Seth Rollins Compares Saudi Arabia's PLE 'Blood Money' To America's In New Interview

WWE's relationship with Saudi Arabia has been under intense scrutiny ever since the partnership was announced in 2018.

Terms like 'sportswashing' and 'blood money' have regularly been thrown around, with WWE accused of furthering propaganda for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It is criticism that Seth Rollins is not accepting of, however.

Rollins, appearing on comedian Jay Mohr's Mohr Stories, took umbrage with the term 'blood money' and how it is used to disparage WWE's appearances in the Kingdom.

"We get paid by America too" - Seth Rollins

“We’ve been going there for six years. We’ve been taking s**t for six years,” Rollins explained to Mohr, when discussing WWE's history in the country. WWE's next show in Saudi will be the 2026 Royal Rumble, which will take place next month.

Earlier this year, it was announced that the company would hold its first-ever WrestleMania outside of North America, by holding WrestleMania 43 in Riyadh, in an announcement that sparked plenty of division.

It is not division that is particularly bothering the two-time World Heavyweight Champion. Rollins explained that there is no difference between taking money from Saudi Arabia to host shows or accepting site fees from American cities to host shows across the country.

“Guess what, we get paid by America, too. You think there is no blood money there? Come on. Get out of here. We’ve gone there for six years. When we went in 2019, I was skeptical as well. ‘I don’t know about this.’ We go over there and the change in the culture and the people at our shows in six years has been incredible. When I tell you, we went there for the first time, there were no women on our show. No women backstage. Now, we go there and it’s just like a WWE show. There are a ton of women.”

WWE has earned hundreds of millions through Saudi Arabia relationship

When WWE began its relationship with the Kingdom, it was widely reported that it would earn $500 million across a 10-year deal. They are currently in the sixth year of said deal and have added two of their marquee shows to the agreement in the form of the Royal Rumble and WrestleMania since the initial deal was brokered during Vince McMahon's ownership of the company.

Some reports have circulated a figure of as much as $250 million for what Saudi Arabia has paid WWE to host WrestleMania in 2027, with more potentially being spent to bring in the biggest names possible to stack the show's card as the biggest of all time.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman reportedly asked for Yokozuna and the Ultimate Warrior to appear on an early WWE Saudi show in 2019, only to be informed that both Hall of Famers were, in fact, dead.

WWE regularly runs shows like Crown Jewel and King and Queen of the Ring in Saudi Arabia, with Night of Champions also emanating from the Kingdom. Rollins captured his first World Heavyweight Championship in Saudi Arabia in 2023's Night of Champions.

(H/T Fightful for the transcription)

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