ESPN’s WWE Streaming Gamble Already Paying Off With Subscriber Surge After WrestlePalooza

Despite early doubts about ESPN’s massive $325 million-a-year deal with WWE, new data suggests the network may already be seeing returns — especially after WWE WrestlePalooza hit the ESPN App.

Speaking on The Sports Media Podcast, Sports Business Journal’s Austin Karp revealed that the debut of WWE’s premium live events on ESPN sparked a significant spike in subscriptions. Karp pointed to Antenna data that mapped out the increase in new signups during major sports programming — and the pattern was crystal clear.

“You can see the spikes when NFL started, when college football started, and particularly late in September when ESPN had its first PLE, WrestlePalooza really seeing a spike there in signups,” Karp said. “So, I thought it was a really good start there for those two services.”

WrestlePalooza aired live on September 20 from the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, featuring a blockbuster triple-header including John Cena vs. Brock Lesnar, CM Punk & AJ Lee vs. Seth Rollins & Becky Lynch, and Cody Rhodes defending the Undisputed WWE Championship against Drew McIntyre.

The streaming success appears to contradict earlier criticism from Wrestling Observer Radio’s Dave Meltzer, who warned the WWE deal might not be worth the investment. Meltzer claimed ESPN’s returns from the WWE content could fall far short of the network’s massive yearly price tag, even estimating the value at “$35 million a year.”

Still, ESPN doesn’t seem too interested in playing defense. In a statement issued through media contact Steven Muehlhausen, the company offered a short, confident response to the speculation:

“Things are going well and we have started strong. We don’t provide the viewership specifics, but things have been going well.”

If Karp’s insights are any indication, the first-ever WWE PLE on ESPN gave the network a much-needed win in its streaming war — especially as it tries to convert wrestling fans into long-term subscribers.

Whether ESPN can maintain that momentum going forward remains to be seen, but one thing’s clear: WrestlePalooza didn’t just deliver in the ring — it drove business too.