A major sporting event in Riyadh has been postponed, showing that the region is beginning to reconsider upcoming events amid a series of recent attacks.
The Six Kings Slam, an annual tennis tournament which brings six of the top men’s players in the world to Saudi Arabia for an exhibition, has been postponed.
Saudi General Entertainment Authority Turki Alalshikh announced Wednesday that the tournament, which was scheduled to begin in a week’s time, has been pushed back to December 27.
تأجيل بطولة Six Kings Slam لأسباب لوجستية، على أن تقام في موعدها الجديد يوم 27 ديسمبر 🎾
The Six Kings Slam tournament has been postponed due to logistical reasons and will now take place on December 27 🙏🏼🎾 pic.twitter.com/WY4fQVIaNQ
— TURKI ALALSHIKH (@Turki_alalshikh) October 14, 2026
The change comes due to a series of attacks in the region which have been claimed by the Iran-backed Houthi militia. Most notably, a missile strike at Riyadh International Airport caused 13 deaths and more than 300 injuries last week.
Major events in professional wrestling and boxing are set to take place in the region soon, calling into question whether they’ll follow in the footsteps of tennis organizers and postpone, relocate, or even cancel.
A massive boxing showdown between Canelo Alvarez and Christian Mbilli is scheduled for October 31 in Riyadh. Alalshikh recently reinstated their hopes to go forward with the event, saying that he was told Canelo won’t reschedule the event “no matter what.”
WWE is scheduled to present Crown Jewel from Riyadh just a week later, on November 7. As of this week, WWE has continued to promote the event in Riyadh, showing graphics listing the location on Monday’s Raw broadcast.
