Nikki Bella returned to Smackdown last night after four months out.
Bella came to the aid of her sister Brie and Paige who were getting beat by Fatal Influence. Fatal Influence won the WWE Women’s Tag Team titles from Brie and Paige last week.
After making the save, Nikki issued a challenge for a six-woman tag match at SummerSlam.
Nikki suffered a foot injury on Raw prior to WrestleMania 42, forcing her out of her tag match on the show. She was eventually replaced by Paige, who along with Brie won the titles at WrestleMania.
Another match added to SummerSlam will be a number one contender’s bout for the WWE Championship and will pit former champion Sami Zayn taking on Finn Balor.
The main event of Smackdown featured a match between Balor, Royce Keys, Trick Williams, and Damian Priest to determine who will face Zayn at SummerSlam.
While Keys seemingly had the match won, Jacob Fatu interfered and attacked Keys, allowing Balor to recover and hit a Coup de Grace on Priest for the pinfall victory over his former Judgment Day team mate.
Zayn, who held the title for less than 10 days, advanced to SummerSlam by the order of General Manager Adam Pearce, who informed Zayn that if he wants a rematch, he needs to earn it.
A hilarious moment took place at the San Diego Comic Con WWE panel when a fan asked those on stage who would they want to wrestle for their final match.
“I’m gonna say Bayley because I’m in love with her,” responded AJ Lee.
“I’m gonna say Bayley because my wife is in love with her,” chimed back CM Punk.
Danhausen, who is very obviously aware of Bayley’s status with the company and the fact that she has not signed a new WWE deal, answered, “I’m gonna say Bayley because she loves money.”
That sent the whole panel – and the crowd – laughing their asses off, with Lash Legend taking her time to answer before saying, “I want Bayley too!”
Rey Mysterio said he’ll roll with the rest and chose Bayley as well, before Mr. Iguana broke it up and said he wants Mysterio!
A WWE fan asked the panel of superstars who they would want to wrestle in their last match and it led to a funny moment at San Diego Comic Con! 😂 pic.twitter.com/Qxecdv0RI2
— Denise ‘Hollywood’ Salcedo (@_denisesalcedo) July 24, 2026
Bayley has been removed from the OnLocation WWE tryout VIP Experience at SummerSlam weekend.
Bayley was front and center in the poster, along with Je’Von Evans, Robert Stone, Nattie, and Shawn Michaels. Stone was also removed and Bayley was replaced by Ivy Nile.
She was supposed to be part of the meet and greet session for a package that costs $395 per person.
The former multi-time champion is rumored to be exiting the company over the next several weeks after a loss to Lyra Valkyria a Saturday Night’s Main Event.
Dragon Lee sat down with Chris Van Vliet in London, England to discuss his journey from Mexico to WWE, being a second-generation wrestler, the meaning behind his mask, winning the tag titles with AJ Styles, fans referring to the team as “AJ Lee”, sitting on The Undertaker’s motorcycle and what happened next, getting his mask pulled off by Gunther, wanting a match with Rey Mysterio, and more!
That match at WrestleMania 42, the ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship, that was one of the best matches of the weekend.
“I’ve never wrestled in a ladder match. I don’t like it. Because, honestly, I thought that the ladder would be a little bit kind of gimmicked. But I want everyone to know that the ladder was real. I was just trying to try something, what can I do here that’s crazy? I just grabbed the ladder right away, I caught my arm, and I hit my leg, and I was like f*ck it’s so heavy. And yes, it’s strong, man.”
It’s also so hard to climb the ladder in the ring, right?
“It’s weird, you know. I want to tell you this: all my neighbors, they just sent me a text, even my family, ‘Be careful.’ Because at Christmas I fell off the ladder putting up Christmas lights. The ladder just broke, bam! My finger [dislocated], I put it back.”
Is the dream match one day, one on one with Rey Mysterio?
“Of course. Definitely, if you want to be the best, you have to wrestle with the best. I want that to happen one day, and I know it will, and I will be ready. I’m ready for that moment.”
I gotta ask you about this photo of you sitting on Undertaker’s motorcycle. What made you think to get on it?
