Triple H Predicts Rise In Viewership When WWE Raw Moves To Netflix

Since the announcement that "WWE Raw" would be moving to Netflix this year, many have questioned if the red brands ratings will differ from their viewership on cable television, specifically if their numbers would see an increase now being on the most popular streaming service in the world. Last week, Dave Meltzer predicted that "Raw" will see growth in the younger demographic on Netflix, but according to WWE CCO Paul "Triple H" Levesque, the company is not only looking to see an increase in viewership, but also is remained focused on retaining their fanbase. Speaking with "Sports Illustrated," "The King of Kings" provided his opinion on "Raw's" predicted ratings for 2025.

"I think it will increase, but I definitely think also it's an overtime thing," Levesque explained. "Netflix gives you this massive world to sample what you do. So I believe, and WWE has historically shown this overtime, when we move, our fans follow right ... in this opportunity, I believe the majority of our fans will come with but the opportunity for us to have people connect globally, to come in and sample the product in their own time, at their leisure."

"People don't have the time necessarily to watch live, so I think it's a different metric," he continuted. "Obviously for us, success is going to be deemed by what Netflix believes is successful. So we want to make sure we please them. We want to make sure we please us and ourselves." 

Levesque continued to explain that WWE is focused on growing their international markets with the launch of "Raw" on Netflix and would like to increase the company's relevance as a global brand. 

Levesque also spoke about the importance of WWE's presence on social media, explaining that many casual fans do not watch their programming on a weekly basis and often miss matches or promos, allowing social media to be used as a platform for them to catch up on the product. 

"People are so busy, if you didn't catch it live right, if you're a casual fan, you don't catch every single show, you don't know that promo is taking place, you don't know that match is taking place ... all that chatter online, that is water cooler talk that leads other people to go back in and go, 'Wow, I went and looked it up and I saw that Seth Rollins, CM Punk promo, holy cow, I'm going to tune in this week," Levesque said. "That is the stuff that over time builds your ratings and your numbers."

Levesque also said he doesn't believe in making creative decisions to "pop a rating" for one night, as he feels that doesn't achieve anything long-term for the company. He believes that great storytelling will always be the main goal and that the moments they create are just trailers for the product itself.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Sports Illustrated" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.