While the first day of January is widely accepted as the first day of a new year, many cultures around the world have other significant dates that act as the beginning of their calendars. For example, the Chinese New Year takes place during the new moon of the first lunar month each year. The two-day Jewish celebration of Rosh Hashanah, which is Hebrew for “Head of the Year,” occurs in the late summer or early fall.
• Date: Saturday, Jan. 27
• Start time: 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT and Sunday 12 a.m. GMT / 11 a.m. AEST
• Kickoff show time: One hour before
• Watch in the U.S.: Peacock
• Watch everywhere else: WWE Network
• Watch anywhere — try ExpressVPN 100% risk-free
And for wrestling fans, Wrestlemania is the last major event of their “year” before starting fresh. However, despite WWE Superstars working all year to secure their spot at the Showcase of the Immortals, the annual Royal Rumble event is when they shift into the fast lane and merge onto the Road to Wrestlemania.
This year’s installment of the fan-favorite event emanates from Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida on January 27, 2024, and should be filled with surprises. That’s what makes the two titular 30-person over-the-top battle royals so exciting every year. Although, one surprise happened to sneak up a few days prior to the big show. While defending his WWE World Heavyweight Championship against Jinder Mahal, Seth Freakin’ Rollins suffered a Grade 2 MCL tear and a partially torn meniscus. But even though the injury is estimated to keep The Visionary out of action for three to four months, the champion vowed to walk into Wrestlemania XL in Philadelphia as the champion and walk out the same way.
While this news is extremely devastating on so many levels, the show must go on with or without Rollins. Luckily, the WWE Universe still has a lot to look forward to at this year’s Royal Rumble. And in case you need to know how to tune in to catch all the action, we’ve got you covered.
How to watch WWE Royal Rumble 2024 from anywhere
While Peacock is available all across the U.S. and the WWE Network is still the standard around the world (though that's changing), WWE Royal Rumble 2024 live streams can get a bit confusing. You might want to check out a VPN if you can't watch with the service you normally use.
International audiences will be pretty jealous of U.S. audiences, which will save cash by switching to Peacock (unless you get the no-ads tier at $9.99 per month).
The best VPN is ExpressVPN. It meets the VPN needs of the vast majority of users, offering outstanding compatibility with most devices and impressive connection speeds.
Watch WWE Royal Rumble 2024 in the U.S.
WWE premium live events like WWE Royal Rumble 2024 are exclusively streamed on Peacock in the United States. They are included in both the Premium and Premium Plus tiers of the streaming service.
However, even if you’re subscribed to the ad-free option, it won’t make a difference since commercials are still included in live WWE productions.
Right now, you can get Peacock for $1.99 per month. This deal will last an entire year, though it is only available to new subscribers. Even better, you can get the annual Peacock plan for $19.99, which essentially gives you two months free.!
Watch WWE Royal Rumble 2024 in U.K.
Our friends in the United Kingdom will grab WWE Royal Rumble 2024 live streams on the WWE Network, for a higher price — closer to the $9.99 that Americans used to pay.
It's also available from BT Sport Box Office for £14.95.
Americans abroad, though, can use ExpressVPN to watch on Peacock (U.K. Peacock doesn't have WWE).
Watch WWE Royal Rumble 2024 in Australia
WWE Royal Rumble 2024 live streams begin at 11 a.m. AEDT on Sunday morning.
It's all on Binge, the new official home for WWE premium live events in Australia.
Binge has three tiers for its pricing, starting at $10 AUD per month:
- Basic - $10 a month with 1 screen, SD
- Standard - $16 a month with 2 screens, HD
- Premium - $18 a month with 4 screens, HD
WWE Royal Rumble 2024 card and predictions
Though the Royal Rumble matches are the main events of the evening, there are two massive title matches on the card this year. First, the social media megastar Logan Paul has an incredibly personal grudge that he hopes to settle with Kevin Owens. During Paul’s first appearance at Wrestlemania in 2021 as a guest, The Prizefighter hit him with a Stunner and laid him out. Following that confrontation, The Maverick learned how to wrestle and stunned audiences by being a natural in the world of sports entertainment.
