John Cena is breaking up with the WWE. At the Money in the Bank live event held in Toronto, Canada, on Saturday, July 6, the wrestler, 47, announced he will take a step back from the World Wrestling Entertainment company.
“Tonight, I announce my retirement from the WWE,” the sportsman-turrned-actor told the crowd at the Scotiabank Arena.
The Argylle star noted that he will undertake one final tour with the WWE in 2025.
He will perform at shows such as Royal Rumble, Elimination Chamber and WrestleMania.
“I hear a mixed opinion out there. A lot of questions maybe, right? Like, why here? I want to talk about that for a second. I want to talk about Toronto. Matter of fact, I want to talk about Canada. Matter of fact, I want to talk about Canadians,” Cena continued in his speech.
Cena went on: “I’ve been doing this a while. I’ve been in WWE for over two decades and in that time I’ve seen incredible waves of prosperity like we got right now. WWE is the hottest ticket in town, no doubt.”
“And I’ve also seen tremendous hardship and that’s when nobody knows your name, nobody wants to be your friend and only the most dedicated, hardcore fans stand by your side,” the athlete said.
“So in all those years one of the most important, one of the most impressive things that I learned was whether the WWE was hot or cold, Canadians always show up,” Cena gushed over the great maple country.
He added: “All of you built this to what it is today which makes this, in my mind, the perfect place to say what I’ve got to say.”
“This farewell does not end tonight. It is filled with opportunity,” he said.”I want to say thank you. Thank you so much for letting me play in the house that you built for so many years. Thank you so much always for your voice, because it’s really loud and your honesty because it’s beautifully brutal. and most of all thank you so much for allowing me to be here with you tonight,” he emotionally continued.
Cena signed with WWE in 2001 and has performed part-time since 2018, and has a record of being a 16-time world champion over the years.