When is John Cena's next WWE appearance?

John Cena has claimed that his 17th WWE World Title reign will be his most memorable one. To prove his point, he has been adding top superstars to his growing list of victims. Night of Champions 2025 saw Cena defeat CM Punk in a stellar match. He already holds wins over Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes since his return.

The match between archrivals John Cena and CM Punk went the distance. However, it ended controversially as Rollins tried to cash in his Money in the Bank contract. Cena prevented Rollins from becoming champion and used the opening to defeat The Second City Saint.

Cena is now set to defend his title against King of the Ring Cody Rhodes at SummerSlam 2025. However, he has not been announced to make any appearances for the next few weeks. As of this writing, the Last Real Champion is advertised to appear on the July 18 edition of Friday Night SmackDown on WWE's official site.

The show will emanate from San Antonio, Texas. Upon his return, Cena will likely start building up his rematch against Rhodes at SummerSlam.

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It must be noted that WWE can advertise Cena for more shows besides the July 18 appearance. However, nothing is confirmed.

John Cena reveals the reason behind his WWE retirement

In an interview with The Breakfast Club, the Last Real Champion confirmed his in-ring retirement. Cena revealed that he loved the feeling of competing in front of thousands of fans. However, the legend would retire from in-ring action because of his physical condition.

"Well, I'm retiring this year from competition. In December, I will be done (...) As a live performer, gosh, that going out there in front of 15,000 people and having them crazy for you is a pretty nice feeling. It's just the physical toll. I can barely hang on right now. Like, I have certainly lost a step, and I promised myself and I made accountable promises to the fanbase that when I get a step slower, I'm stepping out of the door," Cena said.

John Cena disclosed that his run as an in-ring performer will indeed conclude in December. However, he will continue contributing to the brand as an ambassador, as he loves the company. It will be interesting to see whether the legend returns directly on July 18 or before the San Antonio show.

About the author

Nayan is a WWE News and Features writer at Sportskeeda Wrestling. After completing his bachelor's degree in Mass Communication from Poddar International, he began working as a YouTube script writer. Nayan then transitioned to Pinkvilla as a combat sports writer. He gained valuable experience there before finally coming under the banner of Sportskeeda.

Within 1.5 years, Nayan has written over 1,000 articles, interviewed MFN promotion owners, and conducted a Twitter campaign that gained over 50k retweets and more. He puts fact-checking and mindful journalism above everything by applying a three-check method, where he tries to verify reports from reliable sources and cross-check whether other major publications have covered them.

Looking back at his association with pro wrestling, Nayan recalls being hooked on the sport after watching Shawn Michael vs. The Undertaker at WrestleMania 25. Since then, the product has been an inseparable part of his life.

Apart from The Heartbreak Kid being Nayan's favorite wrestler for his confidence and charisma, he is also a fan of Brock Lesnar due to The Beast's "work speaks louder than words" attitude.

Nayan can be found performing mixed martial arts and reading true crime in his free time.

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Edited by Pratik Singh