Easily the most controversial aspect of the Greatest Royal Rumble event in Saudi Arabia was the fact that the show featured absolutely no female competitors whatsoever. All of WWE’s female roster members had to miss the show due to cultural differences instilled in the nation of Saudi Arabia. WWE did air a video package during the event explaining that Saudi Arabia is developing as a nation at the moment with new laws allowing women to drive in the nation, as well visit the movie theaters with the accompaniment of a male. However, given the nation’s strict stance on LGBTQ and women’s rights, several fans are still not satisfied with WWE’s choice to host the event in the Middle East.
Believe it or not, the women of WWE did actually make somewhat of an appearance during the Greatest Royal Rumble event in the form of a brief commercial featuring male and female WWE roster members promoting their upcoming co-branded pay-per-views. Several members of WWE’s women’s division appeared in the advertisement whilst wearing their ring gear. The Saudi General Sports Authority has since released an apology for displaying an “indecent scene involving women” during the Greatest Royal Rumble show in Jeddah this past Friday. A rough translation of the full apology issued by the GSA has been posted online by a Reddit user and can be read here.
WWE’s partnership with Saudi Arabia is not going away any time soon as the Greatest Royal Rumble event proved to be a major success for both sides involved. The partnership, which lasts for ten years, and the company will be coming back to Saudi Arabia later this year. Uncensored Wrestling was able to confirm that Turki Al-Sheikh announced that WWE will be returning to the nation for another huge event in Riyadh in November of this year. There is no word yet on whether or not this is expected to air on the WWE Network at the moment, but that certainly seems like a possibility. Triple H has stated that he is hoping that goals such as allowing women to wrestle are eventually accomplished during WWE’s new partnership with the country
Exclusive:
Turki Al-Sheikh announces another major show for #WWE to be held in November and will be in the capital Of #SaudiArabia #Riyadh#WWEGRR #WWE pic.twitter.com/pAk2LETMEv
— Uncensored Wrestling ???? (@Uncensored_WWE) April 27, 2018