After some online rumors, it was confirmed today that Saudi Arabia will host the 2026 Royal Rumble for WWE. And yes, this isn’t another Greatest Royal Rumble that doesn’t actually mean anything, this is THE Royal Rumble event. The 39th annual even will be held in January 2026 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This will mark the first time ever that the Rumble has been held outside of North America.

Royal Rumble is an annual WWE Premium Live Event that includes both a men’s and women’s match with the winners eliminating all opponents and securing a Championship opportunity at WrestleMania.

Here’s what HE Turki Alalshikh had to say.

“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. Through this partnership with WWE, we aim to enhance the entertainment sector and deliver a transformative experience that attracts a wide audience. We are excited to see this historic event as part of Riyadh Season’s activities and look forward to providing an exceptional experience for wrestling fans from around the world, whom we welcome to all events hosted in Saudi Arabia.” 

Nick Khan, WWE President had this to say.

“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,”

Our Thoughts On Saudi Arabia Hosting The 2026 Royal Rumble For WWE

For fans in Saudi Arabia, this is a huge occasion. They’ve been angling to host either WrestleMania or the Royal Rumble since the deal they signed with the WWE for events. It marks an expansion of that deal that’s seen the area host Crown Jewel, Elimination Chamber, King & Queen of the Ring, Night of Champions, SmackDown and Monday Night RAW. For fans outside of Saudi Arabia and for WWE Superstars, it means a long travel day or watching at a strange time of day. But that’s the price we pay to watch wrestling.

WWE recently debuted worldwide (outside of the US) on Netflix with Monday Night Raw. You can catch all their Premium Live Events on Netflix (Peacock for the US).

For more on Wrestling, make sure to check back to That Hashtag Show.

Keep Reading:

New WWE RAW Promo Ahead of Netflix Debut