Below is a list of confirmed entrants for Saturday’s men’s and women’s WWE Royal Rumble matches.
Lists of this kind vary based on what one source may interpret as a declaration, but another may not.
I have chosen to go by the lists officially posted on WWE.com, as well as new declarations from the body of Monday’s WWE Raw.
New declarations from Monday’s Raw for the women’s Royal Rumble are IYO SKY, Ivy Nile, and Women’s Intercontinental Champion Lyra Valkyria.
On the men’s side, Logan Paul, Chad Gable, Penta, and Bron Breakker newly declared for the match.
Using WWE.com and tonight’s Raw as a guide, the women’s Royal Rumble entrant list:
Bayley
Nia Jax
Charlotte Flair
Bianca Belair
Naomi
Liv Morgan
IYO SKY
Ivy Nile
Lyra Valkyria
The men’s Royal Rumble entrant list:
John Cena
Roman Reigns
CM Punk
Seth Rollins
Jey Uso
Drew McIntyre
Sami Zayn
Rey Mysterio
Shinsuke Nakamura
Logan Paul
Chad Gable
Penta
Bron Breakker
The card for WWE Royal Rumble streaming live on Saturday, February 1 beginning at 6 p.m. Eastern time:
Men’s Royal Rumble match
Women’s Royal Rumble match
Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes defends against Kevin Owens in a ladder match
WWE Tag Team Champions DIY (Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa) defend against Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin) in a two-out-of-three-falls match
At the start of Friday’s SmackDown in San Diego, Mysterio kicked off the show in his hometown where he announced that he was entering the Rumble match. After bringing up his own Royal Rumble win back in 2006, Kevin Owens came out and said he’ll root for Mysterio to win the Royal Rumble match as long as he chooses to face him at WrestleMania. After Mysterio reminded Owens he wasn’t actually champion, Owens yelled at Mysterio who tried to calm him down, saying he was delusional just like his son Dominik. The two got into a brawl that Mysterio got the better of.
Later in the show, the two faced off in a match. Owens earned the victory and after the bout extended his hand to Mysterio, who obliged. However Owens jumped Mysterio and went for the package piledriver when Cody Rhodes came out for the save.
Two new entrants have declared for the men’s WWE Royal Rumble match, plus CM Punk has been confirmed for the bout.
Drew McIntyre, Seth Rollins, and CM Punk officially declared for the 2025 Royal Rumble in a promo segment on Monday’s WWE Raw. Punk initially declared for the match in a post-show promo last week, but Monday’s segment confirmed his participation.
Rollins and McIntyre are both new declarations for the Saturday, February 1 event set for Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
Five entrants have officially announced for the men’s Royal Rumble match, with no participants confirmed for the women’s Royal Rumble to this point. Nia Jax insinuated in a promo on Monday that she would enter the women’s Rumble, but WWE has not officially announced that.
The updated lineup for the Royal Rumble, including an updated list of entrants:
WWE Royal Rumble, Saturday, February 1 —
Men’s Royal Rumble match: John Cena, Roman Reigns, CM Punk, Seth Rollins, Drew McIntyre
Women’s Royal Rumble match: TBA
Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes defends against Kevin Owens in a ladder match
CM Punk will take part in the 2025 men’s Royal Rumble match.
Punk declared for the 2025 Royal Rumble in a post-match promo following his victory over Seth Rollins on Monday’s WWE Raw premiere on Netflix.
On the post-show streaming on WWE and Netflix digital channels, Punk was interviewed by Jackie Redmond and sated his intention to enter and win the Royal Rumble, calling out Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes, and World Heavyweight Champion Gunther by name:
“46 [Punk’s age] is just a number. 1 through 30, just numbers. Royal Rumble, you’re next on the list. Gunther, I’m coming for you. Cody, I’m coming for you. I’m Mr. October. I’m Game 7. I am clutch. I am the best in the world.”
John Cena’s retirement tour will roll through Indianapolis, Indiana, next month as the WWE star officially declared for this year’s Royal Rumble match during Monday’s Raw debut on Netflix.
During an in-ring promo, Cena said this would be his final stop in Los Angeles — a city that meant a lot to him during his long career — and then said he was originally planning on just making an appearance at the Rumble. He said he wants to snap his long losing streak and couldn’t just go into the main event at WrestleMania with that over his head.
Cena then said he could win the Elimination Chamber or Money in the Bank, but maybe he could do more than just appear at the Rumble — he could win it. He eventually declared for the Rumble match where a win would give him the title match he wants at WrestleMania.
The 47-year-old last competed in a Rumble match back in 2018. He’s won the match twice (2008, 2013).
This year’s Rumble emanates from Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Saturday, February 1st.
