets the rights to stream WWE’s pre- and post-show content for every Premium Live Event. In practice, that means analysts and hype shows before and after each PPV will stream on ESPN too, so you won’t miss any of the build-up or fallout.
• 🦚 Peacock Partnership Ends: This deal officially ends WWE’s streaming partnership with Peacock. That Peacock deal began in 2021, but expires in March 2026. Once it’s done, WWE won’t have a home on Peacock anymore – everything shifts to ESPN’s service. (After years of seeing “Only on Peacock” banners, fans will see the ESPN logo instead.)
• 🤼 What About Raw/SmackDown? Note: this is strictly for premium events. WWE’s weekly TV remains where it is. For example, Raw episodes still air on USA Network in the U.S. (and on Netflix internationally), SmackDown is on Fox/USA domestically, etc. So your Monday Night Raw fix (or Friday Night SmackDown fix) isn’t moving to ESPN. It’s just the big PPVs that are relocating.

📺 ESPN’s New Streaming Service: What You Need to Know

• 🗓 Launch Date: ESPN’s long-awaited direct-to-consumer service goes live on August 21, 2025 – right as college football and the NFL season kick off, and just in time for WWE SummerSlam weekend.
• 💸 Pricing Plans: ESPN will offer two tiers:
  • Unlimited Plan ($29.99/mo or $299.99/yr): Includes all of ESPN’s linear networks (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SEC Network, ACC Network, ESPN News, etc.), plus ESPN on ABC, ESPN+, ESPN3, and more.
  • Select Plan ($11.99/mo or $119.99/yr): Primarily gives you ESPN+ content (over 32,000 live events, studio shows, originals). (Existing ESPN+ subscribers automatically get this Select tier.)
• 🎮 New Features: The revamped ESPN app is stacking tech goodies. Expect multiview (watch multiple games or feeds at once), live stats overlays, integrated betting and fantasy tools, and personalized recommendations. It’s designed for sports nuts (and that includes gamers and bettors) – though how those features play with WWE events is TBD.
• 🤯 Cost to WWE Fans: Only the Unlimited plan will carry WWE’s PPVs. At $29.99 a month, that’s nearly triple the cost of Peacock’s WWE plan (~$10.99). Ouch! Hardcore fans may swallow it, but casual viewers might cringe. (ESPN is pushing bundle deals – e.g. Unlimited+Disney+ +Hulu for $29.99/month first year – to soften the blow, but still.)
• 📈 Extra ESPN Goodies: On the bright side, subscribing gets you a ton of other live sports – thousands of events a year. So if you’re into NFL, NBA, college hoops, tennis, soccer, UFC or whatever, they’re all there too. (Basically all of ESPN’s usual lineup is included on Unlimited.) If you were already an ESPN loyalist, this could feel like “all-access pass” rather than just a WWE ticket.

🧠 What This Means for WWE Fans

• 💸 Sticker Shock vs. Streaming Value: The first thing every fan is talking about is price. Going from ~$10 to $30/month is a BIG jump. Die-hard WWE fans might shrug and pay it, but for anyone who watches only WrestleMania and maybe Royal Rumble, that’s a tough ask. On the flip side, ESPN’s high-quality streaming tech and all-sports library might make the $30 seem like a better bang-for-buck if you were already an ESPN viewer.
• 🔥 Better Experience? In theory, ESPN’s fancy app could be nicer than Peacock’s. Think crisp video, stable streams, plus the cool features like multi-view and stats. WWE PPVs could be split-screened with alternate camera angles or live crowd stats (if WWE ever adds that data). Will multi-view matter for wrestling? Maybe not super-useful, but having ESPN’s polished interface is probably an upgrade from juggling Peacock and cable.
• 👥 Audience Growth: ESPN is actually banking on winning new fans. WWE’s demographic skews younger and more diverse (about 38% female, per ESPN’s Jimmy Pitaro), which is exactly the audience ESPN wants more of. WWE and ESPN execs are optimistic: TKO COO Mark Shapiro even points to their UFC partnership as proof that an ESPN home can “transform” a combat sport brand. If ESPN promoting WWE during its big NFL/college games pays off, WWE could pick up viewers who wouldn’t subscribe to Peacock.
• 🤔 Right Place or Wrong Sport? Wrestling on ESPN might feel odd to some. WWE is sports entertainment, not a traditional sport, but ESPN is giving it the sports network treatment. Some fans are excited – more eyes, bigger platform – while others worry WWE’s unique vibe might get lost among NFL and NBA. The community is split: some are hype about one-stop streaming, others just see this as “another subscription bill” (especially if they were Peacock-only viewers).
• 📣 Fan Reactions: Unsurprisingly, the internet is exploding. Wrestling forums and Twitter see everyone fireworks and expletives over this news. Some say “about time, ESPN rocks!”, others are like “$30? I’m out!” It’s a debate in full swing. Personally, I’m torn: ESPN’s clout and tech are awesome, but even my own wallet is wincing. It might literally come down to how many WWE events you really watch. If you’re a pay-per-view junkie, you might justify the cost. If you’re a casual fan, you might hang on till the last Peacock PPV

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📣 Your Take – What Do You Think About the ESPN WWE Deal?

So where do I land on this? Honestly, I’m equal parts hyped and hesitant. ESPN’s new streaming service has serious potential – it’s shiny, sport-packed, and backed by Disney. WWE on ESPN could mean bigger crossovers, bigger promotion, and a smooth streaming experience. But $30 a month just for wrestling (again, almost 3× the old price) is a steep pill to swallow. I can’t blame fans for balking. 😅

What about you? Are you ready to pony up for ESPN’s service when WrestleMania 2026 rolls around? Or will you hold your breath (and your wallet) on Peacock until the very end? Drop a comment below and let’s hash it out!

Are you staying subscribed to ESPN’s new streaming service for WWE? Or are you out once Peacock loses the rights? Let’s talk about it in the comments 👇

About The Author

Fasil Dar

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