WrestleMania 43

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WrestleMania 43
WrestleMania 43 poster.jpg
Promotional poster featuring the Riyadh skyline
Promotion WWE
Brand(s) Raw
SmackDown
Date2027
City Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Venue TBA
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WrestleMania 43, also promoted as WrestleMania Riyadh, is an upcoming 2027 professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event produced by the American company WWE. It will be the 43rd annual WrestleMania and will take place as a two-night event in 2027 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia as part of Riyadh Season, and will be held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions.

Contents

It will be the first WrestleMania held outside of North America, the third outside the United States after WrestleMania VI and WrestleMania X8 in 1990 and 2002 respectively, the first WrestleMania WWE will hold in Saudi Arabia as part of its 10-year partnership in support of Saudi Vision 2030, and the second of WWE's "Big Five" events to take place in the country after the 2026 Royal Rumble. WWE had originally intended for WrestleMania 44 to be held in Saudi Arabia, however, the country insisted for WrestleMania 43 as it will coincide with the 300th anniversary of the founding of the First Saudi state.

Production

Background

For the first time, WrestleMania will be held outside of North America, as WrestleMania 43 will be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Riyadh Skyline.jpg
For the first time, WrestleMania will be held outside of North America, as WrestleMania 43 will be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

WrestleMania is the American promotion WWE's flagship professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event, having first been held in 1985. It was the company's first PPV produced and was also WWE's first major event available via livestreaming when the company launched the WWE Network in February 2014. It is the longest-running event in WWE history and is held annually between mid-March to mid-April, featuring wrestlers from WWE's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. [1] Along with Royal Rumble, SummerSlam, Survivor Series, and Money in the Bank, it is one of the company's five biggest annual events, referred to as the "Big Five". [2] [3] [4] WrestleMania was ranked the sixth-most valuable sports brand in the world by Forbes , [5] and has been described as "the Super Bowl of sports entertainment." [6]

In early 2018, WWE began a 10-year strategic multiplatform partnership with the Ministry of Sport (formerly General Sports Authority) in support of Saudi Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia's social and economic reform program. [7] [8] In September 2025, rumors circulated that WWE were planning on hosting a WrestleMania in Saudi Arabia. On 11 September 2025, WWE Chief Content Officer Paul "Triple H" Levesque posted on X that a huge announcement would be made via WWE's YouTube channel the following day. [9] That day at a press conference featuring Levesque and the Chairman of Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority (GEA), Turki Alalshikh, as well as WWE Hall of Famers The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels and current WWE wrestlers Seth Rollins, Logan Paul, Bianca Belair, Liv Morgan, Stephanie Vaquer, and Charlotte Flair, WWE announced that WrestleMania 43 in 2027 would be the first WrestleMania to take place outside of North America, as it would be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia as part of the 2026–2027 Riyadh Season, with the event also promoted as WrestleMania Riyadh. The exact date and venue were not confirmed. [10]

WWE had originally wanted to book WrestleMania 44 in 2028 for Saudi Arabia as they had other commitments for 2027. However, according to wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, GEA Chairman Alalshikh pushed for WWE to hold WrestleMania 43 in the country to coincide with the 300th anniversary of the founding of the First Saudi state. [11]

Broadcast outlets

In addition to airing on traditional pay-per-view worldwide, WrestleMania 43 will be available to livestream on ESPN's direct-to-consumer streaming service in the United States, Netflix in most international markets, and the WWE Network in any remaining countries that have not yet transferred to Netflix due to pre-existing contracts. [12]

Storylines

The event will include matches that result from scripted storylines. Results are predetermined by WWE on the Raw and SmackDown brands, [13] [14] while storylines are produced on WWE's weekly television shows, Monday Night Raw and Friday Night SmackDown . [15]

Criticism

The announcement of Riyadh as WrestleMania 43's location was condemned by fans due to Saudi Arabia's poor human rights record. Criticism was also levied for choosing Riyadh over London, England's Wembley Stadium, which John Cena had previously pushed for at Money in the Bank in 2023 where he stated that the United Kingdom deserved a WrestleMania. [16] [17] When a commercial promoting WrestleMania 43 was played at Worlds Collide: Las Vegas the day after the announcement, fans in attendance booed and made "You sold out" chants. [18]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Benigno, Anthony; Clapp, John (3 April 2013). "WrestleMania 29 press conference brings WWE to Radio City Music Hall". WWE . Archived from the original on 7 April 2013. Retrieved 31 March 2014. ... WWE's flagship event lights up MetLife Stadium ... WrestleMania
  2. ↑ Ian Hamilton. Wrestling's Sinking Ship: What Happens to an Industry Without Competition (p. 160)
  3. ↑ "Las Vegas to host WWE's Money in the Bank in 2022". KSNV . 22 August 2021. Archived from the original on 23 August 2021. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  4. ↑ Lambert, Jeremy (27 July 2022). "WWE Announces Dates And Location For WrestleMania 40". Fightful. Archived from the original on 27 July 2022. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
  5. ↑ Ozanian, Mike (16 October 2019). "The Forbes Fab 40: Puma Debuts On 2019 List Of The World's Most Valuable Sports Brands". Forbes . Archived from the original on 27 January 2022. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
  6. ↑ Gelston, Dan (4 April 2013). "WrestleMania is Super Bowl of sports entertainment". Associated Press . Archived from the original on 31 March 2014. Retrieved 31 March 2014.
  7. ↑ WWE.com Staff (5 March 2018). "Saudi Arabia to host the Greatest Royal Rumble". WWE . Archived from the original on 5 March 2018. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
  8. ↑ "National Transformation Program 2020" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 August 2017.
  9. ↑ Triple H [@TripleH] (11 September 2025). "We'll be making a huge announcement on @WWE's YouTube channel. Friday at 3:00pm ET/12:00pm PT. I told you we'd change the game. And we're just getting started" (Tweet). Retrieved 12 September 2025– via Twitter.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. ↑ WWE (12 September 2025). FULL ANNOUNCEMENT: WrestleMania 43 is heading to Saudi Arabia in 2027. YouTube . Retrieved 12 September 2025.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. ↑ Baiamonte, Joe (11 September 2025). "Why WWE WrestleMania 43 Will Reportedly Be Held In Saudi Arabia". Sports Illustrated . Retrieved 14 September 2025.
  12. ↑ Sherman, Alex (6 August 2025). "ESPN inks five-year deal for WWE's live premium events including WrestleMania, Royal Rumble". CNBC . Retrieved 6 August 2025.
  13. ↑ Grabianowski, Ed (13 January 2006). "How Pro Wrestling Works". HowStuffWorks. Discovery Communications. Archived from the original on 29 November 2013. Retrieved 5 March 2012.
  14. ↑ "Live & Televised Entertainment". WWE . Archived from the original on 18 February 2009. Retrieved 21 March 2012.
  15. ↑ Steinberg, Brian (25 May 2016). "WWE's 'Smackdown' Will Move To Live Broadcast On USA (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety . Archived from the original on 26 May 2016. Retrieved 25 May 2016.
  16. ↑ Castle, Will (12 September 2025). "Saudi Arabia beats London to host first-ever international WrestleMania in 2027". The Independent . Retrieved 15 September 2025.
  17. ↑ Lowson, Thomas (13 September 2025). "Fans Rally Behind UK WrestleMania After Riyadh Announcement". SEScoops. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
  18. ↑ Rift, Aaron (13 September 2025). "Fans chant "you sold out" while WWE WrestleMania 43 graphic is shown during AAA Worlds Collide". NoDQ.com. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
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