When Roman Reigns Is Expected to Make WWE Return Amid TV Absence

Roman Reigns is coming back soon—but not for the reason many fans expected.

According to Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter on January 16, 2026, Reigns is currently scheduled to return at the Royal Rumble, but he won’t be re-entering the main WWE title picture right away.

“We were told that Reigns will be the odd man out of the WWE title picture. He is scheduled to return at the Rumble and one would expect his direction to be clearer there. Reigns’ first match back was confirmed to us as being planned for Saudi Arabia.”

The update finally puts some clarity on Reigns’ status after weeks of speculation—some of which was fueled by WWE themselves. On January 12, Meltzer had reported on Wrestling Observer Radio that WWE may have accidentally spoiled Reigns’ return in a syndicated TV listing due to a production error.

The listing, sent to various outlets like TV Guide, reportedly included two lines not meant for SmackDown: one referencing Maxxine Dupri’s story post-Becky Lynch and the other directly stating “Roman Reigns returns.”

“That’s the thing that WWE sent to the TV Guide people… they sent it for SmackDown. So somebody just screwed up.”

At the time, there was confusion over when exactly Reigns would reappear. The mistake didn’t seem like a calculated tease—it looked more like WWE sent out a RAW description under the SmackDown label, blowing the cover on a closely-guarded secret.

Now, with Meltzer confirming Reigns’ return at the Rumble, it’s apparent that fans won’t have to decode TV listings much longer. What’s more intriguing, though, is WWE keeping him out of the title scene, at least for now—a major shift considering Reigns’ dominance since 2020.

Roman Reigns is coming back at the Royal Rumble, but not to reclaim his spot at the top—at least not right away. With his next match planned for Saudi Arabia, the question now isn’t just when he returns, but why the Tribal Chief is being kept out of the title picture.

Do you think WWE is making the right call by keeping Reigns out of the title hunt—for now? Or should he walk right back into the main event scene? Drop your thoughts below and join the conversation.