Main Event is taped on Monday nights prior to WWE Raw. Episodes generally feature two matches (typically one men's match and one women's match). In the United States, Main Event streams new episodes on Hulu on Thursdays; it was initially carried by Ion Television as well until April 2014. It is also carried by WWE's international television partners.
History
The series first aired in the United States on Ion Television, originally premiering October 3, 2012 and airing on Wednesday nights. WWE considered the show to be a spiritual replacement for WWE Superstars (which previously aired on WGN America until 2011, and transitioned to WWE's digital platforms in the U.S. afterward). Hulu acquired rights to the series as well, as part of a larger pact that included video on-demand rights for WWE's main weekly programs.[1][2]
Ion Television dropped the series in April 2014; following the cancellation, WWE streamed a live episode of Main Event from Detroit on its then-new subscription service WWE Network. It was reported to be a stress test for live events on the service in preparation for WrestleMania XXX.[3]
Prior to November 28, 2016, Main Event was taped prior to SmackDown. It was then moved to Raw after the premiere of WWE Network's 205 Live, which was broadcast live after SmackDown from the same venue.[4]
Main Event was initially positioned as a non-branded show, featuring performers from both the Raw and SmackDown rosters.[2] Following the 2016 WWE Draft, the program became exclusive to SmackDown. After the cancellation of WWE Superstars, Main Event became exclusive to Raw. In late-2022, under changes made by Triple H after being promoted to WWE's chief content officer, NXT wrestlers began to increasingly appear on Main Event, particularly to evaluate their performance and audience reception when performing with members of the main roster.[5][6]
October 3, 2012 – October 24, 2012 December 5, 2012 – December 19, 2012 January 2, 2013 – February 6, 2013 May 29, 2013 October 9, 2013 November 27, 2013 January 1, 2014 March 18, 2014 April 15, 2014 May 27, 2014 March 24, 2015 November 3, 2015
October 31, 2012 – November 28, 2012 December 26, 2012 February 13, 2013 – May 22, 2013 June 5, 2013 – October 2, 2013 October 16, 2013 – November 20, 2013 December 4, 2013 – December 25, 2013 January 8, 2014 – March 11, 2014 March 25, 2014 – April 8, 2014 April 22, 2014 – May 20, 2014 June 3, 2014 – June 24, 2014
July 1, 2014 – March 17, 2015 March 31, 2015 June 2, 2015 – June 23, 2015 July 14, 2015 – October 6, 2015 October 20, 2015 – October 27, 2015 November 10, 2015 – February 23, 2016 April 19, 2016
April 7, 2015 – May 26, 2015 June 30, 2015 – July 7, 2015 October 13, 2015 July 19, 2016 December 1, 2016 – December 8, 2016 December 22, 2016 – January 19, 2017 March 23, 2017 – April 6, 2017 September 14, 2017 March 22, 2018 November 29, 2018 - January 3, 2019
Greg Hamilton
March 1, 2016 – April 12, 2016 April 26, 2016 – July 12, 2016 July 26, 2016 – November 22, 2016 July 2, 2020 – December 3, 2020
January 26, 2017 – March 16, 2017 April 13, 2017 – September 7, 2017 September 21, 2017 March 15, 2018 – March 29, 2018 November 22, 2018 January 10, 2019 – May 4, 2023 October 12, 2023
^Replays of new episodes began airing on Hulu in 2012 and the platform began airing first-run episodes in 2014.
^While the WWE Network once aired new first-run episodes of the program, Peacock's WWE Network channel currently only airs replays of new episodes with a delay.