With WWE’s Royal Rumble taking place in Saudi Arabia, fans already knew women’s ring gear would look different — but now we know who’s footing the bill, and it’s not WWE.
According to WrestleVotes Radio on Fightful Select, a talent set to compete in the Women’s Royal Rumble match confirmed that the same strict attire guidelines used during past Saudi events are still in place for this year’s show.
But that wasn’t the real shocker. The bigger takeaway came from Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp, who spoke with a WWE talent who revealed that the responsibility to meet those guidelines — financially and creatively — fell entirely on the wrestlers themselves.
“We’re responsible for paying for and having our own gear made for the show to fit those parameters,” the unnamed talent said.
The source also confirmed that there was no coordinated effort from WWE to help talent distinguish their gear from each other’s in the match — which could create challenges in a 30-woman bout where many outfits may look visually similar.
“There was no coordinated effort to make sure that anything was differentiated from others in the match.”
This isn’t the first time WWE’s Saudi partnership has created behind-the-scenes adjustments for talent, but the update makes it clear: female superstars are expected to handle the attire issue themselves — even when the guidelines are driven by the location’s cultural restrictions.
While some WWE stars have debuted iconic full-body looks during Saudi shows in the past, this new info shows just how much of that responsibility lands squarely on the wrestlers — from design to payment.