For the first time since the very first edition, the WWE Royal Rumble will be held on international soil as the company officially announced the 2026 premium live event will emanate from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The event will take place in January 2026 as part of the country’s Riyadh Season celebration. It will be the first-ever Rumble held outside North America and the first outside the United States since the inaugural one in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, in 1988.
No official date or start time was announced.
لأول مرة في السعودية …حدث رويال رامبل الأسطوري قادم إلى #موسم_الرياض في يناير 2026 .. ليلة تاريخية لعشاق WWE 🇸🇦🔥
For the first time in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the legendary Royal Rumble is coming to #RiyadhSeason on January 2026 A historic night for WWE fans 🇸🇦🔥… pic.twitter.com/5Oy3BmxYBq
It’s the latest development in a growing, and sometimes contoversial, relationship between WWE, their parent company TKO, and the Saudis which began in 2018 with two annual events with the exception of 2020 and 2021 (one each). In addition to exclusive shows like the Greatest Royal Rumble, Crown Jewel and 2024’s King & Queen of the Ring, PLEs like Elimination Chamber (2022) and Night of Champions (2023) have also been held there.
Based on previous SEC reports, WWE is believed to take in $50 million per show as part of the deal. Based on the verbiage of the press release, it’s assumed the Royal Rumble will be held in addition to the other bi-annual shows. There has been no reporting as to what WWE/TKO will generate for this deal.
Kevin Owens will get his Undisputed WWE Championship rematch at the Royal Rumble.
In the closing segment of Friday’s SmackDown, Owens and WWE Champion Cody Rhodes successfully lobbied Nick Aldis for a ladder match at Royal Rumble with the title belts of both competitors suspended above the ring.
Owens scored a visual pinfall over Rhodes at Saturday Night’s Main Event earlier this month after a referee bump took the primary official out of the match. On SmackDown, Owens was adamant that he wanted his title rematch in a scenario where the referee was not involved in counting the finish, with Rhodes suggesting the ladder match stipulation. Owens has been carrying around the “Winged Eagle” title belt used at Saturday Night’s Main Event since the show, claiming to be the real WWE Champion.
A men’s Royal Rumble match and women’s Rumble are the only other bouts certain for the 2025 Royal Rumble set for Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana on Saturday, February 1.
WWE Royal Rumble, Saturday, February 1 —
Men’s Royal Rumble match
Women’s Royal Rumble match
Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes defends against Kevin Owens in a ladder match
After a lengthy wait and a fight from both the San Antonio government and WWE, the amount of cash and incentives WWE received for bringing the Royal Rumble to Texas in 2023 has been revealed.
Wrestlenomics’ Brandon Thurston reported that WWE received a financial package of $546,710.74 ($250,000 in cash) for the January mainstay at the Alamodome. The non-cash portion covered other event-related expenses with the full amount submitted to the Texas Governor’s Office for reimbursement.
The amount is in line with what WWE received from Tampa/St. Petersburg, Florida, tourist organizations for this past January’s Royal Rumble and a fraction of what they have been reportedly receiving in financial packages for WrestleManias and even 2022’s Clash at the Castle in Cardiff, Wales.
Thurston had to fight for the information via the Freedom of Information Act, noting, “The agreement’s release has been the subject of multiple reviews from the Texas Attorney General, with both WWE and the San Antonio government claiming the contract constituted a trade secret.”
Since February, WWE has had an ongoing lawsuit against the Attorney General’s office with the subject of whether the contract should be published as the primary issue. This, as Thurston noted, is still active despite the said publishing of the contract which is available in full on his website.
Some of the specific financials include WWE providing the city with 15% of “novelties” which Thurston believes is venue merchandise sales in addition to small cuts of per-ticket sales to help offset transit and maintenance costs.
The event drew a $7.3 million gate from 44,569 tickets sold, revealed in a previous Thurston report.
WWE is close to announcing a multi-year deal that would bring three of its signature events to Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, according to a report.
WrestleVotes reports that WWE and the Indiana Sports Corp are close to an agreement that would bring a future WrestleMania, a future SummerSlam, and the 2025 Royal Rumble to Indiana as part of a multi-year agreement. From WrestleVotes:
“WrestleVotes Exclusive: I’m told WWE & the Indiana Sports Corp are nearing a multi-event deal, starting with the 2025 Royal Rumble at Lucas Oil Stadium on Saturday, February 1st, 2025. In addition, the deal is likely to include a future WrestleMania & SummerSlam, which would both take place at Lucas Oil Stadium.“
WWE has already announced Las Vegas as the host city for WrestleMania in 2025, with Minneapolis set to host the first two-night SummerSlam next year.
Indianapolis last hosted WrestleMania 8 in 1992, and hosted SummerSlam in 2008. The state has never hosted a Royal Rumble event.
Lucas Oil Stadium is the home of the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts since opening in 2008. The venue has hosted the NCAA Final Four, a Super Bowl, and a College Football Playoff National Championship game in the past.
