The WWE announced Monday that the 2026 Royal Rumble will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in an expansion of the pro wrestling giant’s partnership with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in recent years.
The Royal Rumble is one of WWE’s trademark premium live events, often ranking behind only Wrestlemania in terms of prestige on the pro wrestling calendar. Riyadh will play host to the 39th annual Royal Rumble, and the first one held outside the United States. The event traditionally features both a men’s and women’s match in which 30 participants attempt to eliminate all opponents over the top rope of the ring to secure a championship opportunity at WrestleMania.
The WWE did not disclose a venue in Saudi Arabia or a date for the 2026 Royal Rumble in its announcement. This year’s Royal Rumble is set to take place at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Feb. 1. The Riyadh Royal Rumble reveal coincides with the debut of WWE’s ‘Monday Night Raw’ on Netflix this week, a move that is expected to help WWE better cater to its international audience due to the streaming platform’s worldwide reach.
“WWE is a global enterprise and it only made sense to expand our relationship with the Kingdom by bringing one of our biggest annual events to Riyadh in January of 2026,” WWE president Nick Khan said in a statement.
WWE first began promoting non-televised events in Saudi Arabia in 2014 before an expansion of the relationship started in 2018 with the ‘Greatest Royal Rumble’ pay-per-view event. It was announced as the start of a 10-year partnership between the WWE and Saudi Arabia that then extended through 2027.
The WWE has held significant events like Crown Jewel,Elimination Chamber, King & Queen of the Ring, Night of Champions, SmackDown and Monday Night RAW in Saudi Arabia during that time. The arrangement was initially met with criticism and allegations of sports washing from inside and outside the wrestling world due to Saudi Arabia’s poor human rights record, particularly regarding women’s rights and LGTBQ rights.
“Saudi Arabia’s hosting of the Royal Rumble for the first time outside North America reflects the General Entertainment Authority’s ongoing commitment to bringing the world’s largest and most important entertainment events to the Kingdom,’ Saudi Arabian Royal Court adviser and General Entertainment Authority chairman Turki Alalshikh said in a statement. ‘Through this partnership with WWE, we aim to enhance the entertainment sector and deliver a transformative experience that attracts a wide audience.”