The CW Network said it made a deal with WWE to broadcast WWE NXT, which features up-and-coming wrestlers, starting in October 2024.
NXT currently runs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. on Comcast NBCUniversal’s USA Network.
NXT is the latest sports-related property to move to The CW since it was acquired by Nexstar Media Group. The CW said it will soon offer more than 500 hours of sports programming year-round, including LIV Golf, ACC college football and basketball and NASCAR Xfinity Series races.
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“We are thrilled to welcome the WWE brand into the CW Sports portfolio as they play an integral role in our mission to bring live sporting events to the network year-round,” The CW president Dennis Miller said. “WWE NXT is a perfect fit for The CW thanks to its dynamic young talent featuring the hottest rising stars in the sport and exhilarating, unpredictable weekly events. The passion and engagement of WWE’s fanbase is unmatched, and we are eager to grow that audience as WWE NXT’s new home on broadcast television.”
Financial terms of the five-year deal were not disclosed.
“The CW has made impressive moves over the past year with its live sports programming schedule,” WWE president Nick Khan said. “It’s a truly exciting opportunity to expand NXT’s audience by bringing the show to broadcast television for the first time in NXT’s history.”
NXT has aired weekly since 2012. The show is popular with younger audiences, ranking No. 1 in cable primetime on Tuesday nights last quarter among adults 18-49 and 18-34.
So far this year, NXT’s average viewership is up 30% among adults 18-49.
WWE wrestlers including Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch have come up through NXT.
