WrestleMania Canceled? WWE's Biggest Event Of The Year In Possible Limbo As Coronavirus Hits Tampa

Far from just impacting the stock market and global travel, the outbreak of coronavirus, officially known as Covid-19, is also looking to have an impact on the live sports and entertainment industries. As the virus spreads slowly across the U.S., World Wrestling Entertainment is reportedly open to holding off on hosting WrestleMania in April should safety become a concern.

WrestleMania 36 is scheduled for April 5 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. In an interview Thursday with the Tampa Bay Times, Stephanie McMahon, chief brand officer for WWE, said that the company would be willing to cancel its biggest event of the year should the safety of its fans and performers become endangered by a global pandemic.

“The health and safety of not only our fan base, but also our superstars, really does come first,” McMahon said. “We don’t want to put anyone in a bad situation ever, regardless of the circumstance. Those are not risks worth taking.”

Fans from an estimated 60 countries are expected to converge on Tampa for WrestleMania this year. Aside from professional wrestling shows, WWE will also be hosting events all throughout the week leading up to the show, including a 5K run and block party. The following week’s worth of live television shows also traditionally occur in the WrestleMania host city.

Increasing the pressure on WWE is the recent confirmation of two Covid-19 cases in Tampa, the first-ever in Florida overall. The patients are a woman in her 20s that recently visited northern Italy, a country hit hard by the global spread of the virus, and a man in his 60s. Both are said to be in stable condition and are being kept in isolation.

First hosted in 1984, WrestleMania has never been canceled for any reason, putting WWE in a tough spot.

This year’s show, should it go ahead as planned, will be headlined by two world title bouts: WWE Champion Brock Lesnar vs. Royal Rumble winner Drew McIntyre, and Universal Champion Goldberg vs. Roman Reigns.

Confirmed matches for the show also include Rhea Ripley vs. Charlotte Flair for the NXT Women’s Championship and “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt vs. returning legend John Cena, with other rumored bouts including The Undertaker vs. A.J. Styles, Randy Orton vs. Edge, and Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. Shayna Baszler.