WWE’s fashionable tv present, “Friday Night time Smackdown,” can be shifting from Fox to USA Community subsequent yr below a brand new five-year home media rights partnership with NBCUniversal.
“Smackdown,” a weekly two-hour dwell program that options wrestlers reminiscent of Roman Reigns, Charlotte Aptitude, Rey Mysterio and Bianca Belair, often performs strongly in the important thing 18-49 demographic. It’s additionally skilled sturdy rankings of late with common appearances by John Cena and an unadvertised look by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
“Smackdown” will start airing on USA Community in October 2024. Fox had a five-year deal for “Smackdown” that began in October 2019. Previous to that, “Smackdown” had aired on USA Community from 2016 to 2019.
Monetary phrases of the deal between WWE and NBCUniversal weren’t disclosed.
As a part of the settlement, WWE may even produce 4 prime-time specials per yr that can air on NBC, beginning within the 2024/2025 season. This would be the first time that WWE will air on the community in prime time.
“NBCUniversal has been an amazing accomplice of WWE for many years,” WWE President Nick Khan mentioned in an announcement on Thursday. “We’re excited to increase this long-standing relationship by bringing SmackDown to USA Community on Friday nights and look ahead to debuting a number of WWE particular occasions yearly on NBC.”
USA Community presently airs “WWE NXT” and “WWE Monday Night time Uncooked.” The 2 packages will proceed to be broadcast on the community by way of September 2024.
“It’s a privilege and thrill to proceed NBCU’s decadeslong partnership with WWE which has helped cement USA Community’s constant place because the top-rated cable leisure community in dwell viewership,” Frances Berwick, chairman of NBCUniversal Leisure, mentioned.
WWE is now a part of TKO Group Holdings Inc., which began buying and selling on the New York Inventory Trade final week.
Endeavor Group Holdings Inc. has closed on its beforehand introduced take care of World Wrestling Leisure Inc. The pairing of WWE with the corporate that runs Final Preventing Championship creates a $21.4 billion sports activities leisure firm.