WWE And BT Sport Announce New Multi-Year Deal To Air WWE Programming In The UK And Ireland
WWE and BT Sport have announced that they will be the new home for WWE programming in the UK and Ireland beginning January 2020.
WWE's weekly RAW and SmackDown shows will air on the network while the BT Sport Box Office will air WWE's monthly pay-per-view events.
This is a multi-year partnership, reportedly agreed on back in May. WWE had been with Sky for more than 30 years in the UK.
Below is WWE's full announcement along with the tweet from BT Sport:
WWE® AND BT SPORT ANNOUNCE NEW PARTNERSHIP
LONDON, ENGLAND, June 20, 2019 ? WWE® (NYSE: WWE) and BT Sport today announced a new multi-year exclusive pay TV agreement that will make WWE's weekly flagship programming available live in the U.K. and Ireland on BT Sport beginning January 2020.
BT Sport will air both Raw and SmackDown exclusively live every week, delivering edge-of-your-seat action and showcasing the world-class athleticism from global Superstars including Roman Reigns, Becky Lynch, Seth Rollins, Kofi Kingston and Charlotte Flair. WWE and BT Sport will also partner across digital and social media platforms to create new content for fans that will increase reach for WWE and drive engagement across the UK and Ireland.
"We are incredibly excited by our new partnership with WWE. It is the most successful sports entertainment brand in the world, with a rich, fun and colorful history, loved by fans across the UK and Ireland. This is a brilliant addition for our customers and we can't wait to get going in January," said Andy Haworth, Managing Director Content and Strategy, BT Consumer.
"We are pleased to begin an exciting new chapter for WWE in the region as we join BT Sport's innovative offering and impressive portfolio of premium sports content," said Stefan Kastenmüller, WWE Senior Vice President & Group General Manager, EMEA.
WWE's monthly pay-per-view events, including WrestleMania®, will be available on BT Sport Box Office. BT Sport will also carry same day primetime re-airs of Raw on Tuesdays and SmackDown on Saturdays, a two-hour version of Raw, one-hour version of Raw and one-hour version of SmackDown across its portfolio of channels.
BT Sport is home to the Premier League, UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League, Gallagher Premiership Rugby, MotoGP and UFC.
?? ANNOUNCEMENT ??
BT Sport will be the new home of WWE in the UK and Ireland from January 2020.
Raw ????
SmackDown ????WWE's monthly pay-per-view events, including WrestleMania, will be available on BT Sport Box Office. pic.twitter.com/xutPHiW6q1
? BT Sport (@btsport) June 20, 2019
John Kilminster and Benjamin Gordon contributed to this article.