Insider claims ESPN Is 'hot' over WWE PLE deal

WWE chief content officer Paul Triple H Levesque

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Matthew Couden

By Matthew Couden

Contributing Writer

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Following this weekend's WWE Survivor Series: WarGames, a claim has emerged from an individual close to Disney and ESPN that the media company is not happy with its deal for premium live events (PLE) so far.

Survivor Series, which occurred on Saturday and streamed on the ESPN app, was the second PLE to air on the platform, with Peacock previously airing all WWE PLEs. The WWE deal arrived in August, giving ESPN, Inc., the rights to PLEs. The first presented a new PLE called WrestlePalooza, which many fans heavily criticized, and it received an average review from a writer on ESPN’s website.

Saturday's Survivor Series: WarGames drew fan criticism for the lack of entertaining matches or spots and major surprises. Aside from Liv Morgan's return to help Dominik Mysterio win the Intercontinental Championship and a mysterious masked man helping the heels win the main event WarGames match, there wasn't much to celebrate about the four games presented on ESPN.

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WWE chief content officer Paul Triple H Levesque

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During a recent "Wrestling with Freddie" Podcast, actor, former WWE worker, and fan Freddie Prinze Jr. reviewed Survivor Series and its matches. However, he also criticized issues he experienced using the ESPN app while trying to watch a premium live event and revealed some insider information about the deal.

"ESPN, by the way, is so unhappy with the deal," Prinze Jr. said on his Dec. 2 podcast, adding, "I was talking to a friend of mine who works for Disney, and he was just like, 'Yo, they're so they better make their money back on this deal.' Like he's said, they're hot."

The claim is unsubstantiated, but it wouldn't be surprising. Fans have generally complained about having to pay more to get a $30-per-month subscription to the ESPN app, which also includes Hulu and Disney+. In addition, the previously mentioned criticisms include fans and critics suggesting the PLEs have been lackluster or subpar so far.

Fans will get to see John Cena's final match on "Saturday Night's Main Event" on Dec. 2, which will exclusively stream on Peacock. The next WWE PLE on ESPN is likely to be the Royal Rumble 2026 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Saturday, Jan. 31.

ESPN’s deal with WWE for its PLEs was initially scheduled to begin in 2026, with April’s WrestleMania 42, which takes place over two nights in Las Vegas, Nevada. However, they started the deal early, with Wrestlepalooza, the first PLE on ESPN in September.

Prinze Jr. is well-known for his popular movies, but also as an avid wrestling fan who previously worked for WWE. He worked briefly on the WWE creative staff in 2008 before parting ways in 2009. In addition to appearing as a special guest host on WWE Raw in 2009, Prinze also returned to work as a producer and director with the show in 2010.

According to Prinze Jr. on "INSIGHT with Chris Van Vliet," he quit working for WWE for a second time after a comment Stone Cold Steve Austin made on “Tough Enough." He started his wrestling podcast in 2021 and still works on it now.

After his recent podcast comments regarding the new deal, one has to wonder whether WWE will take notice and make some serious adjustments to win over ESPN and the fans.