Sheamus vs Rusev WWE RAW

Every Participant Announced For John Cena's Last Time Is Now Tournament So Far

Originally posted on The Sportster | By Josh Coulson | Last updated Nov 4, 2025 5:25 AM ET

WWE is holding a 16-person tournament to determine who John Cena's final opponent will be. Cena's final match will take place at Saturday Night's Main Event in Washington, DC on December 13, 2025. The tournament to determine who Cena's opponent will be that night will begin on Raw in Boston on November 10, and below you'll find every wrestler who has been added to the tournament bracket so far.

When the tournament was announced, WWE claimed wrestlers from all three of its brands are eligible, so Raw, SmackDown, and NXT. Unfortunately, based on the bracket so far, women are not being considered. My condolences to Bayley and Chelsea Green, who immediately threw their hats into the ring once the tournament was announced.

There's also a chance that wrestlers from outside of WWE take part in the tournament. My guess would be Matt Cardona, the man formerly known as Zack Ryder, fills that role. As much as we'd all love to see Adam Copeland, aka Edge, enter and win it all, that's probably a pipe dream.

Who Has Been Added To The Bracket?

No sign of any non-WWE wrestlers so far, but at this stage, only four of the 16 spots available have been filled. Confirmed on the first Raw after the tournament was announced, there will be two matches kicking off the tournament when Raw rolls through Boston next week. The last time Cena will ever appear as an active WWE Superstar in his hometown.

The first match announced for the tournament is Sheamus vs. Shinsuke Nakamura . Two wrestlers who have very different relationships with Cena. Sheamus has battled The Franchise Player for years and has had some iconic matches with Cena. Nakamura, on the other hand, has only competed against Cena in one singles match in his entire career.

THE LAST TIME IS NOW TOURNAMENT BEGINS NEXT WEEK! ðŸ”¥ FIRST ROUND MATCH JUST ANNOUNCED:SHEAMUS vs. SHINSUKE NAKAMURA!Could one of these men be John Cena's final opponent? pic.twitter.com/rYlcHrivrB— WWE (@WWE) November 4, 2025

The second match announced to kick off the tournament on Raw in Boston is Rusev vs. Damian Priest. Another match that will pit someone who has history with Cena against someone with almost none. Rusev and Cena famous went to war over the US Title in 2015 with Cena winning the championship from The Bulgarian Brute at WrestleMania 31. Priest has only ever shared a ring with Cena three times, all of which were multi-person matches.

THE LAST TIME IS NOW TOURNAMENT BEGINS NEXT WEEK! ðŸ‘ FIRST ROUND MATCH JUST ANNOUNCED:DAMIAN PRIEST vs. RUSEV!Who will move one step closer to being John Cena's final opponent? pic.twitter.com/ZUS6DHy08l— WWE (@WWE) November 4, 2025

My guess is that Sheamus and Rusev will be the ones who progress from those matches. There are still 12 spots up for grabs, though, and I still think one of those 12 will end up winning. Gunther, Dominik Mysterio, Matt Cardona, and Bron Breakker are all wrestlers I imagine will be a part of the tournament.

This article first appeared on The Sportster and was syndicated with permission.

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