Update on John Cena’s Match Placement at SNME – John Cena’s final match is set for this weekend’s WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event in Washington, D.C., but there is still uncertainty surrounding where the bout will appear on the card. Earlier reports suggested the match would open the show, but according to Bryan Alvarez on Thursday’s Wrestling Observer Live, the lineup is still being discussed internally.

Alvarez explained that WWE has not yet finalized the match order and that Cena’s bout could still shift. “They could open with anything they want on Saturday night. The day the show is going to come, someone may say, ‘You know what? What are we doing? Let’s put the John Cena match on last.’ All I can tell you is 100% the idea was 100% that John Cena’s match was going on first. Now, whether it does, we’ll find out the day of the show. There are a lot of arguments for and against.”

Much of the debate stems from Cena himself. Throughout the build-up to his farewell appearance, Cena has been clear about his preference: he wants to open the show. “John Cena wants to go on first. It’s John Cena’s retirement match. He wants to open the show. He has said this publicly. He has said this privately. Whatever everyone else’s arguments are about where the match should take place, John Cena wants to go on first,” Alvarez added.

Cena’s reasoning centers on spotlighting the future rather than the past. Alvarez noted that Cena insisted on including NXT talent in the event so they could benefit from the attention surrounding his final night. “John Cena legitimately wanted NXT wrestlers on the show so that they could be showcased for his final appearance, his final Saturday night’s main event. He said this countless times, ‘I don’t want this show to be about me. I am going to have my final match on this show, but I want this match to be a springboard for other people as well.’ And so in his mind, he wants to open the show so that the NXT wrestlers can be seen as the main eventers.”

WWE has also produced an emotional four-minute tribute video set to “Sweet Disposition” by The Temper Trap, featuring silent acknowledgments from top stars and executives including Roman Reigns, Brock Lesnar, CM Punk, Paul “Triple H” Levesque, Stephanie McMahon, Seth Rollins, and Becky Lynch. The piece serves as a farewell message as Cena closes his in-ring career.

Saturday’s card will be stacked, with Cena facing Gunther in the final match of his legendary career. Elsewhere, Cody Rhodes meets NXT Champion Oba Femi, Bayley squares off with rising NXT prospect Sol Ruca, and Je’Von Evans teams with Leon Slater to challenge AJ Styles & Dragon Lee for the WWE World Tag Team Championship.

Update on John Cena’s Match Placement at SNME

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