Now, after facing the likes of Rey Mysterio, Roman Reigns, and Ricochet in stand-out matches that eventually led him to win the United States Championship, the divisive entertainer finally gets to settle old business with Owens. With his title on the line, Paul is certainly determined to bust out another show stopping performance for the WWE Universe. However, hungry to earn a singles belt again for the first time since 2017, KO is more than prepared to throw everything he can at his opponent in order to get him down for a 1-2-3, even if he is on the mend from a broken hand.
While we’ve come to expect a spectacle whenever Paul steps in the ring, the flashy stuff may not match up to the veteran Owens’ wealth of experience and ability to adapt. Another vicious Stunner looks to be in the future of the reigning and defending US Champ.
Speaking of a reigning and defending Champion, Roman Reigns has held the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship for nearly 1250 days at this point. By hook or by crook, The Tribal Chief has held onto the prestigious title for an unprecedented amount of time in the modern era. But this weekend, Reigns is facing potentially his greatest challenge yet. Though he has defended his title in multi-man matches before, this time The Head of the Table has to contend with two former champions in Randy Orton and AJ Styles, plus the up-and-coming sensation LA Knight.
And on top of that, the champion doesn’t even need to factor into the decision to lose the title. Although, since there are no disqualifications in Fatal 4-Way matches, this may benefit Reigns and see some trademark interference from The Bloodline. To put it simply, though he’d facing formidable opponents, there’s almost no way that Roman Reigns is losing his championship in the Sunshine State this weekend. Solo Sikoa, Jimmy Uso, and Paul Heyman will likely see to that.
Finally, we have the men’s and women’s Royal Rumble matches. To win, a participant needs to avoid getting thrown over the top rope and outlast 29 other random Superstars. And these competitors don’t necessarily have to be on the active Raw or Smackdown rosters to participate either. Maybe someone from NXT could show up. Or a legend from the past could resurface for another chance at glory. Or someone completely new and unexpected could enter the fray to wreak some havoc.
That’s what makes these matches so much fun: The element of surprise. Entrance into the match is randomly determined and the longer someone stays in the match, the more likely it is for them to get thrown out by someone who has just entered the ring. And if they do happen to outlast and outsmart the field, then they get to punch their ticket to the main event of Wrestlemania by challenging a champion of their choosing.
Obviously, the WWE is filled with wrestlers who are more than capable of winning this high-stakes match. On the men’s side, it seems like CM Punk and Cody Rhodes are the top picks to emerge victorious. For the women, Bayley and Becky Lynch seem to be the favorites. As capable as all of them are, it really could be anybody’s game. While The American Nightmare and The Second City Saint are each driven to finally achieve their goals of winning the WWE Championship and main eventing Wrestlemania (respectively), GUNTHER has been dominant as both the Intercontinental Champion and the leader of Imperium. He also nearly secured a victory last year from the No. 1 spot before being eliminated by Rhodes. The brutal Austrian will be one to watch in the men’s match.
Meanwhile, there’s a ton of potential for shocking surprises in the women’s rumble. Both The Man and The Role Model have it in them to pull out victories to get them to the Grandest Stage of Them All, but rumors have been circulating about potential obstacles that stand in their way. Aside from usual suspects from the locker room like Nia Jax, Shayna Baszler, or Shotzi who could play spoiler in a variety of ways, rumors have been circulating that the long-awaited WWE debut of Jade Cargill could take place in this year’s Rumble. Former NWA Women’s Champion Kamille and former TNA Knockouts Champion Trinity (aka Naomi) could also pop in as potential surprises depending on their free-agent statuses.
At the end of the day, no matter who shows up or who wins, the Royal Rumble is probably the most fun event on the WWE calendar every year. It’s unpredictable, chaotic, and usually pretty entertaining, which is why it’s the perfect event to kick off Wrestlemania season.
Here’s the full card for WWE Royal Rumble 2024:
- Men’s Royal Rumble featuring Cody Rhodes, CM Punk, Shinsuke Nakamura, Bobby Lashley, Drew McIntyre, GUNTHER, Chad Gable, Otis, Akira Tozawa, Kofi Kingston, and 20 other WWE Superstars
- Women’s Royal Rumble featuring Bayley, Nia Jax, Becky Lynch, Bianca Belair, Maxxine Dupri, Ivy Nile, and 24 other WWE Superstars
- WWE United States Championship Match: Logan Paul (c) vs. Kevin Owens
- Undisputed WWE Universal Championship Fatal 4-Way Match: Roman Reigns (c) vs. Randy Orton vs. AJ Styles vs. LA Knight
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