TKO Chief Operating Officer Mark Shapiro has high hopes for the upcoming WWE Wrestlepalooza premium live event, stating that the company’s goal is for the new show to become an “annual recurring franchise” on par with their biggest events of the year. The new PLE, which will be the first to air on ESPN’s new streaming platform, is being positioned as a significant addition to the WWE calendar.
Speaking at the annual Goldman Sachs Communacopia & Technology Conference on Wednesday, Shapiro discussed the significance of the September 20 event. He explained that the company sees the potential for Wrestlepalooza to become a cornerstone of their yearly schedule.
“Hopefully, Wrestlepalooza is a winner and we can bring that back annually. That could be a marketing bonanza for us if we do that right,” he said. Shapiro then revealed the creative effort being put into the inaugural show, stating that Paul “Triple H” Levesque is spending “day and night” creatively making “what we think it can be: another WrestleMania or another SummerSlam.”
Shapiro elaborated on where he sees Wrestlepalooza fitting into the list of WWE’s premium live events. While they hope it can become a major event like Mania or SummerSlam, he would place it in the same “quadrant” as the Royal Rumble, just below the level of WrestleMania and SummerSlam.
The inaugural Wrestlepalooza will take place on Saturday, September 20, in Indianapolis, Indiana. The show will be the first WWE premium live event to air on the new ESPN direct-to-consumer streaming service, a deal that was not originally scheduled to begin until 2026. The event looks to run partially head-to-head with AEW’s All Out pay-per-view, a direct move of counter-programming.
The card for Wrestlepalooza is already stacked with several bouts. It is expected to feature a singles match between John Cena and Brock Lesnar, a mixed tag team match pitting CM Punk and the returning AJ Lee against Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch, and more.
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit Goldman Sachs Communacopia & Technology Conference with an h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
