In a move that’s come much sooner than anticipated, ESPN is set to broadcast a WWE premium live event called “Wrestlepalooza” on September 20. This surprise announcement comes ahead of the two companies’ planned 5-year partnership, which was expected to begin in 2026. The event will take place live from Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
ESPN will also be showing two other major WWE PLEs this fall: “Crown Jewel” on October 11 and “Survivor Series” on November 29. These broadcasts will serve as a preview of what’s to come once the new long-term deal is in full swing.
WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque expressed his excitement in a statement, saying, “On September 20, WWE and ESPN are coming together for a can’t-miss event to kick off our new partnership. The biggest Superstars in WWE. The biggest brand in sports media. Are you ready?”
A new home. A new PLE. A new era.
An historic partnership, a major step towards the future!!!@WWE Wrestlepalooza from Indianapolis on September 20 will air LIVE on @espn. pic.twitter.com/jNOAN5Lfoc— Triple H (@TripleH) August 20, 2025
The lineup for “Wrestlepalooza” is stacked with top talent, including John Cena, WWE Champion Cody Rhodes, World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins, WWE Women’s Intercontinental Champion Becky Lynch, CM Punk, and Drew McIntyre.
This new arrangement comes at a pivotal time for both companies. For ESPN, the deal helps maintain its relationship with TKO, the parent company of both WWE and UFC. This is particularly significant as ESPN’s current deal to broadcast UFC fights is set to expire at the end of the year, with UFC moving all its events to Paramount+ as part of a new, massive $7.7 billion deal.
For WWE, the partnership represents a major shift from its previous deal with NBCUniversal’s Peacock, which had been the exclusive home for the company’s PLEs in the United States. The early events on ESPN also provide a perfect opportunity to promote ESPN’s new streaming service, which launched this week, giving it another valuable content offering to attract new subscribers.
As we reported earlier, the following two matches are rumored to take place at Wrestlepalooza:
– Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena
– Cody Rhodes (c) vs. Drew McIntyre for the WWE Championship
Clash In Paris on August 31st will now be the final WWE main roster PLE to air on Peacock in the United States. However, NXT PLEs will continue to air on Peacock.
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