Netflix Gets Exclusive Streaming Rights for WWE RAW in the US and Other Markets

Netflix has just purchased the exclusive streaming rights for RAW, WWE’s flagship professional wrestling program in the U.S., Canada, U.K. and Latin America starting in January 2025. The long-term partnership will also make Netflix the place to watch all WWE shows outside of the US, and current pay-per-view events such as Wrestlemania and Royal Rumble will be available for free.

Raw originally launched its 1993, and it will be the first time in 31 years that it leaves television for a streaming platform. As Netflix pointed out in its press release, the weekly program is currently the most popular show on USA Network, bringing in 17.5 million unique viewers over the course of the year.

“We are excited to have WWE Raw, with its huge and passionate multigenerational fan base, on Netflix,” said Netflix Chief Content Officer, Bela Bajaria. “By combining our reach, recommendations, and fandom with WWE, we’ll be able to deliver more joy and value for their audiences and our members.”

According to a report from Bloomberg citing people familiar with the negotiations, Netflix will pay WWE $5 billion over the next 10 years for these exclusive streaming rights. “This deal is transformative,” said Mark Shapiro, President and COO of TKO, the parent company of WWE. “It marries the can’t-miss WWE product with Netflix’s extraordinary global reach and locks in significant and predictable economics for many years.”

If Netflix already offers a lot of sports documentaries and original series, the company also needs to compete with other platforms investing in major live sports events. In recent years, we’ve seen Amazon team up with the NFL to stream Thursday Night Football on Prime Video, Google also partnering with the NFL to bring NFL Sunday Ticket to YouTube TV and YouTube Primetime Channels, while Apple is now streaming Major League Baseball games on Friday nights, as well as MLS soccer matches.

“Raw is the best of sports entertainment, blending great characters and storytelling with live action 52 weeks a year and we’re thrilled to be in this long-term partnership with WWE,” Netflix’s Chief Content Officer said today. The streaming platform also announced that it’s planning to make RAW and other WWE programs available in additional countries and regions over time.