During a recent interview with The Wrap, ESPN Executive Vice President of Programming and Scheduling Burke Magnus shed some light on why
RAW and
SmackDown Live didn't find a home on ESPN.
Before USA decided to keep the former and FOX ended up bringing the blue brand to its network, ESPN was one of the networks vying for the WWE product, so what changed?
"We did talk to WWE during their process some months ago. Took a hard look at it, we’re obviously big fans of them. We just went into business with them on the XFL indirectly."
"But we couldn’t find a fit for it, primarily based on schedule. As you know, those properties are 52 weeks a year live. And I’m proud to say we have a pretty good problem, which is that we can’t clear anything 52 weeks a year live. We have a pretty full portfolio of content as it is."
"We parted ways and they got a good deal with their new partners, continuing at NBC (Universal’s USA Network) and adding Fox. So all’s well that ends well for them — but we gave it a good try." It's an interesting explanation and one that makes sense as WWE being on air 52 weeks a year on the same day and time each week is problematic for any network with a busy schedule.