The WWE’s official Road to Wrestlemania season started with a lot of momentum, as the Undertaker and Shawn Michaels’ climax of the Royal Rumble was as hot as any Rumble finish in history.
There were few real surprises on the Rumble, held 1/28 in San Antonio at the AT&T Center, before a legitimate sellout crowd announced as 16,118 fans (about 13,500 paid and about 15,000 total). Going in, the candidates to win the Rumble were really only four people, Edge, Randy Orton, Undertaker and Shawn Michaels, and they were the final four left in the ring. And all three champions figured to retain their titles.
It was already obvious Batista vs. Undertaker would main event at Mania with the World title vs. the Wrestlemania streak. As noted here before, when the idea for this was first broached in the fall, the plan at that time was for Batista to go over. Since that time, Undertaker has gained a tremendous amount of steam. Batista, while generally performing subpar to poorly, and this show was not an exception, hasn’t really lost steam, but he’s not hot either.
Milwaukee is hoping to bring a future WWE Royal Rumble event to the city.
CBS 58 reported this week that Milwaukee leaders have been in talks with WWE and are pitching them about bringing a future Royal Rumble to American Family Field, the home of Major League Baseball’s Milwaukee Brewers.
The earliest that the Royal Rumble could take place in Milwaukee is 2026, when scheduled renovations that would allow American Family Field to be used in the winter would be completed. The Royal Rumble is held in late January every year.
American Family Field has a retractable roof. The winterization project will allow the venue to maintain a 70-degree temperature year-round.
“A source, who asked not to be identified because they did not want to share too much about the conversations, said city and state representatives met with WWE officials in Philadelphia last weekend during the company’s biggest annual event, WrestleMania,” the report said. “While WrestleMania is probably out of Milwaukee’s reach, city and state officials hoped to attract WWE’s next-biggest draw on the calendar.”
The most recent WWE PPV/PLE to be held in Milwaukee was Fastlane 2017.
Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida hosted this year’s Royal Rumble.
WWE real-life couple Tiffany Stratton and Ludwig Kaiser both attended the premiere of Bianca Belair and Montez Ford’s Love & WWE Hulu reality TV show just a day after making their respective debuts in the women’s and men’s Royal Rumble matches.
Stratton, the former NXT Women’s Champion, has been officially called up and added to the SmackDown roster as of Friday. She entered the Rumble at no. 29 and lasted just under seven minutes, eliminating Roxanne Perez.
“It was a crazy day as you can tell by my voice, It’s gone, but I was so nervous all day. When I went out there, all the nerves went away and I just did what I knew and it was amazing. It was everything that I could ask for,” she said.
In the men’s Rumble, Kaiser entered at number 12 and made history as the first-ever German to compete in that match.
“Obviously, (it was) a great experience, especially an event like the prestigious Royal Rumble. Looking back at the history of it, how many great legends have all participated throughout history…for myself yesterday, I actually got to write some history. I was the very first German ever in the Royal Rumble which is an amazing privilege and honor to me and 2024 has really started off great for me. We’re both determined to make this our year,” he said.
You can watch our brief interview above on YouTube.
Last Saturday’s WWE women’s Royal Rumble match featured a lot of surprises including the return of Naomi, TNA Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace making her surprise debut, and the official WWE in-ring debut of Jade Cargill.
The inaugural AEW TBS Champion entered at number 28, lasting a total of eleven minutes and three seconds and finding herself in the final three participants. Her notable moments in the Rumble included eliminating Nia Jax, Naomi and Becky Lynch (with help from Naomi).
Following the Rumble, Cargill attended the premiere of Bianca Belair and Montez Ford’s new Hulu reality TV show “Love & WWE,” walking the red carpet alongside her husband former and former MLB player Brandon Phillips.
I caught up with Cargill during that event which you can watch above on YouTube. Here’s some highlights.
Making her WWE in-ring debut
Last September, WWE officially announced that Cargill had signed a multi-year deal. She began making backstage appearances on multiple shows including WWE Fastlane, Raw, SmackDown and even NXT — all while not making her actual in-ring debut.
Then, the Rumble moment happened.
“…I was just ecstatic. The locker room showed me nothing but love. I was a little nervous, but once I heard the sound of the WWE Universe, I felt like I was undeniable.”
As mentioned above, Cargill eliminated Jax in another big moment for her — one she said was “something big” for the division.
“I think Nia Jax is one of the strongest women in the locker room. So for me to just go out there and dominate her and eliminate her, I felt like I was doing something big for the women’s division.”
During the many TV appearances Cargill made when she first joined WWE, she had confrontations with Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair. However, we had not see her meet eye-to-eye with Bianca Belair until the Royal Rumble when both women found themselves across the ring from each other — a tease for something bigger down the road.
