Longest Running Triple H Fansite
Since 2006
Showing posts with label WWE Crown Jewel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label WWE Crown Jewel. Show all posts

November 8, 2022

WWE Internal Memo Touts Crown Jewel 2022 As Most-Viewed International PLE In WWE History

Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select reports that WWE sent out an internal memo to company executives in which it stated that Crown Jewel surpassed Clash at the Castle to become WWE’s most viewed international Premium Live Event of all time.

Per Sapp, the top five most-viewed events WWE has held in Saudi Arabia are as follows:


1) Crown Jewel 2022

2) Greatest Royal Rumble 2018

3) Elimination Chamber 2021

4) Crown Jewel 2021

5) Super ShowDown 2019


WWE also highlighted Crown Jewel’s seven-figure viewership number on Peacock in the United States.

October 22, 2021

WWE Female Referee Makes History At Crown Jewel

WWE referee Jessika Carr made history at today’s WWE Crown Jewel event from Mohammed Abdu Arena on The Boulevard in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Carr worked two matches on the Crown Jewel card – the Hell In a Cell opener between Seth Rollins and the winner, WWE Hall of Famer Edge, plus the King of the Ring Tournament finals between Finn Balor and King Xavier Woods.

With the matches, Carr became the first female referee to call a WWE match in the Kingdom.

Carr tweeted about the opportunity:

“I am so blown away at the opportunity that I was blessed with tonight. Thank you #CrownJewel I’ll absolutely share more of this in the days to come,” Carr wrote.

Carr was covered up in her referee gear, due to local religious laws, as were the female Superstars competing on the show

After a brief stint on the indies as a wrestler, WWE signed Carr to a deal in 2017, to work as the first female WWE referee since the 1980s. The first full-time female WWE referee in history came to the main roster from WWE NXT in December 2019.

October 21, 2021

Zelina Vega wins first ever Queen’s Crown tournament at WWE Crown Jewel 2021

Crown Jewel delivers everything but the answer to WWE’s biggest question

August 22, 2021

WWE Announces History-Making Return To Saudi Arabia

WWE has confirmed that they will return to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for Crown Jewel 2021 in October.

WWE aired a promo for Crown Jewel during tonight’s WWE SummerSlam pay-per-view, confirming their return to Saudi Arabia for October. You can see the promo below, which features male and female Superstars.

WWE noted that they are “set to make history in its legendary return to Saudi Arabia” this October. It’s believed that the event will be held in the Saudi capital of Riyadh.

No actual date was given past the month of October, but it was previously reported that the event will take place on Thursday, October 21. WWE has not confirmed that date as of this writing.

It was also reported before that WWE will hold the King of the Ring tournament finals at Crown Jewel, along with the finals of the first-ever Queen of the Ring all-women’s tournament. WWE has not officially announced those tournaments as of this writing. It’s believed that the tournaments will begin on the October 8 SmackDown and the October 11 RAW, but those dates have also not been confirmed.

WWE has not ran the Kingdom since the Super ShowDown 2020 event was held in February 2020 at the Mohammed Abdu Arena in Riyadh. WWE and the Saudi General Sports Authority announced in 2018 that they were entering into a 10-year strategic multi-platform partnership to support the Saudi Vision 2030 initiative, which is the Kingdom’s social and economic reform program. The deal called for two events to be held per year, but the COVID-19 pandemic forced delays in 2020 and 2021. WWE visited Saudi Arabia for Greatest Royal Rumble and Crown Jewel in 2018, Super ShowDown and Crown Jewel in 2019, and Super ShowDown in 2020.

June 17, 2020

WWE Lawyer Responds To Former Wrestler's "Crown Jewel" Allegations In Lawsuit

A former WWE Superstar is now a witness in an amended class action complaint against WWE, filed by Firefighters Pension System of the City of Kansas City Missouri Trust, which includes dealings with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Allegations from the still-anonymous former WWE talent matches several claims that had made been made about the Saudi travel debacle that several WWE employees dealt with in November 2019. The wrestler recalled an alleged "hostage situation" where the crew was stranded in the Kingdom. The lawsuit stated that the wrestler worked for the company from 2012 to April of 2020 and participated in the Crown Jewel event last October.

Longtime WWE attorney Jerry McDevitt of the K&L Gates law firm issued a statement to Alfred Konuwa of Forbes today, denying the allegations.

McDevitt noted that three different firms had been on the suits, but the first two dropped their lawsuits to avoid sanction motions. The third firm continued with their suit and that's where the anonymous wrestler was cited.

McDevitt referred to the wrestler as "disgruntled" and said they have no knowledge of the facts. He added that WWE is preparing their response to the lawsuit and will be moving to have it dismissed.

