History of WWE SmackDown

The history of WWF/E SmackDown!, began with the show's debut on August 26, 1999, in Kansas City, Missouri. The show was originally broadcast on Thursday nights but moved to Friday on September 9, 2005, before returning to Thursdays on January 15, 2015.[1] On July 19, 2016, it was moved to Tuesday Nights.[2] SmackDown! debuted in the United States on the UPN television network on April 29, 1999, but after the merger of UPN and the WB, SmackDown! began airing on The CW in September 2006. The show was moved to MyNetworkTV in October 2008,[3][4] to Syfy on October 1, 2010[5][6] and to USA Network on January 7, 2016.[7][8][9]

In its WWF/E SmackDown! history, SmackDown has been broadcast from more than 162 arenas, in more than 147 cities and towns, and in nine countries (the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Iraq in 2003 and 2004 for Tribute to the Troops, Japan in 2005, Italy in 2007, Mexico in 2011, and France and Saudi Arabia in 2024). Prior to switching to the current live format, taped episodes premiered a few hours earlier in Ireland and the United Kingdom and a day earlier in Australia, Canada, and Singapore than the United States, due to time differences. The show celebrated its 15th anniversary on October 10, 2014,[10] and its 1,000th episode on October 16, 2018.

  1. ^ "SmackDown moves to Thursday nights". WWE. November 6, 2014.
  2. ^ "SmackDown going live on USA Network on a new night with a distinct roster starting July 19". WWE. May 25, 2016. Retrieved May 25, 2016.
  3. ^ Wallenstein, Andrew (2008-02-08). "CW, "SmackDown" Part Ways". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 2008-05-02. Retrieved 2008-02-09.
  4. ^ "MyNetworkTV Crowns WWE Its New Programming Champ". World Wrestling Entertainment. 2008-02-28. Archived from the original on 2010-06-15. Retrieved 2009-10-07.
  5. ^ "SmackDown Goes SyFy". World Wrestling Entertainment. 2010-04-13. Archived from the original on 2010-04-16. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  6. ^ Flint, Joe (2010-04-12). "WWE's "SmackDown" Moving to Syfy". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  7. ^ Kondolojy, Amanda (April 7, 2015). "'WWE SmackDown' Moves to USA Network in 2016". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on April 10, 2015. Retrieved April 7, 2015.
  8. ^ Bacle, Ariana (April 7, 2015). "WWE SmackDown moves to USA Network". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on April 9, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference 24Wrestling was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ "Celebrate the 15th Anniversary of Smackdown - Friday Oct 10". WWE.com. WWE. September 22, 2014. Archived from the original on October 21, 2014. Retrieved October 3, 2014.