WWE are still looking for the best deal possible for Monday Night Raw.
With SmackDown and NXT being the bigger priorities for the company, as each brand has a new network deal that will last until 2029, the longest-running show under the sports entertainment titan’s umbrella is yet to finalise a deal with less than a year remaining on the current agreement with the USA Network. According to a top executive within TKO Holdings, the parent company of the WWE and UFC merger, the company is not looking to settle just to secure a new deal.
TKO President Mark Shapiro was asked for an update on the negotiations at the UBS Global Media and Communications Conference. Shapiro stated that there are still ongoing talks regarding which network will secure the Monday night show and it may come down to who does or doesn’t get the rights to another major sports franchise:
“We’re in conversations on Raw. Our deal with USA is not up until October of next year. We have time. We have time to be flexible, we have time to be creative. We have time to develop different solution models depending on what the player may be. We could go before the NBA if the price is right or after the NBA is somebody is left at the alter,” he said. “Our job is to maximize the rights value of Raw.”
Major Network Rejects WWE Offer
Triple H and WWE CEO Nick Khan were absent from the November 27th edition of the Monday Night show as they were involved in the negotiation process for the media rights renewal. In regards to which network will land the weekly show for the next 5 years, a recent report stated that the FX Network is currently the frontrunner. Some had speculated that Warner Bros. Discover, the network that currently airs AEW content, could be a potential buyer. However, in the same report, it was stated that WBD previously rejected an offer from WWE to be the new host of the flagship show.
Unfortunately for WWE fans, cost-cutting measures are set to continue.
H/t to Fightful.