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As infections of COVID-19 Omicron variant rage forward, a number of different sports and entertainment entities are dealing with breakthrough cases for vaccinated personnel and talents. Nearly a dozen Broadway shows have canceled performances or closed their doors for good, the NFL has reconfigured their schedule and the National Hockey League has paused its season until after Christmas while also making the decision to withdraw its players from the 2022 Winter Olympics in China.
Unfortunately, World Wrestling Entertainment is not immune from the issues.
PWInsider.com has learned from multiple sources that coming out of this past weekend's loop of live events and TV tapings, a number of talents and staff were feeling run down and some have since tested positive for COVID-19, while others who were feeling sick are still waiting for their test results to return.
Friday's edition of Smackdown on FOX is already taped, so that show will not feature any changes due to the COVID positives.
However, where this could have an immediate ripple effect is the return of the post-Christmas Holiday Tour, which resumes after being paused last year due to the pandemic. How widespread the issues may be remains to be seen, but given quarantine requirements and the timing of positive COVID-19 tests, it's impossible there won't be some repercussions as there is just not enough time for some talents and staff to test negative and be cleared to return.
The Holiday Tour commences this Sunday 12/26 at New York City's Madison Square Garden with the Raw brand and The Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida with the Smackdown roster, just four days away. Beyond MSG and Tampa, there are eight additional tour stops scheduled across both the United States and Canada. In the United States, the tour hits Detroit for a Monday Night Raw broadcast with additional Holiday Tour live events in Orlando, Pittsburgh, Baltimore, Buffalo and Washington, DC. PWInsider.com is told that currently, there are no plans to cancel any events in the United States.
WWE is slated to run Toronto, Ontario and Laval, Quebec in Canada next week as well, although the latter event is currently up in the air as that province has shut down due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Tickets for the Laval event are no longer on sale but the event is still currently listed as taking place.
Two days after the Holiday Tour ends on 12/30, WWE presents their first PPV of the year, the first-ever Day 1 event from Atlanta, GA, which will stream on Peacock and the WWE Network as well as traditional PPV outlets.
Stamford, CT, where WWE is headquartered, recently reinstated an indoor mask mandate for the third time, requiring people in indoor public spaces to cover their faces.
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