Tag: john cena retirement tour

John Cena’s final match sets WWE arena gate record to cap off lucrative retirement tour

Posted on by Josh Nason

Image: WWE

New data from live event trade publication Pollstar revealed that John Cena’s final match did more than big business for WWE and was the exclamation point on a lucrative retirement tour.

Reported by Post Wrestling’s Brandon Thurston on Thursday, the December 13 edition of WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event from Washington, D.C.’s Capital One Arena generated $6,553,883 in ticket sales, far surpassing the previous clubhouse leader for non-stadium shows which was the January 2025 WWE Raw on Netflix premiere at Los Angeles’ Intuit Dome ($4,898,365).

17,121 tickets were sold for the December 13 show with an average ticket price of $383, a mark Thurston said was under just WrestleMania prices.

It’s unknown if there was any site fee involved or if Cena himself saw any additional financial compensation for the match being held in Washington, D.C. as opposed to a different locale. The show was put on in concert with Events DC, “the premier host of conventions, entertainment, sporting and cultural events in the nation’s capital.”

Cena famously lost to Gunther in his final match, controversially tapping out to end his run.

Thurston also reported full data on the 20 of 38 appearances Cena had during his 2025 retirement tour, noting those shows drew more than $80 million in ticket sales which doesn’t include Elimination Chamber, Clash in Paris, SummerSlam and Survivor Series of which sales data isn’t currently available for. He also observed the difficulties in separating Cena’s impact on those tallies vs. the WWE brand name itself.

John Cena’s next WWE SmackDown appearance might have added significance

Posted on by Josh Nason

John Cena’s final appearance in Chicago as an active wrestler is scheduled for Friday’s WWE SmackDown and a new report out Thursday implies it will have added significance for the soon-to-be retired star.

Wrestlevotes reported that Cena’s appearance at the Allstate Arena is thought by some within WWE to be his final appearance on the blue brand. If true, it would hold significance as Cena’s first SmackDown appearance and final one would come at the same arena.

That first appearance was a famous one: a challenge of Kurt Angle on June 25, 2002. Angle won in less than six minutes, but the appearance remains one that is referred frequently to when talking about Cena’s past.

The 48-year-old has wrestled 28 times at the venue with the last coming against Elias on the Christmas night edition of Raw in 2017.

Cena has eight dates remaining on his schedule through the end of the calendar year, two of which have yet to be announced:

  • Friday, September 5: WWE SmackDown (Chicago, IL)
  • Monday, September 15: WWE Raw (Springfield, Massachusetts)
  • Saturday, September 20: WWE Wrestlepalooza (Indianapolis, Indiana)
  • Saturday, October 11: WWE Crown Jewel: Perth (Perth, Australia)
  • Saturday, November 29: WWE Survivor Series (San Diego, CA)
  • Saturday, December 13:  WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event (retirement match/final appearance)
  • TBD
  • TBD

John Cena’s final WWE Chicago appearance set

Posted on by Joseph Currier

John Cena is heading to Chicago this September for his final WWE appearance in the city.

WWE announced a slate of new Raw and SmackDown dates today, confirming a couple of stops Cena will be making on his retirement tour. Cena will appear on the September 5 episode of SmackDown at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois and the Monday, September 15 episode of Raw at Mass Mutual Center in Springfield, Massachusetts.

The Rosemont date is being advertised as Cena’s final appearance in Chicago. It’s expected that Cena will be back in Massachusetts this December when his final match takes place in Boston, but details of that have not been confirmed by WWE yet.

“Undisputed WWE Champion John Cena will make his final appearance in Chicago when SmackDown returns to Allstate Arena on Friday, September 5, followed by a return to his home state of Massachusetts when Raw takes place at the Mass Mutual Center in Springfield on Monday, September 15,” WWE wrote.

Whether Cena will still be Undisputed WWE Champion when these shows happen remains to be seen. He has a title defense against Cody Rhodes set for SummerSlam in August.

The full list of new Raw and SmackDown dates is available below. As of now, Cena is only advertised for the Rosemont and Springfield shows. The ticket on-sale date for each event is Friday, July 25 at 10 a.m. local time.

New WWE event dates —

  • September 5: SmackDown at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois (John Cena advertised)
  • September 8: Raw at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
  • September 12: Smackdown at Scope Arena in Norfolk, Virginia
  • September 15: Raw at Mass Mutual Center in Springfield, Massachusetts (John Cena advertised)
  • September 29: Raw at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina
  • October 3: SmackDown at Heritage Bank Center in Cincinnati, Ohio
  • October 6: Raw at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas
  • October 17: SmackDown at SAP Center in San Jose, California
  • October 20: Raw at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California
  • October 24: SmackDown at Mullett Arena in Tempe, Arizona
  • November 24: Raw at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

John Cena reflects on WWE retirement tour at halfway point

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Halfway through his farewell tour, John Cena feels like the reality of his impending retirement has finally set in for fans.

The Undisputed WWE Champion was a guest on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert last night, promoting his new movie “Heads of State.” Cena also reflected on his WWE retirement tour now that we’re entering the second half of 2025.

