Since its debut on TV, WWE Smackdown has randomly changed nights of airing in the past over the years. Time is approaching that the show could begin airing on a different night rather than Friday nights given that the ongoing TV deal with FOX is up and USA Network will again acquire the rights.
WWE has a lot of big decisions to be taken in the future as television rights deals have to be renewed. This is perhaps the most responsible task they have in hand following their merger with the UFC brand. With the new owner willing to make big changes to the newly acquired brand, it’s safe to assume that viewers may need to switch their platform to access WWE SmackDown in the near future.
Previous reports indicated that WWE is expected to agree to another deal with the USA Network to keep Raw and NXT under their banner. The situation with WWE SmackDown was a bit complicated as it has experienced a lot of viewers via FOX and coming back to USA Network could be viewed as a downgrade. Besides, two more front-runner acquirers were there in the situation in the form of Disney and Amazon.
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WWE Smackdown has been a steady performer on FOX since 2019
In another recent report posted by Dave Meltzer noted on Wrestling Observer Radio that WWE Smackdown isn’t bothered to be stuck on Friday nights. After all, WWE has aired the blue brand show on several days of the week like Tuesdays or Thursdays in the past.
“If you remember, they were on Tuesday for a long time. They’d been on Thursday, they’d been on, basically on the night that the network that owns the rights wants them to be on. So perhaps there’s another night that ABC would want them, or perhaps they want them to boost FOX, which they will boost greatly because it’s the number one show on a weekly basis when it comes to cable, on a year-round basis, 52 weeks a year,” Meltzer elaborated on WWE Smackdown getting a new home.
“I mean, it’s not always number one. I mean, obviously, football is always going to beat it. Big sports events will always beat it. But it’s a steady performer. It’ll be a steady performer week in and week out.”
FOX previously showed indications about getting themselves separated from the WWE by canceling the Out of Character podcast hosted by Ryan Satin. That obviously gives USA Network a good chance to revive their relationship with WWE Smackdown. But with the UFC merger, WWE could be vying for a new home in bigger platforms like Disney or Amazon.
