How To Watch WWE SummerSlam 2021: Start Time & Match Card

SummerSlam is one of WWE‘s biggest annual pay-per-views of the year, and here’s how to watch the 2021 edition, as well as the full match card. SummerSlam debuted way back in 1988, and is behind only WrestleMania and Survivor Series as WWE’s oldest pay-per-view event. While it wasn’t always the case, more recent times have seen SummerSlam viewed and promoted as the summer equivalent to WrestleMania, with WWE often referring to it as “The Biggest Party of the Summer.” Still, SummerSlam isn’t quite as iconic as WrestleMania, by a good margin.

Past SummerSlams have played host to legendary matches such as Bret Hart vs. Mr. Perfect in 1991, Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart in 1994, Steve Austin vs. The Undertaker in 1998, and Brock Lesnar vs. The Rock in 2002. Last year’s SummerSlam was a rather odd show, but that was to be expected, since the Coronavirus pandemic prevented an audience from attending. In a strange twist of fate, Braun Strowman and Bray Wyatt, who fought each other in the main event of SummerSlam 2020, are both now gone from WWE.

WWE now has its live fans back, although this reinstatement of live audiences may be subject to change once more later down the line. SummerSlam 2021 airs live beginning at 8pm EST on August 21, and unusually for WWE, that’s a Saturday night instead of a Sunday. Viewers in the U.S. will need to sign up with Peacock Premium to stream the event, or see if their local TV provider still has it showing on traditional pay-per-view for much more money. Outside the U.S., SummerSlam streams on the WWE Network.

Surprisingly, since SummerSlam is only a few weeks away, there are only two officially confirmed matches on the card. However, there are several more matches clearly being set up through the storylines currently playing out on WWE TV. The confirmed main event is a big showdown between top dogs Roman Reigns and John Cena for Reigns’ Universal Championship, only the second pay-per-view meeting between the two men. Also confirmed is Raw Women’s Champion Nikki A.S.H. defending her recently won title against former champions Rhea Ripley and Charlotte Flair in a triple threat match.

As for the rest of the likely card, the matches include Bobby Lashley defending his WWE Championship against a returning Bill Goldberg, Seth Rollins in a grudge match against Edge, AJ Styles and his big buddy Omos defending the Raw Tag Team Championship against Matt Riddle and Randy Orton, Bianca Belair defending her SmackDown Women’s Championship against a recently resurfaced Sasha Banks in a WrestleMania rematch, and Finn Balor vs. Baron Corbin. Depending on if WWE goes back to its pre-pandemic 4-hour length for major pay-per-views or not, it’s quite possible that the above-listed matches won’t be enough to fill out the full card. WWE could always add more as the event draws closer though.

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