Wrestling outlet retracts ESPN-WWE report, parts ways with writer

Wrestling news outlet SEScoops has retracted its story reporting that ESPN would not be renewing its contract with WWE when the current agreement between the two companies expires in 2030.

“Before a story like this runs, the subject deserves a direct chance to respond, and that step wasn’t taken to the appropriate standard,” SEScoops said in a statement posted to social media. “Since publication, it’s come to light that this effort fell way short. We ran it and the buck stops with us.”

SEScoops added that it had “parted ways” with BJ Bethel, who wrote the report.

Statement on our WWE–ESPN report

Yesterday we published a report from BJ Bethel on WWE’s relationship with ESPN. We are retracting that story in its entirety.

Before a story like this runs, the subject deserves a direct chance to respond, and that step wasn’t taken to the…

— SEScoops (@sescoops) August 26, 2026

As the statement explains, the issue with Bethel’s report is that he failed to reach out through the proper channels to give ESPN a chance to respond to the story before it was published. After the story was set live, ESPN head of communications Ben Cafardo posted a hard denial of the report on social media.

“There is no truth to the report that we have decided not to renew,” he wrote. “They never checked with us before publishing and had they, we would have told them that was completely false.”

In response, Bethel wrote that he had attempted to contact ESPN via the network’s fan support channel online, and also left a message on the support phone line.

“In fairness I forgot about previous correspondence with Ben in April and his email or I would have contacted him there,” Bethel wrote. “I’m also standing by my story.”

I tried contacting ESPN through https://t.co/yJ5rF6wm1G last night. Also left a voice mail on a support phone line. In fairness I forgot about previous correspondence with Ben in April and his email or I would have contacted him there.

I’m also standing by my story. https://t.co/xDtHG2am1V

— B. J. Bethel (@BJBethelTweets) August 25, 2026

When reporting out a story involving two parties as large as ESPN and WWE, leaving a request for comment through a support page and getting no reply is not enough. Had Bethel initially gotten the comment that Cafardo posted on social media and included it in the original report, there’s a good chance that none of this fallout would have happened.

ESPN is just a year and a half into its current deal with WWE, and the two sides have years left on the partnership before the question of whether or not to renew the contract has to be addressed.