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WWE might be headed to Texas for the 2023 Royal Rumble. San Antonio's Alamodome is reported to be the frontrunner to host the event.
As reported by Fightful, the 62,000-seat dome is highly likely to host the Rumble next year. This comes amid reports that company president Nick Khan wants more premium live events to be held in arenas and domes.
The last event WWE put up in the building was the 2017 Royal Rumble. That show saw John Cena win his 16th world title by defeating AJ Styles for the WWE Championship. Randy Orton also won the event's titular match for the second time, last eliminating Roman Reigns. This was a year before the women's rumble was introduced in 2018.
The Alamodome was also the host of the 1997 Royal Rumble. That year's edition saw Shawn Michaels defend his WWF Championship against Sycho Sid and "Stone Cold" Steve Austin win his first of three rumbles. Austin would go on to face Bret Hart in their legendary submission match at WrestleMania 13.
Beyond the Royal Rumble, stadium shows might become the new norm for WWE in 2023
If next year's Rumble airs from the Alamodome, it will be the latest in a long line of "big-four" shows being held in stadiums and domes over the past few years (except Survivor Series). It has been reported that WWE President and CFO Nick Khan sees stadiums as the "new norm" for the company's premium live events going forward.
According to Andrew Zarian of The Mat Men Podcast, an internal source in the company has stated that there are plans to hold most premium live events in stadiums in 2023.
"The goal is to make this the new norm. This is a Nick Khan approach when it comes to Premium Live Events." Zarian tweeted.
He also claimed that even if a stadium show with a capacity of 60-70 thousand is not a full house, an average attendance of 50k would still be 2-3 times that of an arena show with an average attendance of 15-20 thousand.
WWE has seven stadium shows slated for 2022: January's Royal Rumble, Elimination Chamber in February, WrestleMania 38 in April, July's Money in the Bank, Summerslam 2022 later that month, Clash at the Castle to be held in Cardiff, Wales in September, and another Saudia Arabia event in October.
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