“I grew up watching that motorcycle. In the moment I feel like I gotta get on this motorcycle. I see everyone in the ring, I gotta take the picture. But I was like, should I? Maybe not. I don’t want to get in trouble. I saw CM Punk, ‘Hey, can you take my picture?’ Yeah, okay. If someone tells me anything, he’s gonna cover me for sure. ‘Hey, CM Punk told me.’ Honestly, I didn’t want to take a picture just because CM Punk told me. He told me to get in to take a picture, and I just got there, like my uncle CM Punk, thank you for that. He helped me get that push that I need to go to the motorcycle. I took the picture, it was a nice picture, but this is not the end. I came back to AAA, Undertaker told me, ‘You realize that you scratched my motorcycle?’ I said, ‘What? No! Come on, you have to be kidding me.’ [He said] ‘Yes, you scratched it.’ No, no, no, no, no. I was like [on it for] for one second, I didn’t [scratch it]. Because I just came in, took a photo, no. He was kidding me. It’s like he intimidated me. I was like, damn, my boss, right?”
How did you get paired with AJ Styles?
“What a nice story with him. He’s so nice. Being a champion with him is another thing that I want to say, he really pushed me to the next level. I’m very grateful to him, because I learned from him in general. As a man, the way he is as a father, and when we became champions, that moment when we grab the titles. He just grabbed me like this and crossed the title, like wake up, yes, we won. I was like, what a moment.”
The Tag Team Championships, that’s the last championship that AJ Styles won.
“I feel honored to be part of his last matches, and even John Cena’s last match, I was part of that [show] too. So many things that I’m proud of myself, you know, because if you’re not, if you don’t recognize yourself, who else will? You just look at the mirror and say, ‘You’re doing well, keep working. I’m proud of you, brother. Keep working.’ My family, that’s it, that’s all the energy I need.”
Did you hear this name that people gave your tag team with AJ Styles?
“Yeah, AJ Lee, right? Yeah, it was fun. We didn’t have enough time to create a name, but I pitched this name, and I think it would have been so great: the Phenomenal Dragons. I feel like that name would be so great, Phenomenal Dragons. AJ Styles has his logo, I said this logo becomes kind of like a dragon around it, something we can do. But I didn’t realize that he wouldn’t have enough time, he would be retired, nobody expected it. The day we lost the titles, he told me and I had to keep that secret.”
The Wrestling Observer is reporting that several former WWE Superstars are expected to sign with AEW over the next several days.
The report says that there are at least “seven names” who are “waiting” to officially jump on board after being cut from WWE this past April.
AEW does have a huge roster but there are names that would certainly make a splash in AEW should they sign, including the likes of The New Day, Sheamus, Kairi, and others. And with Bayley highly likely on her way out as well, the women’s division could get a huge addition with her on the books.
Many people are expecting surprises at the upcoming AEW pay-per-views Redemption and All In, with some of those former WWE stars likely to making their debut there.
In a short statement uploaded on their website, TNA Wrestling announced that Victoria Crawford is no longer associated with the company.
“TNA Wrestling has come to terms on the release of Victoria Crawford, effective immediately. We wish her the best in her future endeavors,” the website reads.
The artist formerly known as Alicia Fox in WWE made her TNA debut in 2025 after a long stint away from professional wrestling.
Her last match for TNA Wrestling came on May 14, teaming with Mila Moore in a defeat against Allie and Rosemary.
NXT this week drew 690,000 viewers, up by a whopping 159,000 viewers from the previous week which had opposition from the MLB All Star game. This was the third most-watched episode of NXT this year so far. The show had a 0.09 rating in 18-49, up 0.04 from the previous week and matches the third-highest of 2026 so far. (Ratings credit: Programming Insider)
AEW President Tony Khan said during a media call with reporters ahead of Redemption yesterday that he will be granting Tay Melo her release.
News came out recently that Melo asked for her release but was initially denied. Khan said the request was only done a few weeks ago contrary to what was reported and took him by surprise.
Melo last wrestled on the June 6 episode of Collision, teaming up with Anna Jay to take on AEW Women’s Tag Team champions Divine Dominion.
Khan added that Melo’s justification for her release was that she wanted to step away from the business and is planning to grant her her wish.
The Brazilian star has been wrestling for AEW since 2020 after a four-year stint with WWE.
It was announced during the San Diego Comic-Con that Mattel will be producing AAA action figures starting from next year.
The first figures will come in Fall 2027, with Mr. Igauna and La Yezca, La Parka, Psycho Clown, and El Hijo del Vikingo part of that initial group.
“Beginning Fall 2027, Mattel will launch an all-new line of AAA action figures inspired by the promotion’s legendary stars, iconic masks, and vibrant storytelling, bringing the excitement of lucha libre to fans of all ages,” a press release stated. “Known for their distinctive masks, costumes, and larger-than-life personas, AAA’s characters are made for collectability, appealing to longtime collectors and the lucha libre community.”
