At Thursday's press conference announcing the location for WrestleMania 36, Hulk Hogan and others appeared to tout Tampa as the show's next home.
WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan kicked off the WrestleMania 36 press conference that took place from Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. Coming out to his iconic theme song, he tried to pump up a fairly subdued crowd but moved right into talking about how special it is on a personal level that WWE's biggest event of the year would be coming to his home town in Tampa. He turned the conference over John Saboor, WWE's Executive Vice President of Special Events who thanked Hogan and called him a favorite son of the area and a great ambassador for WWE.
Saboor then introduced Hillsborough County Commissioner Ken Hagan who spoke of Tampa's rich history with professional wrestling and officially announced that WrestleMania 36 would take place on Sunday, April 5, 2020, from Raymond James Stadium.
Stephanie McMahon then came out and thanked the local organizations who were and would be involved and then noted how she was amazed that WrestleMania had never been to Tampa in the history of the company and how to make up for that, it would need to be the best ever. In an effort to do so, WWE was going to begin working with the city by hosting an anti-bullying rally at a Boys & Girls Club later that day, to which she brought out hometown star Titus O'Neil.
Triple H came out, as did Tampa Bay Sports Commission Executive Director Rob Higgins, as did Charlotte Flair. Natalya and WWE Women's Tag Team Champions Sasha Banks and Bayley were pointed out as being in the front row. Finally, Roman Reigns finished off the press conference and encourages everyone in the area to bring their families to the show.
What This Means
WWE always goes all in for WrestleMania and one emanating from a city they've not yet brought the show to could be a big WrestleMania. As it stands, it appears Reigns will be a key player.