“It’s been pretty incredible,” the 48-year-old Cena said. “I think we’re getting now to the point where audiences understand that I’m done in December. Professional wrestling and retirement — there’s no realism there, but I will absolutely be done in December. So I think it was kind of a thing where people didn’t understand what was going on. But now that we’re halfway through it, audiences are — it’s a really good live experience because every audience is different. Some of them like me, some of them hate me, but they’re very vocal.”

Cena has fewer than 20 dates remaining on the retirement tour, which is expected to conclude with his final match taking place in Boston this December.

The biggest storyline development of Cena’s farewell run so far has been his heel turn that took place in advance of WrestleMania. Where the story goes next is up to the audience, Cena believes.

“There is no more adaptable form of storytelling than WWE. WWE can change a story as it happens live,” he told Collider. “You’re seeing, so far over the farewell tour dates, the 18 of 36 so far, we’ve made a ton of pivots, a ton of pivots right there in the moment.

“As we get close to the end of this thing, what dictates those pivots is the audience, and I think the audience will begin to feel differently, because now we are truly coming to the end. So, if you ever had a voice to use, if you ever wanted to say something, I hate to steal my own cliche, but the time is now. I look forward to the road ahead because the audience is going to dictate the direction we go. I think it’s a wonderful time to be a fan. I think a lot of different talent are being able to capitalize on all we’re doing, and I applaud the WWE for always being able to think extended but pivot on a dime in a moment, as it happens. I think that’s their strongest suit.”

This weekend, Cena will be in Saudi Arabia for WWE Night of Champions. He’ll be appearing on SmackDown on Friday before defending his Undisputed WWE Championship against CM Punk at Saturday’s PLE.

John Cena set for new WWE SmackDown date

Posted on by Joseph Currier

John Cena has been confirmed for a new WWE SmackDown date on his retirement tour.

The Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey announced this week that Cena will be in the building when SmackDown takes place at the venue on Friday, August 1. That is the SummerSlam go-home edition of the show. SummerSlam is being held at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey over two nights on Saturday, August 2 and Sunday, August 3.

“JUST ANNOUNCED: For the first time in 7 years, @WWE SmackDown returns to Newark the night before SummerSlam with nonstop action as John Cena continues ‘The Last Time is Now’ tour along with the biggest WWE Superstars,” the Prudential Center wrote. “Tickets on sale Fri., June 27 at 10am.”

Before SummerSlam, Cena has an Undisputed WWE Championship defense against CM Punk set for Night of Champions in Saudi Arabia on June 28. The King & Queen of the Ring tournaments will also conclude that night with the King of the Ring winner earning a World title shot at SummerSlam.

The next WWE appearance on Cena’s schedule is happening tonight (June 20) with him facing Ron Killings in a non-title match on SmackDown. Cena has fewer than 20 dates remaining before his retirement tour concludes this December.

WWE announces month for Perth PLE, John Cena’s final match in Australia

Posted on by Josh Nason

While WWE’s return to Perth, Australia, for a premium live event this year was already known, the show now has both a month and its first major star confirmed in John Cena.

Announced during Sunday’s WrestleMania 41, WWE will head to Perth in October with the exact date still to be revealed later this month. The PLE will be sandwiched by SmackDown on Friday and Raw on Monday, all at the RAC Arena with pre-sale signups available now via a QR code in the video below.

Appearing for his final time in the country as an active wrestler will be Cena, possibly in tow with the WWE Championship he competes for in the main event of Sunday’s show.

The show is part of a multi-event deal the local government signed with TKO in February.

WWE last held a PLE in the country in February 2024 with Elimination Chamber from Perth’s outdoor stadium, drawing an announced 52,590. It was their first show in the country since 2018.

CM Punk wants to face John Cena again before Cena’s WWE retirement

Posted on by Joseph Currier

CM Punk is proud of the role that he and John Cena have played in each other’s careers.

Speaking at the post-Money in the Bank press conference on Saturday night, Punk reacted to the news that 2025 will be the final year of Cena’s in-ring career. Punk said he wants to face Cena at least one more time on Cena’s retirement tour.

“Cena, I think to my career means a lot. I don’t think there’s many people up in that rare air where, if you talk about my career, I feel you have to talk about John. And it makes me feel proud that I think if you talk about John’s career, I think you have to talk about me. You know, we’re married in that respect,” Punk said.

“Proud of him. He gets to go out on his terms, I know that’s important. I’m looking forward to what he does. And I told him that, if it’s going to be one more time, we got to do it at least one more time.”

Cena was the opponent for one of the most memorable moments of Punk’s career when Punk won the WWE Championship at Money in the Bank 2011. The two also had a standout match on Raw in February 2013.

Punk said he always viewed the dynamic between him and Cena as being like Superman (Cena) vs. Batman (Punk).

At Money in the Bank, Cena made a surprise appearance and spoke to the crowd about his retirement plans. The retirement tour will last from January through December 2025. Cena said at the post-show press conference that the amount of WWE dates he plans to work during the tour is tentatively hovering “in the mid-30s to 40s.”

Those dates will include Royal Rumble 2025, Elimination Chamber 2025, and WrestleMania 41.

Punk, who has been out of action since January due to a torn triceps, also showed up at Money in the Bank, causing Drew McIntyre to fail in his Money in the Bank cash-in. It’s looking likely that Punk will be cleared to return in time to face McIntyre at SummerSlam next month.

With both at Money in the Bank, Cena and Punk were able to meet up backstage on Saturday.