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Tag: ESPN

  • WWE Confirms ESPN Simulcast For Clash In Italy PLE

    WWE Confirms ESPN Simulcast For Clash In Italy PLE

    WWE will simulcast the opening hour of its Clash in Italy Premium Live Event on ESPN linear television, the company announced Friday night. The show on May 31 becomes the third WWE PLE to get the ESPN simulcast treatment.

    A graphic shown on Friday’s SmackDown teased Roman Reigns facing Jacob Fatu under Tribal Combat rules in that opening hour.

    The full event will stream live in the U.S. through the ESPN Unlimited app. A kickoff broadcast airs beforehand on ESPN and across WWE’s social media platforms.

    Clash in Italy starts earlier than a typical PLE because of the time difference, going live at 2 p.m. ET.

    Since WrestleMania, WWE and ESPN have been putting the first hour of PLEs on linear TV. The idea is to pull extra attention to the events and push viewers toward the Unlimited app to watch the rest of the card.

    Clash In Italy Match Card

    • Roman Reigns vs. Jacob Fatu (Tribal Combat) for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship
    • Rhea Ripley vs. Jade Cargill for the WWE Women’s Championship
    • Cody Rhodes vs. Gunther for the Undisputed WWE Championship
  • WWE NXT Lands On ESPN App As Part Of New CW Streaming Deal

    WWE NXT Lands On ESPN App As Part Of New CW Streaming Deal

    WWE NXT is heading to the ESPN App. The CW Network and ESPN announced a sweeping streaming partnership on Wednesday that will make every CW Sports live event available on ESPN’s direct-to-consumer service starting this summer, including weekly NXT broadcasts.

    Under the deal, more than 800 hours of CW Sports programming will stream live on the ESPN App for ESPN Unlimited subscribers. The lineup includes WWE NXT, the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, ACC, Pac-12, and Mountain West college football and basketball, PBA Bowling, PBR Bull Riding, AVP volleyball, and the 2026 Arizona Bowl.

    What It Means For NXT Viewers

    Nothing changes for fans who already watch NXT on linear television. The two-hour Tuesday night broadcast will continue to air on The CW from 8 to 10 p.m. ET, just as it has since the brand moved to broadcast TV in October 2024. The ESPN partnership simply adds a live streaming option for cord-cutters and viewers who prefer the ESPN App ecosystem.

    “We were hunting for a streaming solution, and the thing that we knew was that the world doesn’t need another direct-to-consumer product,” CW Network President Brad Schwartz told TheWrap. “We decided our strategy was not going to be adding to that challenge for people and that we were going to partner with somebody to do it. If you’re going to find a partner for sports, the worldwide leader in sports is a pretty good one to go with.”

    NXT Joins WWE’s ESPN Footprint

    The timing is notable. The new streaming arrangement lands one day after WWE and The CW announced that all NXT Premium Live Events will move exclusively to The CW beginning with The Great American Bash this summer. With CW Sports content now flowing into the ESPN App, that means NXT PLEs will also be available to stream there alongside the weekly show.

    That puts nearly all of WWE’s premium U.S. content under the ESPN streaming roof. Main roster PLEs including WrestleMania, SummerSlam, and the Royal Rumble already stream on ESPN as part of the company’s $1.6 billion deal with the network. Monday Night Raw remains on Netflix, while SmackDown stays on USA Network.

    A First Of Its Kind For ESPN

    According to Variety, this marks the first time ESPN’s streaming service has partnered with a non-Disney-owned broadcast network in a major way. The CW will retain control of all advertising sales tied to its sports inventory, with year one operating as a linear pass-through before dynamic ad insertion is rolled out.

    NXT’s first run on broadcast television has already paid off for The CW. The network previously called the partnership “an absolute game changer”, with NXT regularly outpacing Fox among adults 18-49 and 25-54 on Tuesday nights. Adding ESPN App distribution gives the brand its widest combined linear and streaming reach to date.

    The CW Sports launch on the ESPN App is set for summer 2026.

  • ESPN Files to Intervene in WWE Class-Action Lawsuit

    ESPN Files to Intervene in WWE Class-Action Lawsuit

    ESPN recently filed a memorandum on Friday seeking to intervene in a class-action lawsuit against WWE over Premium Live Event access claims. The motion, filed March 27th, asks the court to allow ESPN to join the case and move it into arbitration.

    The original lawsuit was filed in January by two consumers in U.S. District Court in Connecticut. The plaintiffs accused WWE of deceptive marketing, alleging the company misled customers about PLE access for ESPN subscribers.

    Arbitration Clause at Center of ESPN Motion

    According to Brandon Thurston, the plaintiffs did not initially name ESPN as a defendant, apparently to avoid the arbitration clause in Disney’s and ESPN’s subscriber agreement. ESPN’s motion now seeks to enforce that arbitration provision.

    The lawsuit seeks over $5 million and represents ESPN subscribers who paid extra for ESPN Unlimited between August 6, 2025, and before Wrestlepalooza on September 20, 2025. ESPN Unlimited costs $30 per month for customers whose providers do not include it.

    Case Timeline and Next Steps

    The case excludes customers of Hulu + Live TV, Spectrum, Verizon FIOS, DirecTV, or Fubo TV. WWE has until April 13, 2026 to respond to ESPN’s motion to intervene.

    WWE’s deal with ESPN is worth an average of $325 million per year, up from Peacock’s $200 million. The case remains ongoing as the court considers ESPN’s request to join and move the lawsuit into arbitration.

  • WWE, ESPN Unveil Custom CFP Championship Belt with Nikki Bella at Fiesta Bowl

    WWE and ESPN are expanding their partnership into the College Football Playoff with a custom CFP National Championship title belt set to debut tonight at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl.

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    WWE Hall of Famer Nikki Bella will appear with the one-of-a-kind title on the sideline of the Miami vs. Ole Miss semifinal at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. The appearance marks a homecoming for Bella, who was raised in Scottsdale and graduated from Chaparral High School. She served as Grand Marshal of the Fiesta Bowl Parade on January 3.

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    The custom belt features 136 diamonds representing each Division I FBS program, along with design elements inspired by Hard Rock Stadium and the host city of Miami, including palm trees and co-branded WWE/CFP imagery. Two ESPN CFP shields on the belt will be replaced with the logos of the teams competing in the National Championship game on January 19.

    Fans attending Playoff Fan Central at the Miami Beach Convention Center from January 16-18 can interact with the belt and experience a WWE-style entrance, complete with music, lighting effects, smoke, and props.

    The activation extends WWE and ESPN\’s relationship, which began a new chapter in September 2025 when ESPN became the exclusive U.S. home of WWE Premium Live Events as part of a five-year, $1.625 billion deal.