The Royal Rumble is one of the most iconic and grand matches in the WWE universe. The highly anticipated pay per view (PPV) is a multi-person battle royal whose participants enter at timed intervals and the sole objective is to be the last man/woman standing in the ring.
Ever since its inception in 1988, the annual event has grown in participant size and also its popularity among the fans. However, since WWE started its men's and women's Royal Rumble matches each year, it’s popularity and viewership has soared to new heights. This year’s edition of the Royal Rumble PPV will take place on January 31 ((Monday, February 1 India time) at the ThunderDome at Tropicana Field, in Tampa, Florida. The company has lined up quite a few exciting matches which include Bill Goldberg fighting Drew McIntyre for the WWE Title. While Kevin Owens takes on Roman Reigns for the Universal Title.
As the Royal Rumble event is just days away, we take a look at its winners through the years.
1988, Copps Coliseum in Hamilton, Ontario.
Winner: Hacksaw Jim Duggan
1989, The Summit, Houston, Texas
Winner: Big John Studd
1990, Orlando Arena, Florida
Winner: Hulk Hogan
1991, Miami Arena, Florida
Winner: Hulk Hogan
1992, Knickerbocker Arena, New York
Winner: Ric Flair
1993, ARCO Arena, Sacramento, California
Winner: Yokozuna
1994, Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island
Winner: Bret Hart and Lex Luger (Hart and Luger jointly won the title by last eliminating each other)
1995, USF Sun Dome Tampa, Florida
Winner: Shawn Michaels
1996, Selland Arena, Fresno, California
Winner: Shawn Michaels
1997, Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas
Winner: Stone Cold Steve Austin
1998, San Jose Arena, California
Winner: Stone Cold Steve Austin
1999, Arrowhead Pond, Anaheim, California
Winner: Mr. McMahon
2000, Madison Square Garden, New York
Winner: The Rock
2001, New Orleans Arena, New Orleans, Louisiana
Winner: Stone Cold Steve Austin
2002, Philips Arena, Atlanta, Georgia
Winner: Triple H
2003, FleetCenter, Boston, Massachusetts
Winner: Brock Lesner
2004, Wachovia Center Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Winner: Chris Benoit
2005, Save Mart Center Fresno, California
Winner: Batista
2006, American Airlines Arena, Miami, Florida
Winner: Rey Mysterio
2007, AT&T Center, San Antonio, Texas
Winner: The Undertaker
2008, Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Winner: John Cena
2009, Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan
Winner: Randy Orton
2010, Philips Arena, Atlanta, Georgia
Winner: Edge
2011, TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Winner: Alberto Del Rio
2012, Scottrade Center, St. Louis, Missouri
Winner: Sheamus
2013, Scottrade Center, St. Louis, Missouri
Winner: John Cena
2014, Consol Energy Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Winner: Batista
2015, Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Winner: Roman Reigns
2016, Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
Winner: Triple H
2017, Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas
Winner: Randy Orton
2018, Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Winner: Asuka
2019, Chase Field, Phoenix, Arizona
Winners: Becky Lynch (Women’s), Seth Rollins (Men’s)
2020, Minute Maid Park, Houston, Texas
Winners: Charlotte Flair (Women’s), Drew McIntyre (Men’s)