WWE strikes intriguing content partnership as pro wrestling's popularity continues to soar

WWE announced a strategic content partnership with Bleacher Report on Monday.

Bleacher Report will have the global rights to highlights across WWE’s programming, including "Monday Night Raw," "Friday Night SmackDown," NXT and premium live events, the company said in a news release. Bleacher Report will also have a presence at certain WWE premium live events.

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"Bleacher Report has long been at the intersection of sports and culture," WWE executive vice president Alex Varga said in a statement. "Our partnership with B/R reinforces WWE’s commitment to bringing our content to a global audience."

Bleacher Report general manager Bennett Spector added, "WWE fans don’t just watch. They are highly engaged, analyze every detail and debate the sport all week long. That’s exactly the kind of passionate fandom B/R and House of Highlights were built for.

"This partnership gives us the opportunity to bring fans closer to the biggest moments happening today while also tapping into the incredible history and personalities that have made WWE part of sports culture for generations."

On the surface, the partnership appeared to be just another way for WWE to further its global reach across social media.

WWE boasts more than 102 million followers on Facebook, 40.1 million followers on TikTok, 35 million followers on Instagram and 13 million followers on X. But the deal comes days after Paramount reached a settlement with states that sued to block the Warner Bros. Discovery takeover.

But it’s worth noting that Bleacher Report is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery through TNT Sports. WWE’s U.S. competitor All Elite Wrestling (AEW), which is owned by Tony Khan, airs its weekly shows on TNT, TBS and HBO Max. Speculation aside, the WWE and Bleacher Report agreement is striking at a time when interest in pro wrestling – no matter the promotion – is at an all-time high.

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Warner Bros. Discovery announced in June 2025 it planned to keep TNT Sports and Bleacher Report under Global Networks, separating it form its TV and film endeavors. Sportico reported in December that was still the plan for the end of 2026.

Bleacher Report previously hosted AEW pay-per-views on its streaming platform before discontinuing it in 2024.

Khan has repeatedly welcomed the merger and reiterated his happiness after All Out over the weekend.

"I think this is exciting because we grew in a situation where the new corporate leadership in 2022, at that time, over four years ago, was something of an unknown entity to us and we really won them over immediately," he said, via Fightful. "It’s something I take a lot of pride in. We’ve been through several different regimes here. When AEW launched, AT&T was still in charge and then it’s been a lot of change with Discovery coming in. There was a period of transition there during 2020, 2021, where a lot of changes were made before Discovery took over in 2022 and they’ve made a lot of changes over the years and for AEW, there have been changes for the better, clearly, as we’ve grown the company and expanded.

"Now, we enter something that I consider more of a known quantity and I’m very excited about it. I think we’ve proven that AEW is a feather in the cap of a media company that we are a great partner, and for me, I’ll work to make sure that AEW fits in any corporate structure. I’ll work very hard, and I think I’ve proven time after time that I am the ultimate corporate soldier, and that is why AEW continues to grow and expand as the media landscape changes and I think that’s why Warner Bros., even as the company has evolved and changed, AEW has always been a very important part of the portfolio for years and years and I expect that’s gonna continue with AEW and Warner Bros. for many years to come."