Khan Dismisses Speculation of WWE Sale to NBCUniversal

WWE President & Chief Revenue Officer Nick Khan has dismissed speculation that NBCUniversal could look to purchase WWE in the future.

WWE announced a five-year deal with NBCUniversal to put the WWE Network exclusively on streaming service Peacock in the United States last month, a deal that deepens an pre-existing relationship between WWE and the media outlet.

NBCU already owns the television rights to Monday Night Raw and NXT, both of which are shown on the USA Network, and the latest move to bring the WWE Network under their umbrella has led to further speculation that the company might see to purchase WWE outright.

However, Khan says there has been no such talk, either within WWE or with external parties, about the wrestling entertainment company being sold in any capacity.

“We haven’t discussed it once. At all,” Khan told Forbes. “By the way, thrilled with being on network TV at Fox. I think I sort of pushed on the emphasis [during the earnings call] on broadcast television, and how important that is, so love that, love what we’re doing with NBC, but no, there has been no dialogue internally or externally on anything like that.”

The main roadblock to any deal with NBCUniversal and parent company, Comcast, would be WWE's current television relationship with Fox, who hold the television rights for Friday Night SmackDown. With that deal set to expire in 2024, any move for SmackDown by NBCU to purchase WWE outright would almost certainly come after the end of that agreement.