The 2025 Night of Champions event is in the books. With WWE’s trip to Saudi Arabia behind them, the company will set its sights on bringing the Premium Live Event stage back to the tri-state area. The 2025 edition of SummerSlam will emanate from MetLife Stadium on Aug. 2 and 3, hosting its first wrestling event since WrestleMania 35 in 2019.
Unlike previous events, WWE’s biggest party of the summer will be the first in a two-night format, pioneered by WrestleMania 36 in 2020. Tickets for individual nights of the show went on sale Wednesday morning. With wrestling preparing its return to MetLife, it’ll be another chapter in the Tri-State’s history of bringing the biggest shows to the world.
This go-around will be headlined by John Cena in his record-setting 17th championship reign. He will defend his title against Cody Rhodes, who won the men’s King of the Ring tournament to open Saturday’s show. It’ll be a rematch of WrestleMania 41 in Las Vegas, where Cena defeated Rhodes to break Ric Flair’s record of most world title reigns.
WWE first brought wrestling to the venue in 2013 with WrestleMania 29. The nine-match card featured its share of highlights, starting with the main event. The Rock defended the WWE Championship against Cena in their rematch from the previous year, with the latter winning his 11th world title.
On the undercard, The Shield defeated Sheamus, the Big Show, and Randy Orton in a tag-team match, Living Colour played CM Punk to the ring before falling to The Undertaker, Fandango upset Chris Jericho, and Triple H defeated Brock Lesnar in a No-Holds-Barred match. While the night was certainly memorable, the following night was one of the most memorable Monday Night Raws after Mania.
That night, Dolph Ziggler cashed in his Money in the Bank contract on Alberto Del Rio, winning the World Heavyweight Championship, receiving a massive pop from the Izod Center crowd when his music hit. Later in the show, the crowd hijacked Orton’s match with Sheamus, chanting for the commentary team, referee Mike Chioda, and more. Add in the crowd serenading with Fandango’s theme music, and it’s widely regarded as one of the top wrestling crowds of all time.
Six years later, WrestleMania returned to MetLife for its 35th installment, with a whopping 16 matches on the docket. The undercard featured triumphant title changes, with Seth Rollins toppling Lesnar to end his long reign as Universal Champion and Kofi Kingston winning his first WWE title off Daniel Bryan. The show also featured a historic main event, with Becky Lynch winning both Raw and SmackDown Women’s Championships in a triple threat match with Ronda Rousey and Charlotte Flair.
However, the show wasn’t all triumphs, with its share of duds being sprinkled in the middle. Baron Corbin retired Kurt Angle in a six-minute dud, Drew McIntyre and Roman Reigns left a bit to be desired in the latter’s return match, and Samoa Joe’s match with Rey Mysterio was a one-minute squash for the US strap. Regardless, it’s the good moments that stand out from what was an up-and-down Mania.
In addition to MetLife’s experiences, Madison Square Garden has three Wrestlemanias under its belt, hosting the flagship, 10th, and 20th shows. Summerslam has four previous stops in The Empire State, going to MSG twice, Nassau Coliseum, and Barclays Center for a four-year run between 2015 and 2018, with 2025 being the region’s first since then.
The direction for the event’s card is still up in the air, but it has its share of intrigue. On the women’s side, Queen of the Ring winner Jade Cargill is set to face Tiffany Stratton for the WWE Women’s Championship, with Cargill’s nemesis Naomi looming with the Money in the Bank contract.
Punk is back in the company after his nine-year exodus, and Randy Orton continues his chase to reclaim a world title, something he hasn’t held since 2020. The company has seven episodes of television programming to set the table, continuing with SmackDown on Friday. The build continues this weekend in Atlanta with Saturday Night’s Main Event and the Evolution Premium Live Event on July 12 and 13, respectively.
