WWE is now owned by UFC parent company Endeavor and part of TKO Holdings. While it's very much business as usual at the moment, we are expecting changes to be made in the months and years ahead, and some of those have already started.
SmackDown, for example, will return to the USA Network starting in October 2024 as part of a new 5-year deal between WWE and NBCUniversal. The show has been airing on FOX since 2019, but what will become of RAW? It currently airs on USA on Monday nights but that might not be the case moving forward.
Talking at Bloomberg's Screentime conference (via POST Wrestling), Endeavor and TKO CEO Ari Emanuel suggested they're open to anything when it comes to WWE's flagship programme.
"We got a 40 percent increase for SmackDown. We have Raw which is the number one package available...there [are] six buyers, plus I would say WWE Network which is up in ‘26. I think I’m saying that - maybe '25, '26. [You] cannot undervalue the WWE and UFC for the following reasons: One, we do not have a season. We’re 52 weeks a year, right? And we’re flexible."
"You want us Thursday night? You want us Tuesday night? I don’t have any of those scheduling issues and that churn issue because we’re the full year. It’s so much different than any other sport because then people churn out. That’s one of the issues with sports. Our fans are loyal, they stick around and they move. I would say to you there’s plenty of interest in RAW, right now."
The interviewer brought up the fact that, in 2018, Ari Emanuel returned money to Saudi Arabia following the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. WWE has a very profitable relationship with the country and holds annual events there, so could that be about to change?
"I didn’t say we would never be doing business in Saudi. I just didn’t want them in the financial stack of our investors. We distribute their now-soccer league through IMG. Because of WWE, we’re in business with them for at least five years. Two events a year, great. They just bought an event from us for the UFC."
"Great price, we’re doing the event. It will be an unbelievable card. So, I just, at the time, didn’t feel comfortable for many reasons which has been stated. But we’re in business with them now. So, that simple."
Ultimately, money talks, so we're guessing these Saudi PLEs - like the upcoming Crown Jewel - aren't going anywhere for the foreseeable future.
As for RAW (and NXT, for that matter), we'll likely learn more about what the future holds in store soon. There's been talk of streaming platforms being interested, of course, and Emanuel's comments suggest they'll also be shopping around the WWE Network's offerings a few years from now too.