The WWE is preparing for its first Royal Rumble event occurring in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where many expect major superstars to be involved. On Monday, fans got a first look at the official 2026 Royal Rumble post, possibly suggesting which matches could be on the card, or who will be in the men’s and women’s over-the-top rope matches.
The Rumble tends to be full of surprises, but it feels unlikely that fans in Riyadh would pop for some of the legends that WWE brings back for their annual Royal Rumble matches. Meanwhile, some of the most prominent men’s stars appearing on the new poster include Brock Lesnar, Roman Reigns, Cody Rhodes, CM Punk, and AJ Styles.
Interestingly, injured WWE stars Penta and Jacob Fatu are also on the poster along with rising talents Bron Breakker and Dominik Mysterio. For the women, the promotional poster reveals notable stars, including Iyo Sky, Jade Cargill, Liv Morgan, Becky Lynch, Stephanie Vaquer, and Rhea Ripley.
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WWE Women’s Intercontinental Champion Maxxine also appears on the new poster, suggesting she could defend or fight for the title at the event, and possibly participate in the Women’s Rumble match.
In addition, John Cena’s final opponent at this month’s “Saturday Night’s Main Event,” Gunther, is in the top right corner of the poster. The Cena versus Gunther match occurs on Saturday, Dec. 13, with Peacock streaming Cena’s retirement match and several others.
The 2026 Royal Rumble is in Riyadh, and while WWE has hosted previous live events in Saudi Arabia, this marks one of the more significant premium live events to take place there, paving the way for the country to host WrestleMania 43 in 2027.
The poster highlights that the Riyadh Royal Rumble takes place on Saturday, Jan. 31, at 3 p.m. Eastern Time, which is several hours earlier than WWE fans in the United States usually watch the shows. Typically, premium live events, aka PLEs, begin at 7 p.m. or 8 p.m. Eastern Time.
Additionally, this will be the first Royal Rumble to stream live on the ESPN app, following ESPN’s acquisition of the rights to present WWE PLEs.
Whether any legends travel to Riyadh to participate in the significant event remains to be seen. Still, the country seems highly interested in seeing the company’s top WWE stars at entertaining events.
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