The official Twitter account for the Saudi General Sports Authority issued an apology following Friday’s Greatest Royal Rumble event regarding an advertisement that aired during the broadcast, noting it showed women wrestlers in an “indecent” way.
A rough translation of the statement read:
“The General Sport Authority would like to apologize to the viewers and attendees of last night’s WWE event that took place in Jeddah, over the indecent scene involving women that appeared as an ad before a segment. It would like to confirm it’s total disapproval of this, in the shadow of its commitment to eliminate anything that goes against the communities values. The authority has made sure to ban showing of any segment that involves women wrestling or any scenes related to it, and stipulated that to the company (WWE). The authority also disapproved any promotional stuff with pictures or videos showing women in an indecent way, and emphasized on commitment of this rule. And it’s a commitment that the authority would still commit to forever in all of it’s events and programs.”
The advertisement in question appears to be the one promoting both the RAW and Smackdown Live brands coming together for all PPV events going forward.
The BBC, Wall Street Journal and Associated Press have all covered the apology.
Paul “Triple H” Levesque defended the WWE’s 10-year agreement with the Saudi General Sports Authority, noting that he hoped in time they would embrace female talent to be allowed on the card. He cited Saudi Vision 2020 regarding changes taking place within the company right now and the recent change embraced in Abu Dhabi.
Speaking of Triple H, he issued the following on Friday regarding Greatest Royal Rumble.
The first-ever, SOLD OUT #WWEGRR live from Jeddah, was a huge success. A massive THANK YOU to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and its people for their incredible hospitality and @Turki_alalshikh for inviting the world to watch the spectacle.https://t.co/sQtGiT2k9s pic.twitter.com/c7I8LOLCJW
— Triple H (@TripleH) April 28, 2018
“Stone Cold” Steve Austin was a fan of AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura.
Shinsuke so much better as a heel. AJ is off the charts good. #WGRR
— Steve Austin (@steveaustinBSR) April 27, 2018
Finn Balor also addressed his non-rainbow gear at the event on Friday.
My Rainbow Gear was a statement at Wrestlemania Weeekend
Although the gear has not been worn since in 6 appearances(Hartford CT, Cape Town x2,Pretoria, Johannesburg ,St.Louise
Saudi Arabia)
My support continues despite any color choice, change or laundry schedule. #dirtypants— Finn Bálor (@FinnBalor) April 28, 2018