WWE’s time in the Middle-Eastern monarchy of Saudi Arabia has been nothing short of eventful. And it is not just the WWE PLE events, but the fuss, controversies, and ever-tilting politics.
WWE made its way officially into Saudi Arabia’s opens in 2014. Everything has not been as easy as rolling off a log ever since. Women wrestlers were not welcome to start with – at least in normal costumes. The Saudi authorities stepped in whenever they had a chance to mess with the WWE. Sportswashing attempts had to be re-whitewashed by the government over and over again.
The 2018 news of the assassination of renowned columnist Jamal Khashoggi is one example. Many WWE superstars as important as John Cena hesitated to go to the country for a planned WWE event. The 2022 tensions between Saudi Arabia and Syria also kept certain WWE stars alert.
But the entire roster was fed up to the back teeth with the 2019 Crown Jewel event. Over 200 people associated with the event – including mighty wrestlers, their families, crew, and talented negotiators – were held hostage.
In familiar fashion, WWE and the government denied the event. But the company had to settle a dispute involving $500 million to fly their crew back for the next events.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) is known for his grand entrances at WWE Saudi Arabia events. He is also alleged to have caused the October 2019 row.
Stars like Charlotte Flair were glad to have wrestled in Saudi Arabia. But the tweets by Karl Anderson and how his wife was the most hilarious and would not be forgotten.
Couldn’t pay me enough to go back ..
Well that’s not true, I need a second pool, so…..— Karl Anderson (@MachineGunKA) November 2, 2019
🤷♂️ pic.twitter.com/eV3HZTfL40
— David Bixenspan (@davidbix) November 4, 2019
A great percentage of WWE stars refused to back.
Every WWE Event that took place in Saudi Arabia
WWE started off with house shows in April 2014. Events were held in October 2015 and November 2016 as well.
WWE later came to an agreement with the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Sport in 2018. The ten-year contract let WWE hold pay-per-view and live-streaming events in the country. Here are the WWE Saudi Arabia events with their highlights.
1. ‘Greatest Royal Rumble’ of 2018 April saw 50 stars competing for the Greatest Royal Rumble Trophy and Championship. The event set a streak of extravagant WWE events in the country.
2. ‘Crown Jewel’ of November 2018 set the tag team of Shawn Michaels and Triple H against the duo of Kane and The Undertaker. The PPV kept true to its name.
3. The Undertaker went against Goldberg at the ‘Super ShowDown’ in June 2019. The showdown marked that the ‘Master of Pain’ had no problem with returning to Saudi Arabia.
4. The 2019 ‘Crown Jewel’ saw Seth Rollins against Bray Wyatt in a theatrical contest for the WWE Universal Championship. Rollins pinned Wyatt in due course.
5. Bray Wyatt fought Goldberg for the WWE Universal Championship at the 2020 ‘Super ShowDown’ held in February.
6. Another Universal Championship brawl! Roman Reigns defeated Brock Lesnar at the 2021 Saudi Arabian ‘Crown Jewel’ on October 21.
7. In February 2022, WWE held an ‘Elimination Chamber’ showdown for six superstars from the top unit of the roster. The night was as spectacular as expected.
8. The fourth Saudi Arabian ‘Crown Jewel’ was won by Roman Reigns against Logan Paul in November 2022. Incidentally in September that year, Reigns appeared in Logan Paul’s show ‘ImPaulsive.’
9. Night of Champions of May 2023 showcased several pinfalls. Seth Rollins, Trish Stratus, Cody Rhodes, Gunther, Asuka, Rhea Ripley, and the tag team of Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn were the champions of the ‘Arabian’ night.
The only thing certain about WWE’s programs in Saudi Arabia is the factor of imposing grandeur. As long as you can get WWE superstars to fly to Saudi Arabia, there will be lofty affairs to watch.