WrestleMania Moves to ESPN in 2026: A New Home for Wrestling
Attention wrestling fanatics! WrestleMania, along with other premium WWE events, will be integrated into ESPN’s new direct-to-consumer streaming platform starting in 2026. This strategic agreement promises a renewed experience for WWE fans in the United States. The recently announced agreement covers two-night events such as WrestleMania and SummerSlam. In addition, it includes other WWE live events like Royal Rumble, Survivor Series, and Money in the Bank. WWE will be in charge of producing the events for ESPN platforms, which will become their exclusive home in the United States. ESPN President Jimmy Pitaro expressed his enthusiasm for this agreement.This agreement also includes the transmission of pre- and post-event programs of WWE for all live premium events. Mark Shapiro, president and chief operating officer of TKO, also shared his perspective on this alliance.WWE has an immense, devoted, and passionate fanbase that we are excited to serve on our new ESPN DTC platform. This agreement, which features WWE’s most important events of the year, reinforces our unprecedented content portfolio and helps drive our streaming future.
Jimmy Pitaro, President of ESPN
ESPN’s streaming service will launch on August 21st with a price of $29.99 per month and will keep the name of the linear network: ESPN. The direct-to-consumer service will allow users to access ESPN’s seven national linear channels, as well as ESPN on ABC and various other streaming options. Previously, WWE events were broadcast on Peacock in 2025.We are proud to reinforce the “E” in ESPN at such an exciting juncture in its direct-to-consumer journey. WWE’s premium live events are renowned for exactly the kind of rich storytelling, incredible feats of athleticism, and cultural experiences that have become synonymous with ESPN. Through our relationship with UFC, we have experienced firsthand how transformative an ESPN presence can be, and we know that this will be an exceptional partnership at a time of great innovation for both companies.
Mark Shapiro, President and COO of TKO
