John Cena Announces Official Retirement From WWE; To Hang Up Boots At WrestleMania 41

The Money in the Bank 2024 pay-per-view was always going to drop in some surprises but it spewed the most unexpected one. 16-time World Champion John Cena made his return at the special event and announced that he will be officially retiring from WWE's in-ring competition in 2025. He revealed that WrestleMania 41 would be the last time he would grace the squared circle of WWE.

John Cena Announces Retirement From WWE

After more than 20 years of in-ring brilliance, WWE legend John Cena has decided to call it a career. The leader of Cenation made a surprise return at WWE Money in the Bank 2025 and left ecstatic fans at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada and all over the world in dismay. 
 
"Tonight, I am officially announcing my retirement from the WWE," he said to break out the news. WWE Head of Creative Paul 'Triple H' Levesque tweeted a small video clip of him and Cena hugging backstage with the caption "The Greatest of All Time".

John Cena gave the intimation that he will head out at the “Grandest Stage of Them All,” at WrestleMania 41. However, will be making prior appearances to the event. Cena will be present at the Raw premiere of 2025. Which will also mark WWE's debut on Netflix. He will also appear on the year's Road to WrestleMania event- WWE Royal Rumble- and will feature at Elimination Chamber as well.  

John Cena: Then, Now, Forever

Cena has been teasing his retirement for quite some time now. On occasions, the 47-year-old has admitted that he is past his prime and consequently has been spending the last 5 years to push the young talent of the WWE. Once a regular on every show, John Cena has been acting as a part-timer for WWE since 2017, putting "potential stars over", a term used to describe taking a loss to put a fresh face in the limelight. In the process, he has put over, Austin Theory and Solo Sikoa. His last notable in-ring performance came at WrestleMania 40, where he tackled the Bloodline to help Cody Rhodes finish "his story."

His final showdown at WrestleMania 41 could be the 6th time he would headline the WWE's marquee event. While there is still time for Mania 41, the event will eventually appear and Cena will make his iconic entry for the last time, but following that, there will be a huge void that will possibly never be filled. His departure would release a rollercoaster of emotions and may hit millions of fans, as in his peak John Cena attracted countless masses from across the world to WWE and he is a significant part of a section of WWE Universe's childhood. John Cena's legacy will remain untouched he will immortally remain as a part of Then, Now, and Forever.