Update —
WWE has officially announced that NXT will be moving to The CW Network starting in October 2024. It's a five-year deal.
Ari Emanuel said on today's TKO conference call that NXT's deal with The CW represents a 70 percent increase in average annual value over the previous deal.
"The CW has made impressive moves over the past year with its live sports programming schedule," WWE President Nick Khan said in a press release. "It's a truly exciting opportunity to expand NXT's audience by bringing the show to broadcast television for the first time in NXT's history."
"We are thrilled to welcome the WWE brand into the CW Sports portfolio as they play an integral role in our mission to bring live sporting events to the network year-round," CW Network President Dennis Miller said. "WWE NXT is a perfect fit for The CW thanks to its dynamic young talent featuring the hottest rising stars in the sport and exhilarating, unpredictable weekly events. The passion and engagement of WWE's fanbase is unmatched, and we are eager to grow that audience as WWE NXT's new home on broadcast television."
Leading into the new deal, WWE has increased the importance of NXT with main roster stars appearing on NXT more frequently.
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Original —
It appears that WWE NXT will be moving networks in its next television deal.
PWInsider reports that WWE and The CW are close to reaching a deal for NXT TV rights. The deal is expected to be for around five years and would "easily be the biggest increase for WWE NXT media rights fees ever."
"Multiple sources in the broadcast industry have confirmed that the CW Network and WWE have been in deep discussions for weeks about NXT shifting from its current basic cable home on the USA Network to a traditional broadcast television home, airing live weekly on the CW Network when the brand's current media rights deal ends in September 2024," PWInsider wrote. "The belief among some we have spoken with is the deal is VERY close to being completed with the deal expected to be around five years in length."
NXT has aired on USA Network since 2019. Before that, the show aired weekly on WWE Network.
NXT currently airs on Tuesday nights.
It was reported last month that the NWA had signed two TV deals with The CW, one for NWA Power and one for a reality series. But Haus of Wrestling reported over the weekend that a cocaine spot from the NWA's Samhain pay-per-view could negatively affect those deals.
The CW launched in 2006. It was preceded by UPN and The WB networks.
WWE SmackDown will be leaving Fox and returning to USA Network with its next TV deal starting in October 2024. It remains to be seen where WWE Raw will end up.