King and Queen of the Ring (2025)

Last updated
King and Queen of the Ring
WWE King & Queen of the Ring Logo.png
Logo for the 2025 tournaments
Promotion WWE
Brand(s) Raw
SmackDown
DateJune 9 – June 28, 2025
King & Queen of the Ring tournament chronology
 Previous
2024
Next 
King of the Ring
Cody Rhodes, Wrestlemania XL in 2023 7.jpg
2025 King of the Ring winner Cody Rhodes
Tournament information
Sport Professional wrestling
Location
DatesJune 9, 2025–June 28, 2025
Tournament
format(s)
Single elimination tournament
Participants16
Final positions
Champion Cody Rhodes
Runner-up Randy Orton
Tournament statistics
Matches played7
  2024
Queen of the Ring
Jade Cargill RR24 (2).jpg
2025 Queen of the Ring winner Jade Cargill
Tournament information
Sport Professional wrestling
Location
DatesJune 9, 2025–June 28, 2025
Tournament
format(s)
Single elimination tournament
Participants16
Final positions
Champion Jade Cargill
Runner-up Asuka
Tournament statistics
Matches played7
  2024

The 2025 King and Queen of the Ring were men's and women's professional wrestling tournaments produced by the American company WWE. They were the 24th edition of the men's King of the Ring tournament and third edition of the women's Queen of the Ring tournament that took place from June 9 to June 28, 2025, each held between wrestlers from the Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. The respective winners were crowned "King of the Ring" and "Queen of the Ring" and received a world championship match of their respective brand at SummerSlam. In the King of the Ring final, held between two SmackDown wrestlers, Cody Rhodes defeated Randy Orton to earn a match for the Undisputed WWE Championship, while in the Queen of the Ring final, SmackDown's Jade Cargill defeated Raw's Asuka to earn a match for the WWE Women's Championship.

Contents

Tournament matches began on the June 9, 2025, episode of Raw and continued to be held across episodes of Raw and SmackDown . The respective tournaments concluded at the Night of Champions pay-per-view and livestreaming event in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on June 28, 2025.

Background

King and Queen of the Ring are respective men's and women's professional wrestling tournaments periodically held by the American company WWE. The King of the Ring tournament was established in 1985 [1] with Queen of the Ring introduced in 2021 (originally as Queen's Crown; renamed in 2024). [2] The respective winners are crowned the "King of the Ring" and "Queen of the Ring", and since 2024, they also receive a world championship match of their respective brand at SummerSlam. From 1993 to 2002 and in 2015, the King of the Ring finals took place at the King of the Ring event, while in 2024, both tournament finals took place at the King and Queen of the Ring event, which was held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. For all other years the tournaments were held, the finals took place at another event. [3]

The 24th King of the Ring and third Queen of the Ring tournaments were announced during the June 6, 2025, episode of SmackDown , with tournament matches beginning on the June 9 episode of Raw and subsequently held across episodes of Raw and SmackDown. First round matches for each tournament consisted of four fatal four-way matches with eight wrestlers each from the Raw and SmackDown brands. The winners of those matches advanced to the semifinals and those subsequent winners advanced to the finals at the Night of Champions pay-per-view and livestreaming event on June 28, 2025, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Unlike prior tournaments since 2019 where there were separate Raw and SmackDown brackets and the respective bracket winners faced each other in the final, the 2025 brackets were mixed, creating the possibility that the final could be between two wrestlers from the same brand (which did in fact happen for the men). [4]

Finals

The King of the Ring final was between two SmackDown wrestlers, thus guaranteeing that regardless of winner, their world championship match at SummerSlam would be for the Undisputed WWE Championship. In the final, Cody Rhodes defeated Randy Orton to become the 2025 King of the Ring. [5]

In the Queen of the Ring final, SmackDown's Jade Cargill defeated Raw's Asuka to become the 2025 Queen of the Ring, thus earning a match for the WWE Women's Championship at SummerSlam. Had Asuka won, she would have challenged for the Women's World Championship at the event. [6]

Brackets

King of the Ring

First round
( Raw , June 9, June 16)
( SmackDown , June 13)
Semifinals
( SmackDown , June 20)
( Raw , June 23)
Final
(Night of Champions, June 28)
Bron Breakker
Dominik Mysterio 17:05 [7]
Penta
Sami Zayn Pin
Sami Zayn 11:25 [8]
Randy Orton Pin
Aleister Black
Carmelo Hayes
LA Knight 16:15 [9]
Randy Orton Pin
Randy Orton 19:45 [10]
Cody Rhodes Pin
Andrade
Cody Rhodes Pin
Damian Priest
Shinsuke Nakamura 17:05 [9]
Cody Rhodes Pin
Jey Uso 20:00 [11]
Bronson Reed 17:25 [12]
Jey Uso Pin
Rusev
Sheamus