You can see McDevitt's full statement below:

"These false allegations were originally made in two suits filed by two different law firms. After the Court appointed a third firm to be lead counsel, WWE provided all three law firms with specific detailed facts from the persons with actual knowledge of the situation, including the phony allegation about the plane. The first two law firms then dropped their lawsuits to avoid sanction motions, but the third firm chose to ignore the specific facts they had been provided, and instead cited an unnamed disgruntled former wrestler with no knowledge of the facts. WWE is preparing its response to the lawsuit and will be moving to have it dismissed."

June 15, 2020

Multiple Lawsuits Filed Against WWE Regarding Saudi Arabia Deal; Former Talent Supports Original Crown Jewel Flight Reports

Dave Meltzer is reporting on his post WWE Backlash edition of Wrestling Observer Radio that well over a dozen class action lawsuits in the the same vein have been filed by people who have stock in WWE for allegedly misrepresenting to investors the nature of the situation with Saudi Arabia, the television deal being the primary bone of contention.

According to Meltzer, the key to the lawsuits is that the filers have two secret witnesses, one of which happens to be wrestler and another is an employee from the Middle East Broadcasting Center (MBC) which is the station that was negotiating with WWE for the new TV deal.

The lawsuit filed states that the parties could not agree on basic assumptions of a proposed deal. The MBC witness recalled that “WWE had wildly unreasonable expectations of the revenue expected from a potential broadcast partner. It proposed an $80 million licensing fee and a projection of a 100 million plus over-the-top subscribers which were based on the large number of OSN subscribers who also watched WWE.” (It should be noted that subscribers in this case don’t mean WWE Network, but television subscribers for people in the Middle East who watch WWE)

April 28, 2020

WWE Hit With Multiple Lawsuits On Behalf Of Shareholders, Top WWE Officials Named

WWE and top company officials have been hit with multiple lawsuits on behalf of shareholders.

The class actions mention WWE's recent history with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and make several accusations against top executives in the company, who are named.

The Gross Law Firm recently filed a lawsuit on behalf of shareholders, accusing the company of making "materially false and/or misleading statements and/or failing to disclose" that they perpetrated a fraudulent scheme. The suit noted that investors would've been affected between February 7, 2019 and February 5, 2020. Full details on the suit are here. The press release on the class action reads like this:

"A class action has commenced on behalf of certain shareholders in World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. The filed complaint alleges that defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: Defendants perpetrated a fraudulent scheme which: (i) deceived the investing public regarding WWE's business and prospects; (ii) artificially inflated the price of WWE Class A common stock; (iii) permitted certain senior executives of WWE to sell more than $282 million worth of their personally held shares at fraud inflated prices; and (iv) caused the public to purchase WWE Class A common stock at artificially inflated prices."

November 4, 2019

WWE and The Saudi General Entertainment Authority Expand Event Partnership

STAMFORD, CONN. and RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA, November 4, 2019 – Following the historic Crown Jewel event in Riyadh, WWE (NYSE: WWE) and the Saudi General Entertainment Authority (GEA) have expanded their live event partnership through 2027 to include a second annual large-scale event.  WWE and GEA also continue to work towards the completion of a media agreement in the MENA region. This long-term partnership demonstrates WWE and GEA’s commitment to bring sports entertainment to the region and supports Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030.

September 23, 2019

Shawn Michaels On What Drew Him Out Of Retirement for WWE Crown Jewel

After years of being committed to his decision of not returning to the ring, Shawn Michaels finally came back for one final match at the Crown Jewel event last year.

During a recent interview with State Of Combat Podcast, the former World Champion talked about a number of things and he also revealed the most important reason he chose to do that match.

The Heart Break Kid said that the most important thing about his return was being out there with his best friend Triple H, and it’s the biggest reason he agreed to the match:

“The most important thing to me was being in there with Hunter, more than any reason at all, that is why I did it. As silly as it sounds, I am so fortunate to have the last ride with your best friend in the sunset, which is what I wanted to do with him.”

According to Michaels, he was pretty certain about this but he has always been a bit concerned about saying it out loud in fear that it was the one time he can’t.

Shawn Michaels retired from active competition after he put his career on the line against the Undertaker at WrestleMania XXVI and lost the bout.

He returned to the ring for one more match at the Crown Jewel event on November 2018. He teamed up with Triple H to face the Brothers of Destruction at the show and the duo was able to defeat Undertaker and Kane in this bout.

Quotes via WrestlingInc

November 2, 2018

Triple H Set To Undergo Surgery After Suffering Injury At WWE Crown Jewel

WWE has announced that Triple H suffered a possible torn pectoral muscle at WWE Crown Jewel in the main event.

