The worldwide viewership figures for the debut episode of WWE Raw on Netflix have been unveiled by parent company TKO and the numbers are looking strong!
January 6th saw history made for both the professional wrestling and streaming companies as the first episode of Raw aired live on the platform to officially kick off the new era. With massive stars such as The Rock and John Cena announced ahead of time along with big matches announced and the importance of the event, all parties were hoping for high interest in the premiere.
On Thursday, January 9th, TKO announced that 4.9 million people viewed the show worldwide live and next day in markets where Raw was broadcast on Netflix [Does not include viewing in 92 countries/territories where Netflix doesn’t yet distribute WWE, which includes France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, the Philippines and South Korea].
In terms of domestic viewership, 2.6 million households watched the show on average in the United States live and same day, up 116% on the average 2024 US audience of 1.2 million households and higher than any Raw broadcast in the past 5 years. It is also stated that the debut Raw more than doubled its 18-49 rating compared to the previous year.
The press release also touts the success of the show in social media, gate and merchandise numbers:
On X, as soon as the event started, #WWERaw was the #1 trending topic in the US, Brazil, Australia, and the UK.
- WWERaw trended #1 for 14 hours straight in the UK and occupied six of the top 7 trending topics in the US.
- RAWonNetflix and #WWEonNetflix also trended in Brazil, Mexico, Spain, and the US.
WWE generated 223 million social views across platforms on the day of RAW’s Netflix premiere, more social views than any RAW episode of 2024.
The debut of RAW on Netflix, which took place at a sold-out Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, set a company record as the highest-grossing WWE arena event of all time. Additionally, the event set a merchandise sales record, becoming the highest-grossing non-Premium Live Event of all time.
What Happened On The WWE Raw On Netflix Premiere Episode?
Opening with one of the best video packages in company history, Triple H officially kicked off the new era closely followed by The Rock, who acknowledged Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes’s accomplishments in the past year. Later in the night, Rock returned to the ring to present Reigns with the Ula Fala after The OTC defeated Solo Sikoa in Tribal Combat.
Other highlights from the show included John Cena officially declaring for the Royal Rumble and Rhea Ripley defeating Liv Morgan to become the new Women’s World Champion. After the match, The Undertaker made a surprise appearance to celebrate with Ripley.
The main event of the show saw CM Punk defeat Seth Rollins in what was Punk’s first match on Raw since 2014.