5 possible opponents for Goldberg at WWE's next Saudi Arabia event

WWE has announced that its next Saudi Arabia event will take place at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah on Friday, June 7, with Goldberg among the most notable Superstars who will appear on the show.

The WCW legend made his in-ring return to WWE after 14 years to defeat Brock Lesnar at Survivor Series 2016, while he also appeared in the 2017 Royal Rumble before defeating Kevin Owens for the Universal Championship at Fastlane 2017.

His most recent match came at WrestleMania 33, where he lost the Universal title to Lesnar, and his only significant WWE appearance since then took place at the 2018 Hall of Fame when he was the headline inductee.

Along with Goldberg, WWE has also confirmed that the following names will appear on the next Saudi show: Roman Reigns, The Undertaker, Kofi Kingston, Braun Strowman, Seth Rollins, AJ Styles and Lesnar.

Given that Goldberg has not been part of a WWE storyline for over two years, there is no obvious indication on who he could face or what role he could play at the event. We do, however, know that he has not officially retired and that he has always stated “never say never” with regards to a possible in-ring return.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at five opponents who he could realistically face on June 7.

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#5 Rusev

Rusev burst onto the WWE scene as an unstoppable force who avoided losing via pinfall or submission for an entire year, yet he has now taken on the role of the most prominent mid-card Superstar who loses almost every big match that he has.

The three-time United States champion’s latest high-profile defeat came at WrestleMania 35, where he teamed with Shinsuke Nakamura in a Fatal 4-Way match for the SmackDown Tag Team titles, and his pay-per-view losing streak has now stretched to a WWE record of 18 consecutive matches.

Looking back at WWE’s first Saudi Arabia extravaganza, Rusev was involved in one of the featured matches against The Undertaker. Once again, “The Bulgarian Brute” ended up on the losing side (and in a casket, no less), and it would not be a surprise if he were to be used in a similar position at the next event.

#4 The Undertaker

These shows in Saudi Arabia have been built around dream matches and moments, with the Greatest Royal Rumble (April 2018) featuring John Cena vs. Triple H, as well as a 50-man Rumble match, and Crown Jewel (November 2018) featuring the in-ring return of Shawn Michaels after almost a decade.

The Undertaker has been treated as one of the biggest star attractions at both Saudi events, so it is no surprise that, even though he did not appear at WrestleMania 35, he is being advertised for the show on June 7.

"The Deadman" overcame the threat of Aiden English at ringside to defeat Rusev in a casket match at the Greatest Royal Rumble last year, while he teamed with Kane in a losing effort against Triple H and the returning Michaels at Crown Jewel.

If he is chosen as Goldberg’s opponent next month, then it will be the first time that the two men have ever met in a one-on-one match. Their only previous encounter came at the 2017 Royal Rumble – a match which saw ‘Taker eliminate Goldberg – but their paths never crossed again after that event.

#3 Brock Lesnar

News emerged this week that Brock Lesnar has officially retired from MMA, which presumably means that he will stick around in WWE for a little while longer.

From a storyline perspective, it is difficult to see where “The Beast” goes from here. He has already had lengthy part-time reigns with the Universal and WWE Championships in recent years, while he is not guaranteed a rematch for the title that he lost against Seth Rollins at WrestleMania 35.

The two matches between Lesnar and Goldberg in 2016-17 were well received by fans – granted, they lasted a combined 6 minutes, 11 seconds – and it would certainly be interesting to see the outcome if they met again for the third time in three years.

These Saudi Arabia events have been all about dream matches, as opposed to match quality, so perhaps the third chapter in the recent Lesnar vs. Goldberg story could be told on June 7.

#2 Baron Corbin

Baron Corbin has established himself as one of the top heels on WWE television over the last year. If he’s not barking out orders as an authority figure, “The Lone Wolf” is forming alliances with fellow bad guys and dishing out punishments to the biggest babyfaces on the Raw roster.

His recent victory over the retiring Kurt Angle at WrestleMania 35 further cemented his status as the main villain on Raw, which makes him the perfect candidate to battle it out with a babyface Goldberg in Saudi Arabia.

Unlike some of the other matches on this list, there is a ready-made storyline here if WWE decides to use it, with Corbin attempting to become the latest “Legend Killer” by retiring Goldberg in the same way he did to Angle at WrestleMania.

As for Goldberg, if the match lasts longer than his brief encounters with Brock Lesnar, this could be a chance for him to prove to everyone that he has still got it.

#1 Multiple opponents

As tempting as it is to include Roman Reigns as a potential opponent for Goldberg, he is busy right now dealing with Elias and Shane McMahon, and all signs point towards us seeing “The Big Dog” and “The Best In The World” battling it out in Saudi Arabia.

Alternatively, although the name of the Saudi event is yet to be revealed, could we potentially see the second annual Greatest Royal Rumble take place? The first 50-man Rumble, won by Braun Strowman, featured legends including Chris Jericho and Rey Mysterio, while The Great Khali and Hornswoggle were even involved as surprise entrants.

Despite still being a star attraction, Goldberg is not known for his in-ring ability, so it is difficult to see him taking part in a singles match lasting 15+ minutes. Instead, perhaps he could face multiple opponents at once by participating in a Rumble match, just like in 2017, to showcase his destructive talents.