Netflix Premiere of ‘Raw’ Draws Millions As WWE’s New Era Begins

The partnership between WWE and Netflix is off to a hot start.

Netflix announced that Raw’s streaming debut Monday averaged 2.6 million viewers in the U.S., up 116% from the 2024 household average of 1.2 million, according to VideoAmp. Nielsen, which Netflix did not use for this measurement, estimated Raw averaged about 1.6 million viewers per episode last year.

Comparing the Nielsen data with the VideoAmp data, the Netflix debut is up 49% from the show’s first episode of 2024 on the USA Network. The number is also higher than any episode of Raw in 2024, when it breached two million viewers just once, on April 8, the Raw that followed WrestleMania 40.

One of the key components of the WWE’s 10-year, $5 billion media deal with Netflix was to make the product more accessible globally. 

“This is the first time in history that Raw is broadcast simultaneously around the world,” John Cena said during his promo.

The Netflix debut delivered for WWE in that regard, as Raw attracted 4.9 million global viewers. 

Just the Beginning

The strong viewership numbers continue a trend for Netflix, which posted record streaming ratings for the Mike Tyson–Jake Paul fight in November and the NFL’s Christmas Day doubleheader last month.

Despite the strong initial results, the jury is still out on the partnership, which has an opt-out in five years and a possibility of an extension to 20 years, according to Variety. WWE treated the Netflix debut as a special event, booking a WrestleMania-type card. It’s Netflix’s first attempt at a weekly live sports event—though WWE is considered sports entertainment—so the question remains whether the fans will return to the streamer every Monday.

WWE and Netflix’s U.S. deal only includes live streaming Raw, while the global deal involves premium live events. The two sides may explore bringing PLEs onto the streamer, though the promotion is in the middle of a five-year, $1 billion deal with Peacock that ends in 2026. Chief content officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque left the door open on WWE’s future with domestic PLEs.

“At some point this year, we’ll get into the deal with Peacock, who we love and they’ll get a lot of consideration for us as the existing partner. … I like to think that if we’re successful the way we think we will be, Netflix would be very interested and others will be as well,” Levesque told Sports Illustrated’s Jimmy Traina.