WWE Greatest Royal Rumble 2018: What time does it start, which TV channel is it on, match card, where can I watch it?
Everything you need to know about the Greatest Royal Rumble event in Saudi Arabia
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WWE’s extravaganza dubbed The Greatest Royal Rumble is just days away as superstars from Raw and Smackdown Live converge on Saudi Arabia – including The Undertaker, Triple and John Cena.
The show features seven title matches, headlined by the steel cage match for the Universal Championship as Brock Lesnar defends against Roman Reigns. AJ Styles meets Shinsuke Nakamura for the WWE title, while Cena tackles Triple H in a singles match.
The event is the first of its kind and is based around the January pay-per-view, the Royal Rumble, which remains one of the pinnacles of the WWE year.
The Greatest Royal Rumble also looks like it could be here to stay, with Triple H hinting this week that the WWE are hoping for more shows in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East on the whole, having recently staged an event in Abu Dhabi.
When is it and what time does it start?
The Greatest Royal Rumble takes place on Friday 27 April 2018 at the King Abdullah Sports City's King Abdullah International Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. It starts at 17:00 BST and is expected to last around four hours.
Where can I watch it?
The Greatest Royal Rumble is available to purchase on Sky Box Office for a one-off cost of £14.95 (€21.95 for viewers in the Republic of Ireland). WWE are also showing the event on their own WWE Network, for which monthly subscriptions are £9.99
Is the event being streamed for free?
WWE Network will be streaming the event live and is available for free to new subscribers only. Simply start your subscription in advance of the show, and you’ll get it as part of a free one-month trial period.
Why are there no women’s matches at Greatest Royal Rumble?
WWE’s female Champions Nia Jax and Carmella along with the likes of Charlotte Flair, Ronda Rousey and Alexa Bliss are all conspicuous by their absence from the show, as laws in Saudi Arabia still limit what women are able to do in public.
That has seen WWE come under criticism for allowing the show to go ahead on that basis, but WWE executive Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque defended the stance in an exclusive interview with The Independent this week.
What’s the full card?
Every male title in WWE is on the line at Greatest Royal Rumble – as well as the gigantic Royal Rumble match itself. For the first time ever, WWE are expanding the format from its usual 30-man version to a 50-man epic, having held a 40-man Royal Rumble in 2011 – featuring a string of current stars like Baron Corbin, Daniel Bryan, Shelton Benjamin, Dolph Ziggler and Braun Strowman, as well as legendary figures and former favourites Daniel Bryan, Chris Jericho, Shane McMahon, The Great Khali, Kurt Angle and more.
Here’s the rest of what’s lined-up:
Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns (Universal Championship steel cage match)
AJ Styles vs Shinsuke Nakamura (WWE Championship)
Seth Rollins vs The Miz vs Finn Balor vs Samoa Joe (Intercontinental Championship ladder match)
John Cena vs Triple H
The Undertaker vs Rusev (Casket match)
The Bludgeon Brothers vs The Usos (SmackDown Tag Team Championship)
The Bar vs Matt Hardy & Bray Wyatt (Raw Tag Team Championship)
Jeff Hardy vs Jinder Mahal (United States Championship)
Cedric Alexander vs Kalisto (Cruiserweight title)
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