Only 24 hours after WWE announced that it signed a deal to stream NXT Premium Live Events (PLEs) exclusively on the CW, ESPN announced today that it has partnered with CW Sports, making its platform the exclusive home of NXT and more.
On Tuesday, WWE issued a press release stating the following: “The CW Network and WWE, part of TKO Group Holdings (NYSE: TKO), today announced all NXT Premium Live Events (PLEs) will now air exclusively on The CW. Beginning with The Great American Bash later this summer, The CW will broadcast 20 PLEs in their entirety live on both coasts over the next several years, including Stand and Deliver, Deadline, and Vengeance Day.
“With the addition of NXT PLEs to The CW’s lineup, the network is now the exclusive home for all NXT programming – which showcases WWE’s hottest up-and-coming Superstars – also airing weekly live NXT installments every Tuesday night. WWE will continue to produce all PLEs.”
Less than 24 hours later, ESPN released the following:
“The CW Network and ESPN are teaming up to make the ESPN App the exclusive streaming home for all CW Sports live events, combining premium sports offerings into a single viewer-friendly experience through this groundbreaking agreement. All CW Sports will broadcast live on The CW Network as well as stream live on the ESPN App for fans with an ESPN Unlimited subscription plan, including live coverage of college football and men’s and women’s basketball from the ACC, Pac-12 and Mountain West conferences, the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, WWE NXT, PBA Bowling, PBR Bull Riding, AVP volleyball and the 2026 Arizona Bowl.
“Fans with an ESPN Unlimited plan subscription will have the opportunity to watch all CW Sports offerings live on any device with the ESPN App as a complement to The CW’s free over-the-air broadcast model nationwide, while advertisers will extend reach to new audiences across all digital platforms. CW Sports on the ESPN App is expected to launch in Summer 2026.”
There is some confusion because the CW is a free channel/app with ads, while ESPN is a paid subscription. The press release states that the programming will air simultaneously on ESPN and the CW. What would be the incentive to subscribe to ESPN to watch these CW Sports events if they are on a free platform? This appears to be an initial move to get everyone, maybe, used to CW Sports on ESPN, and later in the year, pull the programming from the free platform to ESPN-only.
Regarding WWE NXT, this is a big move, but one that seems logical given that WWE PLEs are already on the streaming platform. More than likely, NXT PLEs will be exclusively on the ESPN app, just like the WWE PLEs are.
As we continue to see monopoly-type moves (e.g., Paramount buying Warner Bros. Discovery) across platforms, the only question remaining is whether these moves will benefit consumers in any way. Only time will tell, but for now, ESPN continues to live up to its slogan, “the worldwide leader in sports.”
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