WWE's STREAMING CIRCUS (Wrestling Soup 8.7.25)

WRESTLING SOUP

Wrestling Soup Network

Sports, Comedy, Wrestling

4.4 • 738 Ratings

🗓️ 8 August 2025

⏱️ 102 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this episode of Wrestling Soup, Anthony Thomas and Joseph E. Numbers dive deep into various hot topics in the wrestling world. They begin by discussing the shift of WWE's programming to ESPN and Disney platforms, the financial implications for fans, and the convoluted landscape of streaming services. Next, they explore WWE's recent changes under Triple H's leadership, talking about his management and booking style. The hosts also cover Bret Hart's criticism of Gunther's wrestling style, questioning the balance between real and performative pain in modern wrestling. They reflect on John Cena's open and heartfelt interview with Stephanie McMahon, touching upon his potential retirement, relationship with his father, and thoughts on wrestling crowds. Lastly, they address Joey Ryan's controversial return to wrestling and the subsequent backlash. Join them for an insightful conversation on the current state and future of professional wrestling!
00:00 Introduction and Hosts
00:32 WWE's New Deal with Disney and ESPN
01:44 Subscription Costs and Cable Packages
05:26 Hulu's Integration with Disney
09:09 VPNs and Streaming Workarounds
18:42 Future of WWE and Streaming Services
37:51 Triple H's Booking Philosophy
42:20 Triple H's Motivational Tactics
44:02 CM Punk's Complex Issues
46:00 Wrestlers' Mental Health
47:10 Triple H's Approach to Talent Management
47:50 WWE's Transparency and Anti-Vince Sentiment
52:34 The Importance of Enjoyment in Wrestling
54:16 Triple H's Role in WWE's Current State
01:00:11 John Cena's Fan Interaction
01:03:16 John Cena's Interview Insights
01:13:45 Bret Hart's Critique of Gunther
01:15:30 Gunther's Unique Style in Wrestling
01:16:04 Brett Hart's Era of Wrestling
01:25:55 Gunther's Perspective on Wrestling Culture
01:30:35 Jake Hagar's Retirement Announcement
01:34:14 Joey Ryan's Controversial Return
01:49:29 Closing Remarks and Announcements

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Wrestling soup for a mature audience.
0:05.0	I'm still doing the boys.
0:07.0	Wrestling soup.
0:08.0	I am Anthony Thomas.
0:10.0	He is Joseph E. Numbers.
0:12.0	Ah, 30 bucks none the richer.
0:14.0	That's what I'm going to say I call it myself.
0:16.0	Oh man, it's gonna be a lot more than 30 bucks.
0:19.0	Ooh.
0:20.0	Yeah. Monthly, monthly, sir. Monthly, right? No, no, more than that. More than that. Well, you got to consider you. You have to either have the right cable subscription, which could cost you up to about $200 a month. Correct. Oh, yeah. Or actually, you know what, let's, let's, well, let's open it up. So, well, there's been some changes with WWE. If you guys haven't heard, WWE will now be on the Disney. Yes. The word belongs, clearly. It's supposed to be with Disney. That makes sense. Yeah, that's that's a choice. I mean, it's a choice. Yes, indeed. So they're with Disney, Disney slash ESPN, right? Well, I can't keep track of all these incestuous relationships between all these different networks. That's all changing too. So let me go ahead and
1:11.9	play a little bit of Nick Khan explaining what this exactly is. This. PLEs, they're generally, what,
1:20.9	about one a month that WWE has? Give or take, there's about 10 of them a year and two of them,
1:27.3	WrestleMania, our Super Bowl,
1:29.1	if you will, and SummerSlam, which was this past weekend at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
1:35.2	Those are both two night events. If I'm a subscriber to what we used to call flagship, but the ESPN app,
1:41.8	will that come as part of my subscription or will I have to pay extra for this?
1:46.4	How is this going to look?
1:47.4	Look, in 2014, WWE, this is far before I joined WWE, went off of traditional pay-per-view
1:55.5	and onto its own OTT service, the WWE network, which was $9.99 a month.
2:00.5	There was no upcharge for pay-per-views like WrestleMania anymore.
2:04.6	When we did the Peacock deal in 2020, same thing.
2:08.0	No upcharge for what were pay-per-views.
	...

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