Lucha Underground Lands A New International TV Deal
By
David Bixenspan on October 26, 2016
Turner Broadcasting has
issued a press release announcing that starting December 10th, Lucha Underground will be on the air in Germany. Every Saturday night, TNT Serie will be broadcasting the show at 10:40 p.m. local time. Former WWE announcer Günter Zapf and former TNA announcer Mike Ritter will handle commentary during the matches, with everything else being in English with German subtitles.
Lucha Underground captivates the audience, said (roughly, thanks to Google Translate) Marion Rathmann, Turners programming director of entertainment channels in Central and Eastern Europe. Not just with spectacular matches, but above all with an exciting story that is told throughout the season.
We are really looking forward to taking part in the launch of the worlds most innovative wrestling format in Germany, said both announcers in a statement (also machine translated). The atmosphere at the Temple is absolutely exceptional, and we are incredibly happy to do commentary on the spectacular matches. Of course, were looking forward to seeing some wrestling stars we have encountered in the past and whose careers weve been accompanying in the past. The fans may be curious to see who will emerge all at Lucha Underground!
The wrestlers named in the press release are Johnny Mundo, Chavo Guerrero Jr., Alberto El Patron, Prince Puma, Fénix, Pentagón Jr., Sexy Star and Ivelisse. Albertos presence means that the German run is most likely starting from the beginning of the series.
Analysis: Unless Im missing something, Lucha Underground is the first professional wrestling show to air on any Turner network anywhere in the world since Jamie Kellner cancelled all WCW programming in 2001, necessitating the asset sale to WWE. Its been a long 15 and a half years.