Mattel holds the licensing for their highly-successful WWE action figures line.
The TNA Knockouts TV title tournament continued on Impact last night with two more first round matches.
Wendy Choo took on Elayna Black in the first match, a match which ended in a draw after they hit the time-limit. Both women were later eliminated from the tournament, with their quarter final opponent, M By Elegance, advancing to the semi final.
Jada Stone took on Alisha Edwards in the second tournament match and won, advancing to the quarter finals against Jody Threat.
The two other quarter final matches are Indi Hartwell vs Thea Hail and Mara Sade vs Heather By Elegance.
The pre-sale for the WWE/AAA Worlds Collide premium live event is now live using the code ALLWWE on Ticketmaster.com.
The show will take place on Saturday, September 26 live from the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois on the same day as the AEW All Out pay-per-view in neighboring Hoffman Estates, Illinois.
Tickets for Worlds Collide start at $57.10 and all the way up to $1065.55 for VIP ringside.
Judging from the seating chart, WWE has opened up pretty much the whole of Allstate Arena apart from behind the stage.
Mercedes Mone will be performing her first-ever DJ set at the Sweet Chin Disco All In Afterparty on August 30.
The CEO, who could be the new AEW Women’s champion after All In, will be performing at Crystal Club at Wembley immediately following the conclusion of All In. The party goes on until 2:15AM.
A limited number of VIP Meet & Greet packages with Mone are also available. The package includes event entry and photo only with Mercedes, taken on your own device. Mercedes will not be signing autographs at this event for security reasons. Meet & greets will take place during approximately the first 60–90 minutes of the event.
Fellow AEW star Lio Rush will also be at the event for a live performance.
SiriusXM and WWE have announced the launch of WWE Radio, the new official audio home of WWE.
Starting Monday, July 27, WWE Radio takes over SiriusXM channel 156, serving as the ultimate destination for WWE fans as it brings together SiriusXM’s popular daily programming, live audio broadcasts of the biggest WWE events and premier podcast content.
WWE Radio elevates SiriusXM’s wrestling offering by providing live play-by-play audio coverage of all of WWE’s biggest Premium Live Events including WrestleMania, SummerSlam, Royal Rumble and Survivor Series. In addition to these live event broadcasts, the channel will feature select audio simulcasts of WWE’s weekly flagship television programming, giving fans a way to follow the action from anywhere.
The launch comes ahead of SummerSlam weekend, when SiriusXM will produce WWE Radio’s first live event broadcast of the two-night event on-site in Minnesota on Saturday, August 1, and Sunday, August 2. Lead play-by-play announcer Vic Joseph will be joined by WWE Hall of Famer Booker T, as they call the action in and around the ring to SiriusXM listeners.
“We’re excited to bring the WWE Universe closer to all of the in-ring action at WWE’s biggest events on SiriusXM, beginning with wall-to-wall coverage of SummerSlam in Minnesota,” says WWE Hall of Famer Booker T.
WWE Radio will broadcast several live shows directly from Minneapolis in the days leading up to SummerSlam, capturing the vibrant atmosphere and fan excitement surrounding the weekend’s events. Dave LaGreca, Bully Ray, Mark Henry, Tommy Dreamer, Sam Roberts and Peter Rosenberg will host from the Minneapolis Convention Center and will analyze upcoming storylines, interview WWE personalities and Superstars, and speak with fans in Minneapolis and across the country
“The WWE Universe is always looking for new ways to engage with WWE, and our partnership with SiriusXM will deliver exclusive access, original programming and live event coverage that brings fans closer to the action wherever they are,” says Alex Varga, Executive Vice President, WWE.
In addition to the live event coverage, WWE Radio will be home to the popular daily wrestling programming that SiriusXM has delivered wrestling fans for years. The programming lineup is anchored by SiriusXM’s longtime flagship wrestling show, “Busted Open,” hosted by Dave LaGreca and WWE Legends Bully Ray, Mark Henry and Nic Nemeth every day from 9 a.m. to noon ET.
Listeners will also hear “Notsam Wrestling Live,” hosted by Sam Roberts, “Cheap Heat Live” with Peter Rosenberg, “The Hart Beat with Natalya,” and “Off the Ropes,” which features a cast of current and former wrestlers including Raj Dhesi, Mark Henry and Tommy Dreamer. The nighttime show, “Busted Open After Dark,” will continue to air five nights a week to give fans a place to call in and react after nightly wrestling events.
