The craze for WWE premium live events has been over-the-top for the time being which is proved by Royal Rumble 2026 confirmation even a year ago. Just a few days ago, reports were out regarding WWE visiting overseas for the first annual PLE of its yearly schedule. WWE has now confirmed the same with one of their face figures missing from the scene.
It appears that the Royal Rumble 2026 premium live event will emanate from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and it will be the first time in the show’s history that it will be held on international soil as the company officially announced the same. To make things official, Riyadh’s Turki Alalshikh wrote the following on X,
“For the first time in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the legendary Royal Rumble is coming to Riyadh Season on January 2026. A historic night for WWE fans. #BigTime”
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The announcement of Royal Rumble 2026 has subsequently confirmed Friday night’s PWInsider’s information about the show and it also further validated Saudi Arabia General Entertainment Authority chairman Turki Alsheikh’s comments from last May about being in talks to host large-scale WWE shows like The Rumble and/or WrestleMania in either 2026 or 2027.
As such, Royal Rumble 2026 will take place in January of next year and it will be a part of the country’s Riyadh Season celebration. It will be the first-ever Rumble held outside North America and the first outside the United States since the inaugural one in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, in 1988. No official venue, date, or start time was announced.
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CM Punk missing from released WWE Royal Rumble 2026 promo
A promo regarding Royal Rumble 2026 has also been released on social media and CM Punk is missing from it. It makes sense as he’s not in favor of WWE’s relationship with Saudi Arabia and since his return, he’s never visited the country, either. It’s also likely that he will continue to miss the Saudi shows for the foreseeable future.
WWE – Saudi Arabia relationship began in 2018 with two annual events with the exception of 2020 and 2021 (one each) amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Royal Rumble 2026 will be added to the already conducted PLE-sprees in the country, Greatest Royal Rumble, Crown Jewel, King & Queen of the Ring, PLEs like Elimination Chamber (2022) and Night of Champions (2023).
