WWE's Saudi Arabia Return Date Confirmed
Here's when WWE plans on heading back to Saudi Arabia next...
WWE currently plans on returning to Saudi Arabia for its next pay-per-view in the Kingdom on 19 February, reports Andrew Zarian of Mat Men.
Notably, this is a Saturday night when Saudi pay-per-views have typically taken place on weeknights. This should, theoretically, ease the travel concerns that typically come with this show. Holding the shows on the traditional Thursday evenings meant the promotion had to rush to get back to the United States for the following night's SmackDown show.
Infamously, 31 October 2019 saw a flight containing over 175 WWE personnel become marooned on the runway at King Fahd International Airport for over six hours, leading to many missing SmackDown the next day. This was following a reported dispute between WWE chief Vince McMahon and Saudi head of state Mohammed Bin Salman.
The reveal of WWE's 2022 pay-per-view schedule featured holes without pre-announced shows in both February and October. These were seemingly placeholders for Saudi Arabian shows. Typically, the promotion will hold Super ShowDown in the Spring, then Crown Jewel in October, though this is yet to be confirmed for 2022.
The latest show to be held as part of WWE's controversial Saudi contract, Crown Jewel 2021, was comfortably the most well-received of these pay-per-views yet, despite valid political and moral concerns.