“We are thrilled to team up with WWE to launch the most comprehensive wrestling audio platform in the industry,” says Jared Fox, SVP, Sports Programming, Content Marketing & Partnerships for SiriusXM. “By bringing together SiriusXM’s live pro wrestling programming with WWE’s world-class events, we are delivering an unmatched, 24/7 home for the WWE Universe, giving fans a way to tune in to every match and stay connected with every storyline, from anywhere they want to listen.”
Several popular WWE podcasts produced in partnership Fanatics will also be a part of the WWE Radio schedule, with episodes airing every day at 4 p.m. ET. These will include:
What Do You Want to Talk About? hosted by Cody Rhodes
Six Feet Under with The Undertaker
What’s Your Story? with Steph McMahon
WWE Now, Raw Recap hosted by Sam Roberts and Megan Morant
WWE Radio will be available to SiriusXM listeners nationwide in their cars (SiriusXM channel 156) and on the SiriusXM app.
Search for the best social casino and you’ll get a dozen lists that don’t agree with each other. Part of that is normal marketing noise. But a bigger part is that “social casino” now covers two genuinely different products — and the top-rated platform for you depends entirely on which one you’re actually looking for.
If you want the shortlist straight away, a ranked top 10 social casinos breakdown scores the leading platforms side by side on library size, bonus structure, and mobile experience. But any ranking only tells you something useful once you know which of the two categories you’re actually shopping in — so here’s the short answer first, then the reasoning behind it.
The two categories, and why it matters
Pure social casinos run on virtual coins with no cash value. You play slots and table games for entertainment, coins can’t be redeemed for anything, and there’s nothing to win beyond a higher balance and a good time. Because no real-money wagering happens in either direction, these operate freely across the country.
Sweepstakes casinos use a dual-currency system — Gold Coins for standard play, plus a second promotional currency that can be redeemed for cash or gift cards where permitted. This structure is what most “best of” lists are ranking, and it comes with strings attached: playthrough requirements, minimum redemption thresholds, and a legal footprint that keeps shifting. California has banned dual-currency sweepstakes redemptions outright, and several other states restrict them, so major sweepstakes brands geoblock or limit access in a growing list of jurisdictions.
If you want a shot at prizes and you live somewhere that allows it, sweepstakes platforms are the category to look at. If you want casino games as pure entertainment with zero friction, no eligibility maze, and no purchase pressure, the pure social model is the better fit — and it’s available essentially everywhere.
What actually separates a top-rated platform
Ignore the rankings for a second, because the criteria matter more than any one list. Across reputable reviews, the same factors decide who lands at the top:
Game library depth and sourcing. The single biggest differentiator. Older platforms mostly built games in-house, which caps variety and dates quickly. Platforms that license from third-party studios offer far more — and give you access to the mechanics people actually seek out, like Megaways and Hold & Win formats from studios such as Hacksaw Gaming and Nolimit City.
Free coin economy. A big welcome bonus means little if the platform then starves you. What matters is the ongoing flow: daily login rewards, timed top-ups, tournaments, and promo drops. Sustainable free play beats a flashy one-time number every time.
No-purchase-necessary in practice, not just in the fine print. Every legitimate platform is technically free. The question is whether you can actually enjoy it for months without paying — or whether the design quietly funnels you toward a purchase within a week.
Mobile performance. Around nine in ten sessions happen on a phone. If a platform’s browser experience is clunky, nothing else saves it.
Transparency and support. Clear terms, a visible operator, and responsive live chat. Unhelpfully, many social casinos never disclose RTP figures, so the ones that surface any game-level data earn real credit.
The names that consistently rank
Among established players, the recurring top-list regulars are the long-running brands most US players already know — Chumba Casino, LuckyLand Slots, DoubleDown Casino, and High 5 Casino, joined by newer heavyweights like Pulsz, McLuck, WOW Vegas, and Stake.us on the sweepstakes side. These platforms rank on longevity, scale, and reliability. The tradeoff is that many run largely proprietary libraries, so if you’ve played one for a year, you’ve likely seen most of what it has.
That’s precisely where the newer wave has made its mark. Cashoomo launched in 2024 and took the aggregator route instead of building in-house — thousands of titles pulled from 40+ third-party studios, meaning modern mechanics that the older platforms simply never offered. Combined with a no-purchase-required welcome balance of 4,000 Gold Coins, 24/7 live chat, and one of the rare cases where individual game RTPs occasionally surface, it’s earned a reputation as the best new social casino of last two years among reviewers tracking the category. It’s a pure play-for-fun platform — virtual coins, no cash value, no redemptions — which is exactly what makes it uncomplicated to access.