The Game teamed with WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels as DX to defeat The Brothers of Destruction, Kane and The Undertaker. The finish saw Triple H pin Kane to win.

WWE noted that Triple H is headed back to the United States from Saudi Arabia to undergo surgery. There's no word yet on if he will be re-joining the crew for the upcoming international tour but we will keep you updated.

WWE did not say when the injury occurred but it was noted on commentary that a ringside doctor was checking on Triple H after Kane chokeslammed him through the announce table towards the end of the match.

Below is WWE's announcement on the injury:

Triple H suffers possible torn pectoral muscle

During the epic showdown between D-Generation X and The Brothers of Destruction at WWE Crown Jewel, Triple H sustained what appears to be a torn pectoral muscle, WWE.com has learned.

As a result, The Game plans to return to the United States this week to undergo surgical repair.

October 31, 2018

WWE Adds Hulk Hogan To Friday's WWE Crown Jewel Event

WWE is quietly advertising Hulk Hogan for Friday's WWE Crown Jewel event in Saudi Arabia.

On Wednesday, the company added Hulk Hogan to the list of scheduled Superstars set to appear on their official website and mobile app.

Hogan himself has also been telling friends and media that he will be heading to Saudi Arabia with the company, which means if he appears on Friday, it will be the first time appearing on a WWE show since 2015.

October 30, 2018

Triple H To Host WWE Facebook Watch Party

Triple H will be hosting a Facebook Watch Party on Facebook at 4pm ET on Thursday. The Game relive classic DX moments as he and WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels prepare to face Kane and The Undertaker at Crown Jewel the next day.

Linda McMahon Asked About WWE Crown Jewel In Saudi Arabia, If She Talks WWE With President Trump

Former WWE COO Linda McMahon recently spoke with TMZ Sports and said she's not responsible for WWE business when asked about the decision to move forward with Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia, despite the recent state-sponsored killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

"If you want to talk WWE, you're talking to the wrong McMahon," Linda said.

TMZ pointed out how WWE is essentially a family-run business but Linda referred them to husband Vince McMahon.

"I don't run it and I'm not responsible for it," Linda said. "You gotta talk to Vince."

Linda, who now works as the Administrator of the Small Business Administration, was also asked if she ever talks WWE with her new boss, President Trump, considering he's in the WWE Hall of Fame.

She said, "I talked to the President last about my trip going down to Panama City, which is where we're going to see what relief we can get for the folks down there."

Renee Young Cleared To Join Announce Team At Crown Jewel

Renee Young will be traveling to Saudi Arabia to don the headset behind the Raw commentary desk during Crown Jewel. It's being said WWE has been pushing in this direction since September. At this point, it is unknown if Young will have restriction in her role given the country's policies against women.

October 28, 2018

WWE Crown Jewel Reportedly Sold Out

Earlier today, tickets went on sale for WWECrown Jewel on November 2 at the King Saud University Stadium in Saudi Arabia.

According to the Chairman of the General Sport Authority, the show has sold out. On Twitter he wrote, "In less than three hours, WWE tickets were sold in full."

In April, WWE Greatest Royal Rumble was held at King Abdullah Intentional Stadium and had an attendance of around 60,000 fans. The venue for Crown Jewel holds about 25,000 seats.

Earlier this week, WWE confirmed Crown Jewel would indeed take place from Saudi Arabia by releasing the following statement during their's Q3 Earnings results.

"WWE has operated in the Middle East for nearly 20 years and has developed a sizable and dedicated fan base. Considering the heinous crime committed at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, the Company faced a very difficult decision as it relates to its event scheduled for November 2 in Riyadh. Similar to other U.S.-based companies who plan to continue operations in Saudi Arabia, the Company has decided to uphold its contractual obligations to the General Sports Authority and stage the event. Full year 2018 guidance is predicated on the staging of the Riyadh event as scheduled."

October 26, 2018

Vince McMahon Asked During Earnings Call About WWE Continuing With Crown Jewel

WWE Chairman Vince McMahon was quiet on WWE's working relationship with Saudi Arabia and the upcoming Crown Jewel event during today's third quarter earnings call from WWE HQ in Stamford, CT.

Vince noted in his opening statement that the company is looking forward to Evolution and Crown Jewel this weekend, but he did not name Saudi Arabia. WWE Co-President George Barrios later mentioned in his opening statement how it was a difficult decision to continue with Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia.

The Q&A with investors opened up with a caller asking Vince about the Kingdom being a key market for WWE now. The caller also wanted to know Vince's thought process when deciding to keep Crown Jewel in the Kingdom. Vince responded by saying they were not going to talk a lot about that today. He added that it's naturally a very sensitive subject these days, and their statement in this morning's press release says all they want to say about the situation, for today at least.

