John Cena will compete in his final ever Royal Rumble this weekend as he continues his emotional WWE farewell tour.
The joint-record 16-time world champion is widely regarded as one of the greatest of all time and the face of wrestling’s modern era.
Having taken the mantle from The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin in the new millennium, Cena was WWE‘s biggest star of the 2000s.
However, since 2018, the 47-year-old has transitioned to wrestling part-time as his acting career in Hollywood has taken off.
Last July, Cena confirmed that his final in-ring competition will be in 2025 as part of a farewell tour, which includes the Royal Rumble.
When is John Cena’s last match?
Cena has confirmed his final WWE match will be in December 2025.
In an interview with Collider, the future Hall of Famer revealed that his retirement tour would be approximately 36 dates.
Cena has already reserved the current calendar year to fulfil WWE obligations, with his acting on temporary hiatus until it’s over.
The former WWE champion said: “I can probably confirm that Peacemaker will take us to the end of 2024, and I can say that with the utmost conviction because I have given the calendar year 2025 to WWE. I am retiring in 2025, and I start that farewell tour in January.
“I’ll end it in December, and it’s going to be right around 36 dates around the world to pay thanks and gratitude to the WWE audiences around the world. So that’s what I’m doing in 2025.”
Cena kicked off his ‘farewell tour’ with an appearance at the Raw Netflix premiere earlier this month, and will be at the Rumble.
He has already confirmed that he does not know how many matches his tour will entail, with his final WrestleMania set for later this year.
Royal Rumble 2025: Date and how to follow
This year’s Royal Rumble will take place on Saturday, February 1.
It will be held at the Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
The event will be broadcast live on Netflix for the first time ever as part of their historic £4billion 10-year deal.
Fans in the UK who already have a Netflix subscription be able to watch the action live for no extra cost while others can sign up for £4.99 or more here.
talkSPORT.com will also keep you up to date with all the latest build-up and reaction.
What has been said?
“I officially announce my retirement from the WWE,” Cena told a sold-out arena and a global television audience last July.
“I have been doing this a while, I’ve been in WWE for over two decades. And in that time, I’ve seen incredible waves of prosperity like we’ve got right now.
“WWE is the hottest ticket in town, no doubt. And I’ve also seen tremendous hardship.
“That’s when no one knows your name, nobody wants to be a friend and only the most dedicated, hardcore fans stand by your side.
“In all those years, one of the most important, impressive things that I learned was whether the WWE was hot or cold, Canadians always show up.”
“Thank you so much for letting me play in the house you built for so many years.”
