New details have emerged explaining the move of Saturday Night’s Main Event to Peacock, revealing that WWE accepted a reduced payout from the streaming service. This arrangement was made to facilitate the early exit of WWE’s main Premium Live Events to ESPN.
As part of the renegotiated deal, Peacock will retain the rights to NXT’s Premium Live Events through March 2026 and the extensive WWE video library. In exchange for the reduced payout, Peacock also secured exclusive rights to Saturday Night’s Main Event through October 2029, a move reportedly driven by NBC’s frustration with the show’s linear television ratings.
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With the Peacock arrangement settled, WWE’s transition to ESPN is now set to begin with WrestlePalooza on September 20. The new deal, which runs through August 2030, will also see upcoming events like Crown Jewel on October 11 and Survivor Series on November 29 stream exclusively on the new ESPN app.
A clause in the ESPN agreement allows WWE to reopen negotiations before the contract expires if media rights fees continue to rise. ESPN is also reportedly exploring limited simulcasts on its linear channels to drive subscribers to its new app.
The new structure also impacted creative plans for Saturday Night’s Main Event. WWE had reportedly hoped to feature John Cena’s final career match on a December 27 edition of the show, but NBC declined the proposal.
Instead, NBC finalized its 2025 schedule with events on November 1 in Salt Lake City and December 13 in Boston, officially concluding the show’s run on the broadcast network.
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