Another investor later asked if WWE would hold more events in Saudi Arabia next year. Barrios answered and said they will know more about those plans in the next quarter when they have the plan for that year locked in. Another investor asked about potential outside risks WWE can't control when doing business with Saudi Arabia, such as government economic sanctions. Barrios turned the question down, citing the complexity of the situation and said everything they will say on the topic was in the statement from this morning.

WWE has faced growing criticism over their relationship with the Kingdom due to the disappearance and murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. WWE confirmed in today's Q3 earnings report that the event will go on as scheduled. Crown Jewel will take place on Friday, November 2 in the Saudi capital of Riyadh. For those who missed it, below is their statement:

"WWE has operated in the Middle East for nearly 20 years and has developed a sizable and dedicated fan base. Considering the heinous crime committed at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, the Company faced a very difficult decision as it relates to its event scheduled for November 2 in Riyadh. Similar to other U.S.-based companies who plan to continue operations in Saudi Arabia, the Company has decided to uphold its contractual obligations to the General Sports Authority and stage the event. Full year 2018 guidance is predicated on the staging of the Riyadh event as scheduled."

October 16, 2018

WWE Responds To Reported Dissent Among Talent Roster Over Crown Jewel

Earlier today Sports Illustrated's Justin Barrasso posted an article titled WWE Talent Is Uncomfortable With Saudi Arabia Show—And They Should Be. In his piece Barrasso made his case for why, considering the current political climate, WWE should pull out of their planned Crown Jewel event in Saudi Arabia. Included in his editorial was insight from anonymous sources on the talent roster that have, "expressed discomfort with the idea of performing in Saudi Arabia."

Wrestling Inc reached out to WWE in regards to the rumored discomfort amongst some talents. WWE responded with the following, "As always, we maintain an open line of communication with our performers, as we continue to monitor the situation."

October 15, 2018

Update On WWE Holding Crown Jewel Event In Saudi Arabia

CNN is reporting on Twitter that Saudi Arabia is preparing to acknowledge the death of the reporter Jamal Khashoggi after previously denying it. As of this writing, WWE is still preparing to hold the Crown Jewel event.

The report which was leaked is said to be still in its 'preliminary stages', and it will say the interrogation 'was carried out without clearance and transparency and that those involved will be held responsible'.

As previously reported, the WWE Crown Jewel pay-per-view is still scheduled to take place on November 2nd, 2018 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia at the King Saud University Stadium and will air on the WWE Network.

WWE has been 'monitoring the situation' but will reportedly not cancel the event unless they are forced to do so by State Department or President Donald Trump.

The company has halted all references to Saudi on the social media and website, but it will be interesting to see how they address the situation on tonight's Raw which is in Philadelphia.

October 12, 2018

Senators Urge WWE To Hold Off Crown Jewel Event In Saudi Arabia

As a part of Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman's Saudi Vision 2030 plan, WWE agreed to hold multiple events in Saudi Arabia, including the upcoming WWE Crown Jewelevent on November 2. An event that is going to bring Shawn Michaels out of retirement, to team up with Triple H against The Undertakerand Kane. Events that have unfolded over the past week have now thrown those plans into jeopardy.

On October 2, Washington Post journalist and Saudi national Jamal Khashoggi disappeared from the Saudi consulate in Turkey. Intelligencereports have since indicated that Khashoggi was killed, in what was possibly a state-ordered kidnapping gone wrong. With Jamal being a United States resident, the incident has resulted in the Democrats and Republicans calling for investigation into the alleged murder, while the President of the United States himself has alluded to the possibility of the Saudi government being involved in Jamal's reported assassination.

Now, multiple Senators are questioning if WWE should still hold the upcoming November show in light of recent events. "I'd hope that they would be rethinking their relationship with the kingdom, especially with respect to events coming up in the next weeks like [WWE Crown Jewel]." Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) told IJR.com.

Sen. Lindsey Graham responded, "there should be a pause," when asked by IJR about WWE working with the kingdom.

Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) pointed to the connection Linda McMahon has in the president's cabinet (Small Business Administrator) and felt President Donald Trumpshould possibly ask WWE to hold off on Crown Jewel.

"Private enterprise is private enterprise, different than a governmental entity," Menendez said. "But because [Linda McMahon] is part of the president's cabinet, it falls into the grey area where the administration really should give it some thought and maybe even prevail upon them not doing it."

 photo i_zps0ebed5ab.jpg
Oderint Dum Metuant: Let Them Hate As Long As They Fear