Reason why WWE Night of Champions 2026 had expanded PLE card
WWE Night of Champions 2026 having an expanded card was reportedly ESPN’s idea.
The June 27 PLE from Saudi Arabia had a six-match card, one more than WWE has usually been doing. WrestleVotes reports that this came after ESPN approached WWE about “adding another match or two to the lineup.” The idea was to strengthen the paid portion of the PLE on ESPN Unlimited. With six matches taking place, two were simulcast on ESPN while the other four were exclusive to ESPN Unlimited subscribers.
Night of Champions had the King of the Ring finals (Oba Femi defeating Jey Uso) and Queen of the Ring finals (IYO SKY defeating Liv Morgan) air during the hour-one ESPN simulcast portion. The remainder of the lineup had a steel cage match and three title bouts, headlined by Sami Zayn defeating Cody Rhodes and Gunther to win the Undisputed WWE Championship.
WrestleVotes notes that they’ve been told ESPN’s strategy of simulcasting the first hour of WWE PLEs on television is expected to remain in place through at least fall 2026. By offering the first hour for free, ESPN is hoping viewers will then subscribed to Unlimited to watch the rest of the show.
ESPN is WWE’s exclusive broadcast partner for PLEs in the United States. Internationally, the events air live on Netflix.
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.