There was some uncertainty over whether WWE’s Crown Jewel premium live event would even take place this weekend in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, given the conflict in the Middle East.
However, the event is going ahead as planned, albeit with some major adjustments and most of the company’s workers staying home.
According to Mike Johnson of PWInsider, WWE will broadcast the event remotely from the company’s headquarters in Stamford. Additionally, much of the broadcast will also be designed and produced remotely.
The match card for Crown Jewel features only four matches, a smaller card than usual for a premium live event. The headliners are two champion vs. champion matches, with WWE Champion Sami Zayn taking on World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns on the men’s side. On the women’s side, women’s world champion Liv Morgan faces WWE women’s champion Chelsea Green. The other two matches are a tag team championship match between The Vision and the combination of Penta and Je’Von Evans and a Last Man Standing match between Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes.
Of course, the backdrop to the event will be the US-led war in Iran, which has engulfed much of the region and sparked concern around a number of sporting events across the Middle East. Last month, Riyadh’s airport was hit in a deadly attack that killed 13 people and injured hundreds more.
Formula 1 is considering whether or not to continue its end-of-season races in Qatar and Abu Dhabi. The DP World Tour has decided to move forward with its events in the region, but not without ominous warnings to participating players.
WWE wrestlers and staff were infamously stuck in Saudi Arabia after a 2019 event for mysterious reasons. There are very real concerns about any sporting event happening in the area right now, and the fact that so many staff members are staying put shows that WWE is taking this at least a little seriously.
But even despite these security concerns, WWE continues to move forward with Crown Jewel because the Saudi money pipeline and future WrestleMania event are too valuable for them to jeopardize.
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