“We’re gonna see what happens. I think I would rather work with the great Bianca Belair. I think she’s phenomenal, I think she is great a representation for the African American community and we’re gonna make magic whether we work against each other or together. We’re gonna make magic.”
It is still not known which brand Cargill will officially be part of even though she appeared on Friday’s SmackDown and met with Nick Aldis.
Prior to signing with WWE, Cargill was in AEW from 2020 through the fall of 2023.
During her run there, she became the inaugural and longest running AEW TBS Champion with an epic winning streak, one that lasted 508 days.
“I felt like I would have never gotten a better start other than AEW. That’s me being very honest. I think the veterans in the locker room prepared me for the grander stage at WWE. I got a great experience there, being thrown in the water and being able to swim and survive prepared me for the big stage that WWE has. The locker room, the phenomenal staff that WWE has, I mean they have a front office like no other, I am just excited to be here.”
On tap for a new edition of Wrestling Weekly, Les Thatcher and I talk the latest news and developments in the lawsuit against Vince McMahon plus a look at the first steps along the road to this year’s WWE WrestleMania.
Jordynne Grace did everything she could to keep news of her WWE Royal Rumble appearance from leaking.
The current TNA Knockouts Champion entered the women’s Rumble match on Saturday in the number five position. She lasted nearly 20 minutes before being eliminated by Bianca Belair.
Grace recently told Fightful that when she first received a call from Scott D’Amore about being in the Rumble, she didn’t think it was real.
Grace said:
Honestly, when he said it, I was like, ‘Well, maybe this is just an idea that they have and it’s not for real. Maybe they are just like testing the waters a little bit.’
Honestly, I did not think it was going to happen until I got my actual flight to Orlando to go to the PC. That was when everything started to feel real.
Grace had a medical evaluation done on the Monday before the Rumble. She then flew out to Orlando that Thursday to take part in rehearsals at the WWE Performance Center before driving to Tampa the following day.
In order to prevent the news of her Rumble appearance from getting out sooner, Grace says she avoided telling anyone other than her husband, Jonathan Gresham. Her former co-workers in Impact, Chelsea Green and Naomi, were not given a heads up. Evidently, Green was not happy about this.
Grace continued:
I saw Chelsea Green, who was really mad that I didn’t tell her. She came up and she hit me. She was like, ‘someone just texted me and said that you’re here and I didn’t believe him but here you are.’ And she was really upset that I didn’t tell her but I was like, ‘Come on, it’s better that I’m here as a surprise.’
I also didn’t tell Trinity, which was the funniest thing. All week, I’m texting her and I’m like, ‘Yeah, I’m really excited to see you in the Rumble blah blah blah’ but what she didn’t know was I was going to be standing across the ring seeing her.
Grace also stayed in a hotel separate from the other wrestlers during Royal Rumble weekend.
After news of her being in the Rumble was reported on Saturday, Grace posted a video of her at home on X to convince fans the rumors weren’t true. She told Steve Fall recently that she filmed the video ahead of time in case news of her being in the Rumble got out.
Grace said:
I did take those videos beforehand, before I left my house because I was like, ‘Oh, just in case it does, I’ll put this out to have some fun and put them off the trail a little bit.’
The crowd in Tampa gave Grace a nice reaction when she entered the Rumble match on Saturday. She says she could hear the “TNA” chants as her and Naomi shared a moment in the ring together, something she was not expecting.
Grace said:
I’m still besides myself that it all happened. Honestly, I had low expectations because I don’t know that that many people know me. I don’t know the crossover of TNA and WWE fans. So, I was just like I’ll go out and if there’s no reaction that’s okay, just get in the ring and make sure there’s a reaction afterwards. Make sure that if they don’t know you now, they are going to know you later.
Grace also spoke to our own Denise Salcedo following the Rumble. Denise asked her what was going through her head before she made her entrance and Grace gave a blunt response.
Grace said:
Don’t f**k anything up. To be realistic, that was the main thing. You know what’s funny is one of the things I was most worried about was the entrance because, obviously, that’s the first time that people are going to see me just on WWE in general. So, I wanted to look good. And actually, I did f**k it up. I went out and I didn’t even do my pose when I went out. I was so overwhelmed I just stood there and I was smiling and I looked around and was like, ‘Alright, let me just get to the ring now.’ So, I did fuck it up but I didn’t mess up anything in the ring, thank god, so that’s all I can ask for.
Grace defeated Trinity/Naomi to win the Knockouts title at Hard to Kill earlier this month. She then successfully defended the title against Trinity the following day at the Snake Eyes TV taping. Grace and Trinity then teamed together in a match taped in Orlando the following week against Gisele Shaw and Savannah Evans. TNA has yet to announce when the match will air.
