Updated list of WWE Royal Rumble 2026 entrants
WWE has confirmed some new Royal Rumble entrants, including the first slate of names for the women’s match.
Rhea Ripley, IYO SKY, Liv Morgan, Roxanne Perez, Raquel Rodriguez, Bayley, Lyra Valkyria, and Asuka are officially set to compete in the 2026 women’s Royal Rumble match. The winner of the 30-woman battle royal earns a title shot at WrestleMania 42, which would be against either Women’s World Champion Stephanie Vaquer or WWE Women’s Champion Jade Cargill if there are no title changes before then.
The first entrant for the men’s Rumble match was confirmed last week with Cody Rhodes declaring. Now, the field is up to six announced entrants with the additions of Gunther, Jey Uso, Rey Mysterio, Dragon Lee, and Penta. Gunther will be pulling double duty at the Rumble PLE with him also set to face AJ Styles in a singles match where Styles will retire if he loses.
On the men’s side, World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk and WWE Champion Drew McIntyre are the champions heading into Mania season. The Royal Rumble will determine the WrestleMania challenger for one of those belts.
Saudi Arabia is hosting Royal Rumble 2026 on Saturday, January 31. The PLE has a start time of 2 p.m. Eastern, airing live on the ESPN app in the United States and Netflix everywhere else.
WWE Royal Rumble 2026 —
- Men’s Royal Rumble match
- Women’s Royal Rumble match
- WWE Champion Drew McIntyre defends against either Randy Orton, Damian Priest, Sami Zayn, or Trick Williams (will be determined at Saturday Night’s Main Event on January 24)
- Gunther vs. AJ Styles (Styles forced to retire if he loses)
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.