WWE has announced its latest media partnership, this time with Bleacher Report, which also has ties to AEW.
The partnership was announced on September 28 via press release. Per the new agreement, Bleacher Report will “hold global highlight rights across WWE’s programming slate, including Monday Night Raw, Friday Night SmackDown, NXT and WWE Premium Live Events such as WrestleMania®, with content distributed across Bleacher Report, House of Highlights, B/R Wrestling — Bleacher Report’s dedicated wrestling brand — and their associated social and digital platforms.”
The multi-year partnership will see Bleacher Report provide highlights across its various media platforms, beginning on October 10 with Money in the Bank. However, Bleacher Report is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, who also have a heavy investment in another pro wrestling company.
WBD-owned networks TBS and TNT are the respective homes of AEW Dynamite and Collision. Easily the most important relationship for AEW, Warner Bros. Discovery has the media rights for weekly programming in the United States, and provides the WWE rival company with the most revenue. With this in mind, will this latest deal affect things between WBD and AEW?
WWE And Bleacher Report Deal “Doesn’t Displace” AEW Deals
A WBD spokesperson spoke with Brandon Thurston of POST Wrestling shortly after the deal was announced. The article states that “the new deal between WWE and Bleacher Report doesn’t displace any existing agreement held by AEW. A similar deal for AEW highlights doesn’t currently exist, though such a deal could still be made in the future.”
Bleacher Report previously aired AEW pay-per-views in the United States, but this was discontinued in 2024.
Featured image: WWE
