WWE Announces First Ever Women's Match In Saudi Arabia For Crown Jewel Event

WWE has announced Thursday’s controversial show in Saudi Arabia will feature the first women’s match in the country’s history.

WWE made the announcement in a press event for Crown Jewel on Wednesday at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. SmackDown commentator Michael Cole opened the event announcing that WWE veteran Natalya would be facing relative newcomer Lacey Evans as part of Thursday night’s event.

“WWE Superstars Natalya and Lacey Evans will perform at CROWN JEWEL, one of WWE’s premier pay-per-view events, which also features Roman Reigns, the undefeated lineal heavyweight boxing champion Tyson Fury, WWE Champion Brock Lesnar, Universal Champion Seth Rollins and many more,” WWE wrote in an official press release.

Natalya and Lacey Evans both took to Twitter to share their feelings about the announcement.

Vince McMahon and WWE had reportedly been pushing to have a woman’s match on the card since the company’s deal with Saudi Arabia began in 2018. It was previously reported WWE had come close to getting a match with Natalya and Alexa Bliss approved for Super ShowDown in June. However, the Saudi General Sports Authority had reportedly been hesitant to approve a match.

The announcement comes as a welcome piece of good news for a company that has found itself mired in bad press since Sunday. It has included Jordan Myles’ accusations of racism, possible unrest in NXT over pay disputes, and poor TV ratings.

The deal with Saudi Arabia has also been subject to heavy criticism, especially in October 2018 following the assassination of Washington Post reporter Jamal Khashoggi.

Former WWE executive Linda McMahon, the wife of Vince McMahon, served as President Trump’s first head of the Small Business Administration and is now Chair of America First Action, a pro-Trump Super PAC.

Saudi Arabia has faced been criticized for a history of human rights abuses and repression of women’s rights based on sharia law.