Whichever names you’re weighing, don’t take a single verdict at face value. Seeing the same criteria applied consistently across a full field of brands tells you far more than any standalone review will.
How to pick yours in five minutes
Skip the sign-up-everywhere approach — it leads straight to burnout and a dozen unused accounts. Instead:
Decide your category first. Prizes, or pure entertainment? This eliminates half the market immediately.
Check your state. If you’re leaning sweepstakes, confirm eligibility before creating an account. Pure social platforms sidestep this issue entirely.
Test the library, not the bonus. Sign up, then spend ten minutes browsing games. If nothing looks appealing on day one, the welcome bonus won’t fix it.
Watch the second week. How generous a platform feels after the welcome bonus is spent is the real test of its free coin economy.
Keep two, drop the rest. Most regular players settle on a small handful and play those daily. That’s the sustainable version.
The bottom line
There’s no single top-rated social casino in the US, because the category splits into two products serving different goals. Established brands win on scale and familiarity; newer aggregator-model platforms win on library depth and modern game mechanics.
Whichever direction you go, the ground rules are the same: these platforms are for players 18 and over, the coins carry no cash value on pure social sites, and no purchase is ever required to keep playing. Treat any optional spending like an entertainment budget, set a limit before you start, and step away if it stops feeling like a break. Played that way, the top-rated platform is simply the one you keep enjoying six months from now.
Several talent who were given the pink slip in late April by WWE are now officially free agents as their 90-day no-compete clause has expired.
While the 90-day clause prevents those who got terminated the ability to find immediate work elsewhere, it also guarantees their base salary for three months while they sit home doing nothing.
Those who are legally able to appear anywhere they please are Aleister Black, Alex Shelley, Bo Dallas, Chris Sabin, Dexter Lumis, Erick Rowan, Joe Gacy, Kairi, Nikki Cross, Santos Escobar, Zoey Stark, and Zelina Vega.
Escobar yesterday released a statement on social media, telling Nick and Paul, referring to WWE President Nick Khan and WWE Chief Content Officer Paul Levesque, “Watch me!”
Two more matches were added to the AEW Redemption pay-per-view card for this weekend.
A six-way ladder match where the winner becomes the #1 contender for the AEW International title was announced by AEW President Tony Khan after Dynamite went off the air.
Jack Perry, Komander, “Speedball” Mike Bailey, and The Beast Mortos were all handpicked for the match, with the remaining two competitors having made to win a qualifying match on this week’s Collision.
The qualifiers will pit Nick Wayne vs AR Fox and Lio Rush vs El Clan. The winners will then advance to the Sunday ladder match.
Also, a chain match was also announced for the show, with Jay White and Juice Robinson of the Bang Bang Gang taking on David Finlay and Clark Connors of The Dogs.
The match comes after White defeated Connors on Dynamite last night and Khan also confirmed the match following the ending of the broadcast.
The July 13 episode of Raw on Netflix had 2,400,000 global views, down 100,000 views from the prior week and still below the year-to-date average.
Raw was #6 on the Netflix Top 10 global chart with 5,100,000 viewing hours, up slightly from the previous week based on an episode edited to 2 hours and 4 minutes.
The show was only in the top 10 chart in 10 different countries for the week, charting in Bahamas, Bahrain, Bolivia, Canada, India, Jamaica, Sri Lanka, Trinidad and Tobago, United Kingdom, and United States.
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful is reporting through his Select service that according to WWE sources, Bayley has not signed a new deal yet.
There are several rumors suggesting that Bayley is on her way out and that was fueled more on Monday after Lyra Valkyria did an interview during commercials on Raw for the international broadcasts where she said she ran Bayley out of the company.
The two wrestled at Saturday Night’s Main Event, with Valkyria coming out on top.
The 37-year-old has been working with WWE uninterrupted since 2012 and is one of the longest-serving Superstars on the roster.
On her most recent post on Instagram, NXT star Kelani Jordan commented on her photo, writing, “Don’t leave,” with many women also commenting and praising the multi-time champion.
Sapp also adds that if she does indeed end up leaving, AEW will definitely be interested in her services and that would mean reuniting with her best friend Mercedes Mone.
It is believed that her WWE contract runs out in October.
