Key Takeaways
- World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is coming upon its first WrestleMania event since former leader Vince McMahon left the company, and the last one before it switches to being broadcast on Netflix.
- The deal to broadcast WWE is Netflix’s latest step in sports and live content, and the first time Netflix has committed to broadcast a live event on a recurring basis.
- Investors will be watching this weekend’s WrestleMania XL to see what value and audience the wrestling giant will bring to Netflix once it starts streaming on the platform next year.
This weekend’s WrestleMania XL will be the first since longtime World Wrestling Entertainment boss Vince McMahon resigned, and the first since the wrestling organization’s parent company TKO Group Holdings (TKO) announced a partnership with Netflix (NFLX) to stream its events starting next year.
Netflix and investors will be watching ratings numbers and social media for the two-night pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event to gauge how much of an impact the streamer’s first step into broadcasting recurring live events next year will have on the company’s value, stock price, and future plans. WrestleMania XL will stream on Peacock this Saturday and Sunday.
WWE is heading into its first WrestleMania since McMahon, after returning to oversee the company’s April 2023 merger with Endeavor Group, resigned as executive chair of the newly formed TKO Group in January following allegations of misconduct and sexual abuse.
The switch to Netflix as a broadcast partner could also herald a fresh start for TKO, which operates the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) as well, which has its own marquee event this month, UFC 300.
Endeavor said Tuesday it has agreed to a $13 billion deal to be acquired and taken private by Silver Lake, a private equity firm, in a deal that will net shareholders $27.50 per share. TKO will remain a separate entity and publicly traded company, Endeavor and Silver Lake said in a statement.
The $5 billion deal to broadcast WWE’s weekly “RAW” wrestling show, along with WrestleMania and its other yearly special events, is the latest step into live sports for Netflix, and its first bet on a recurring sporting event. Netflix will be the streaming home for all of WWE’s events starting in Jan. 2025.
The streaming giant has made a number of bets on its sports content in recent years, since the launch and immense popularity of “Drive to Survive,” Netflix’s look inside the world of Formula One racing. It has made a number of other sports documentaries since, including “Full Swing” and “Break Point,” about professional golf and tennis, respectively.
Airing WWE events represents a combination of Netflix’s bet on sports, as well as its increasing steps toward broadcasting live events. The live broadcasts it has undertaken so far range from a Chris Rock comedy special to reunion specials for Netflix dating reality show “Love Is Blind,” and other sports content like a team-up of F1 drivers and PGA Tour golfers in an exhibition event, and a tennis match between Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal.
Other streaming services have recently made bets on live sports as well, with Amazon (AMZN) airing “Thursday Night Football” games for the second season last year, Alphabet’s (GOOGL) YouTube buying the NFL Sunday Ticket package away from DirectTV, and Walt Disney’s (DIS) ESPN teaming up with Fox (FOX) and Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) to offer a combined sports streaming package.
Netflix shares closed 3.1% higher at $636.18 Friday and have gained close to 36% so far this year. TKO shares rose 0.7% Friday to $92.51 and were up 15% since the start of 2024.