WrestleMania 41
| WrestleMania 41 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Promotional poster | |||
| Promotion | WWE | ||
| Brand(s) | Raw SmackDown | ||
| Date | April 19–20, 2025 | ||
| City | Paradise, Nevada | ||
| Venue | Allegiant Stadium | ||
| WrestleMania chronology | |||
| |||
WrestleMania 41, also promoted as WrestleMania Vegas, is an upcoming 2025 professional wrestling event produced by WWE. It will be the 41st annual WrestleMania and will take place as a two-night event on April 19 and 20, 2025, at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada, marking the second WrestleMania to take place in the Las Vegas area, after WrestleMania IX in 1993, which was held at Caesars Palace. The event will air via pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming and will feature wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. This will be the first WrestleMania to livestream on Netflix in international markets, following the WWE Network's merger under the platform in January 2025. This will also be the first WrestleMania to be held during Easter weekend. The event will also feature John Cena's final WrestleMania match in his 23-year career.
Production
[edit]Background
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WrestleMania is WWE's flagship pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event, having first been held in 1985. It was the company's first PPV produced and was also WWE's first major event available via livestreaming when the company launched the WWE Network in February 2014. It is the longest-running professional wrestling event in history and is held annually between mid-March to mid-April, featuring wrestlers from WWE's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions.[1] Along with Royal Rumble, SummerSlam, Survivor Series, and Money in the Bank, it is one of the company's five biggest events of the year, referred to as the "Big Five".[2][3][4] WrestleMania was ranked the sixth-most valuable sports brand in the world by Forbes,[5] and has been described as the Super Bowl of sports entertainment.[6] Much like the Super Bowl, cities bid for the right to host WrestleMania.[7]
On May 4, 2024, during NBC's pre-race coverage for the 150th Kentucky Derby, it was announced that Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada would host WrestleMania 41 on April 19 and 20, 2025, marking the first WrestleMania to be held during Easter weekend. This will be the second WWE event to be held at the venue after SummerSlam in 2021.[8] This will also be the second WrestleMania held in the Las Vegas area, after WrestleMania IX in 1993, which was held at Caesars Palace.[9] In addition to airing on traditional pay-per-view, it will be available to livestream on Peacock in the United States and Netflix in international markets, marking the first WrestleMania to livestream on Netflix following the international WWE Network's merger under Netflix in January 2025.[10]
Minneapolis, Minnesota was also a finalist to host the event at U.S. Bank Stadium. Its proponents said they had been informed that the decision to place the event in the Las Vegas area was driven by a "change in direction by new ownership", following the 2023 merger of WWE and Las Vegas-based Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) as TKO Group Holdings, controlled by UFC's previous sole owner Endeavor.[11] U.S. Bank Stadium would in turn get SummerSlam for 2026.[12]
Storylines
[edit]The event will include matches that result from scripted storylines. Results are predetermined by WWE's writers on the Raw and SmackDown brands,[13][14] while storylines are produced on WWE's weekly television shows, Monday Night Raw and Friday Night SmackDown.[15]
On July 6, 2024, at Money in the Bank, 16-time WWE world champion John Cena officially announced that he would retire from professional wrestling at the end of 2025, having wrestled for WWE since 2002 (though part-time since 2018). During his announcement, Cena stated that he would compete at WrestleMania 41, which would be his last WrestleMania.[16]
Matches
[edit]| No. | Matches* | Stipulations | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | John Cena vs. TBA | TBD match[16] | ||
| ||||
References
[edit]- ^ Benigno, Anthony; Clapp, John (April 3, 2013). "WrestleMania 29 press conference brings WWE to Radio City Music Hall". WWE. Archived from the original on April 7, 2013. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
... WWE's flagship event lights up MetLife Stadium ... WrestleMania
- ^ Ian Hamilton. Wrestling's Sinking Ship: What Happens to an Industry Without Competition (p. 160)
- ^ News 3 Staff (August 22, 2021). "Las Vegas to host WWE's Money in the Bank in 2022". KSNV. Archived from the original on August 23, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Lambert, Jeremy (July 27, 2022). "WWE Announces Dates And Location For WrestleMania 40". Fightful. Archived from the original on July 27, 2022. Retrieved July 27, 2022.
- ^ Ozanian, Mike (October 16, 2019). "The Forbes Fab 40: Puma Debuts On 2019 List Of The World's Most Valuable Sports Brands". Forbes. Archived from the original on January 27, 2022. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
- ^ Gelston, Dan (April 4, 2013). "WrestleMania is Super Bowl of sports entertainment". Associated Press. Archived from the original on March 31, 2014. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
- ^ Graser, Marc (March 28, 2010). "WrestleMania sets off bidding frenzy". Variety. Archived from the original on April 26, 2012. Retrieved February 9, 2011.
- ^ Lambert, Jeremy (May 4, 2024). "WWE WrestleMania 41 To Take Place At Allegiant Stadium In Las Vegas On April 19 And 20, 2025". Fightful. Retrieved May 4, 2024.
- ^ "WrestleMania IX". Pro Wrestling History. Archived from the original on April 3, 2007. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
- ^ Lowson, Thomas (January 25, 2024). "End of the WWE Network: Streaming Service to Be Absorbed By Netflix Next Year (Report)". SE Scoops. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
- ^ Star Tribune Staff (May 4, 2024). "Minneapolis loses bid for WWE's 2025 WrestleMania to Las Vegas". Star Tribune. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
- ^ Lambert, Jeremy (May 23, 2024). "WWE SummerSlam 2026 Expands To Two Nights, To Be Held In Minnesota". Fightful. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
- ^ Grabianowski, Ed (January 13, 2006). "How Pro Wrestling Works". HowStuffWorks. Discovery Communications. Archived from the original on November 29, 2013. Retrieved March 5, 2012.
- ^ "Live & Televised Entertainment". WWE. Archived from the original on February 18, 2009. Retrieved March 21, 2012.
- ^ Steinberg, Brian (May 25, 2016). "WWE's 'Smackdown' Will Move To Live Broadcast On USA (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on May 26, 2016. Retrieved May 25, 2016.
- ^ a b "John Cena announces that he will retire in 2025". WWE. July 6, 2024. Retrieved July 12, 2024.