The long slog to get YouTube TV subscribers authenticated for ESPN Unlimited continues, and they will now miss WWE’s flagship event, WrestleMania.
YouTube TV subscribers reportedly will not gain authentication access in time for WrestleMania 42 this weekend, which will air exclusively on the Unlimited tier of ESPN’s new app, according to a report by Austin Karp in Sports Business Journal on Monday. Subscribers to the popular Google-owned pay TV alternative have waited for access to ESPN Unlimited since November 2025, when YouTube TV and Disney reached a new long-term carriage agreement after a weeks-long blackout.
Per Karp, YouTube TV subscribers should have authentication access to ESPN Unlimited by WWE’s SummerSlam, which takes place on August 1 and 2 later this year.
As part of the new distribution deal between YouTube TV and Disney, ESPN Unlimited content will be integrated directly into the YouTube TV app at some point down the line. However, this initial authentication process appears to only allow YouTube TV subscribers to sign in on the ESPN app, like one would with Comcast or DirecTV credentials, and stream events through ESPN’s platform. A timeline for full ESPN integration into YouTube TV remains unknown.
The delays have been attributed to tech issues that are still being worked through. In January, Awful Announcing reported that ESPN had completed its own tech work and was waiting for Google and Comcast to complete projects on their end before rolling out authentication for those customers. Comcast customers were recently granted authentication access about five months after the company struck its own carriage agreement with Disney.
Monday’s report in Sports Business Journal confirms that “Google is working through tech issues related to the authentication,” which is the reason for the ongoing delays.
For WWE fans who are also YouTube TV subscribers, the delays mark yet another Premium Live Event in which they’ll need to pay $30 for a month of ESPN Unlimited to access content they should be receiving at no additional cost. While this shouldn’t be a problem for much longer, it’s still unfair to YouTube TV subscribers who are paying for content they cannot yet receive.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.