Queen of the Ring

First round
( Raw , June 9, June 16)
( SmackDown , June 13)
Semifinals
( SmackDown , June 20)
( Raw , June 23)
Final
(Night of Champions, June 28)
Kairi Sane 12:50 [7]
Liv Morgan
Rhea Ripley
Roxanne Perez Pin
Roxanne Perez 11:20 [11]
Jade Cargill Pin
Jade Cargill Pin
Michin
Nia Jax
Piper Niven 12:50 [9]
Jade Cargill Pin
Asuka 8:35 [10]
Alba Fyre [a]
Alexa Bliss Pin
Candice LeRae 11:00 [9]
Charlotte Flair
Alexa Bliss 9:25 [8]
Asuka Pin
Asuka Pin
Ivy Nile
Raquel Rodriguez 15:50 [12]
Stephanie Vaquer

Notes

  1. Replaced her Green Regime stablemate, Chelsea Green, who (in kayfabe) could not make the show as she could not find the city where the show was taking place.

References

  1. Beaston, Erik (August 18, 2019). "WWE King of the Ring: Everything You Need to Know About Historical Tournament". Bleacher Report . Retrieved April 9, 2021.
  2. "WWE announces Queen's Crown and King of the Ring tournaments". Pro Wrestling Torch . October 2, 2021. Retrieved October 2, 2021.
  3. Defelice, Robert (May 23, 2024). "Winners Of WWE King And Queen Of The Ring Tournaments Will Get World Title Bouts At WWE SummerSlam". Fightful. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
  4. Lambert, Jeremy (June 6, 2025). "King And Queen Of The Ring Tournaments Announced, Winners Receive Title Matches At WWE SummerSlam". Fightful. Retrieved June 6, 2025.
  5. Thompson, Andrew (June 28, 2025). "Cody Rhodes Wins 2025 King Of The Ring Tournament At WWE Night Of Champions". Fightful. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
  6. Thompson, Andrew (June 28, 2025). "Jade Cargill Defeats Asuka In 2025 Queen Of The Ring Tournament Final At WWE Night Of Champions". Fightful. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
  7. 1 2 Powell, Jason (June 9, 2025). "WWE Raw results (6/9): Powell's live review of Jey Uso vs. Gunther for the World Heavyweight Championship, appearances by WWE Champion John Cena and MITB winner Seth Rollins, the return of Nikki Bella". Pro Wrestling Dot Net . Retrieved June 9, 2025.
  8. 1 2 Powell, Jason (June 20, 2025). "WWE Smackdown results (6/20): Powell's live review of John Cena vs. R-Truth in a non-title match, Randy Orton vs. Sami Zayn in a KOTR semifinal match, Alexa Bliss vs. Asuka in a QOTR semifinal match". Pro Wrestling Dot Net . Retrieved June 20, 2025.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Powell, Jason (June 13, 2025). "WWE Smackdown results (6/13): Powell's live review of King and Queen of the Ring four-ways, WWE Champion John Cena and MITB winner Naomi's appearances". Pro Wrestling Dot Net . Retrieved June 13, 2025.
  10. 1 2 Powell, Jason (June 28, 2025). "WWE Night of Champions results: Powell's live review of John Cena vs. CM Punk for the WWE Championship, Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes in the KOTR final, Asuka vs. Jade Cargill in the QOTR final". Pro Wrestling Dot Net . Retrieved June 28, 2025.
  11. 1 2 Powell, Jason (June 23, 2025). "WWE Raw results (6/23): Powell's live review of Cody Rhodes vs. Jey Uso in a KOTR semifinal match, Jade Cargill vs. Roxanne Perez in a QOTR semifinal match, Becky Lynch vs. Bayley for the Women's IC Title". Pro Wrestling Dot Net . Retrieved June 23, 2025.
  12. 1 2 Powell, Jason (June 16, 2025). "WWE Raw results (6/16): Powell's live review of Asuka vs. Stephanie Vaquer vs. Ivy Nile vs. Raquel Rodriguez in a QOTR match, Sheamus vs. Rusev vs. Bronson Reed vs. Jey Uso in a KOTR match". Pro Wrestling Dot Net . Retrieved June 16, 2025.