WrestleMania 43

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WrestleMania 43
WrestleMania 43 poster.jpg
Promotional poster featuring the Riyadh skyline
Promotion WWE
Brand(s) Raw
SmackDown
DateApril 17–18, 2027
City Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Venue Kingdom Arena
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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 first outside the United States since WrestleMania X8 in 2002, 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 September 11, 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 at Wembley Stadium, which John Cena had previously promised at Money in the Bank in 2023 would host a WrestleMania. [16] [17] When a commercial promoting WrestleMania 43 was played at Worlds Collide: Las Vegas, fans in attendance booed and made "You sold out" chants. [18]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Benigno, Anthony; Clapp, John (April 3, 2013). "WrestleMania 29 press conference brings WWE to Radio City Music Hall". WWE . Archived from the original on April 7, 2013. Retrieved March 31, 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 . August 22, 2021. Archived from the original on August 23, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  4. ↑ Lambert, Jeremy (July 27, 2022). "WWE Announces Dates And Location For WrestleMania 40". Fightful. Archived from the original on July 27, 2022. Retrieved July 27, 2022.
  5. ↑ Ozanian, Mike (October 16, 2019). "The Forbes Fab 40: Puma Debuts On 2019 List Of The World's Most Valuable Sports Brands". Forbes . Archived from the original on January 27, 2022. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
  6. ↑ Gelston, Dan (April 4, 2013). "WrestleMania is Super Bowl of sports entertainment". Associated Press . Archived from the original on March 31, 2014. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
  7. ↑ WWE.com Staff (March 5, 2018). "Saudi Arabia to host the Greatest Royal Rumble". WWE . Archived from the original on March 5, 2018. Retrieved March 7, 2018.
  8. ↑ "National Transformation Program 2020" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on August 28, 2017.
  9. ↑ Triple H [@TripleH] (September 11, 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 September 12, 2025– via Twitter.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. ↑ WWE (September 12, 2025). FULL ANNOUNCEMENT: WrestleMania 43 is heading to Saudi Arabia in 2027. YouTube . Retrieved September 12, 2025.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. ↑ Baiamonte, Joe (September 11, 2025). "Why WWE WrestleMania 43 Will Reportedly Be Held In Saudi Arabia". Sports Illustrated . Retrieved September 14, 2025.
  12. ↑ Sherman, Alex (August 6, 2025). "ESPN inks five-year deal for WWE's live premium events including WrestleMania, Royal Rumble". CNBC . Retrieved August 6, 2025.
  13. ↑ Grabianowski, Ed (January 13, 2006). "How Pro Wrestling Works". HowStuffWorks. Discovery Communications. Archived from the original on November 29, 2013. Retrieved March 5, 2012.
  14. ↑ "Live & Televised Entertainment". WWE . Archived from the original on February 18, 2009. Retrieved March 21, 2012.
  15. ↑ Steinberg, Brian (May 25, 2016). "WWE's 'Smackdown' Will Move To Live Broadcast On USA (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety . Archived from the original on May 26, 2016. Retrieved May 25, 2016.
  16. ↑ Castle, Will (September 12, 2025). "Saudi Arabia beats London to host first-ever international WrestleMania in 2027". The Independent . Retrieved September 15, 2025.
  17. ↑ Lowson, Thomas (September 13, 2025). "Fans Rally Behind UK WrestleMania After Riyadh Announcement". SEScoops. Retrieved September 15, 2025.
  18. ↑ Rift, Aaron (September 13, 2025). "Fans chant "you sold out" while WWE WrestleMania 43 graphic is shown during AAA Worlds Collide". NoDQ.com. Retrieved September 15, 2025.
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