Royal Rumble 2026 results: Roman Reigns and Liv Morgan punch WrestleMania tickets
Royal Rumble 2026 closed Saturday with two winners who now control the biggest decisions of WrestleMania season: Roman Reigns won the men’s match and Liv Morgan won the women’s match. The WWE Royal Rumble 2026 event also featured a championship defense and a career-stakes bout that ended with a forced retirement, giving this year’s Royal Rumble a mix of future-setting outcomes and finality.
Held in Riyadh, the show marked a milestone for WWE, with the traditional Royal Rumble format staged outside North America for the first time.
Royal Rumble 2026 winners and night-defining results
The results produced a clear headline: two Rumble victories that come with a world-title opportunity at WrestleMania, plus two high-stakes undercard finishes.
A quick rundown of the key outcomes:
| Match | Result |
|---|---|
| Women’s Royal Rumble | Liv Morgan won |
| Men’s Royal Rumble | Roman Reigns won |
| Undisputed WWE Championship | Drew McIntyre def. Sami Zayn (title retained) |
| Career stipulation match | Gunther def. AJ Styles (Styles forced to retire) |
Morgan’s win immediately reshapes the women’s title picture because the Rumble winner traditionally chooses which championship to challenge for on the biggest weekend of the year. Reigns’ victory does the same on the men’s side, with his choice carrying extra weight given how quickly one decision can re-order entire divisions.
The undercard outcomes landed with very different tones: McIntyre’s retention kept the top title stable, while Gunther’s win ended Styles’ in-ring run on the spot under the match stipulation.
The WWE Royal Rumble match that changed the road
The wwe royal rumble match format is built to do one thing better than any other annual event: create instant contenders without weeks of setup. It also tends to reveal how WWE wants its next two to three months to feel—whether the story is about redemption, dominance, or a fresh challenger rising quickly.
This year’s men’s match finished with Reigns as the last man standing, placing him directly into the WrestleMania main-event conversation. The women’s match ended with Morgan surviving the final eliminations to secure her own championship opportunity. In practical terms, both winners now hold the leverage: they can choose their target, control the timing of the confrontation, and steer the first major feud of the WrestleMania build.
That leverage matters because WWE often uses the weeks after the Royal Rumble to stage one-on-one promos, confrontations, and contract-style segments that define the tone of each title program. The sooner a winner commits to a target, the sooner the path becomes clear—and the more pressure shifts to the champion.
Start time, venue, and the global first
Royal Rumble 2026 took place on Saturday, January 31, 2026 (ET) at the King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, using a temporary outdoor stadium setup.
The main show start time was 2:00 PM ET, with a pre-show window beginning at 12:00 PM ET. The early start in Eastern Time reflected the local-night schedule in Saudi Arabia and made this one of the more watchable live premium events for afternoon viewers in the Americas.
Beyond logistics, the location itself was part of the headline: it was the first time the traditional Royal Rumble event was held outside North America, a notable shift for a show that has long been a U.S.-anchored fixture on the WWE calendar.
Where to watch Royal Rumble 2026
Availability depended on region. In the United States, Royal Rumble 2026 streamed live through the current domestic live-event streaming partner rather than airing on traditional cable. In many international markets, the event streamed live on the global subscription service that carries WWE live events.
Replays were expected to be available shortly after the live window ended, with timing varying by region and service. Viewers typically found a short free pre-show segment and then a separate paywalled main show stream.
What the results set up next in WWE
The biggest question coming out of Royal Rumble is the same every year, and it now applies twice: who will the winner choose? Morgan’s decision can elevate a specific championship feud and define the women’s top program heading into WrestleMania. Reigns’ decision can trigger a marquee rivalry with immediate main-event implications.
Meanwhile, the undercard endings create their own aftershocks. McIntyre leaving with the Undisputed WWE Championship keeps the title scene stable enough for a clean challenger selection, while the Styles retirement stipulation turns attention to how WWE handles the fallout—whether through tribute angles, a successor storyline, or a longer-term rivalry extension for Gunther built around the idea of “ending careers.”
In short, the Royal Rumble did its job: it locked in the first two WrestleMania paths, set stakes for the champions, and left the rest of the roster reacting.
Sources consulted: WWE, ESPN, CBS Sports, Forbes
