WWE Tribute to the Troops’ Future Remains Uncertain After 2024 Absence

WWE has a rich history of hosting events designed to celebrate specific themes or honor particular groups of fans. Among these is Tribute to the Troops, an event dedicated to honoring the courageous men and women serving in the armed forces. However, the future of this iconic event now seems uncertain.

As 2024 comes to an end, no special has been filmed or promoted, confirming the Tribute to the Troops event won’t take place this year. While speaking on Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer stated that the annual event is effectively canceled for 2024, though its long-term future remains unclear.

Meltzer explained that WWE has had too much going on to prioritize the show and noted its ties to Vince McMahon, stating that without him in charge, the event has quietly been discontinued without an official announcement. This marks the first year where no Tribute to the Troops content or events have been produced.

“No more. It’s done. Obviously, the year being up, I think in the last month people were kind of asking when they’re taping it. It just was not being taped. They had too many other things going on. I don’t know if it’s done for good, but this is the first year that they haven’t done anything with that. I think that in 2019 I believe they didn’t do a television show, but they still did events and they still taped stuff. But this year, nothing. It was a Vince McMahon thing, and it’s not Vince’s company anymore. It’s not something that you’re going to advertise that we’re not doing this anymore, but it quietly went away this year.”

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Tribute to the Troops began in 2003 as a WWE event where wrestlers traveled to Iraq and Afghanistan to perform for U.S. armed forces. Starting in 2010, the event shifted to domestic venues in the United States. Traditionally airing during the Christmas season, it became a regular part of WWE’s holiday programming. In 2023, instead of a standalone event, the December 8th episode of SmackDown was presented as a special edition tied to the tribute theme.

As WWE’s schedule grows busier and priorities shift under new leadership, the future of Tribute to the Troops remains unclear. Many fans of the event hope it will make a comeback, preserving its tradition of honoring and celebrating military service.