Why Roman Reigns Works A Part-Time WWE Schedule, Explained

The “Tribal Chief”, Roman Reigns, was the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion for over 1,200 days. In the early days of Reigns’ championship reign, he was a fighting champion and defended the title at every premiere live event and select live events.

Since early 2022, Reigns began a reduced schedule that saw the “Tribal Chief” working on select dates and making limited appearances. This seemed to have alienated some wrestling fans and potentially hurt his championship reign as a whole. However, there is a reason as to why Roman Reigns is working on a reduced schedule.

UPDATE: 2025/05/18 17:00 EST BY BENJAMIN VIEIRA

In the aftermath of WrestleMania 41, Roman Reigns is left, for the first time in years, all by himself. Paul Heyman turned his back on him and aligned with Reigns’ longtime rival, Seth Rollins. Since the Raw after WrestleMania, he has not been seen. This has been a common thing in the last few years for Reigns to not be competing that often, or even be seen on WWE television. Reigns has admitted that his career will be coming to an end sooner rather than later. In his recent interview with Vanity Fair, he directly addressed what his future in the industry was going to be.

Roman Reigns’ Battle With Leukemia And COVID-19 Took A Toll On His Health

Roman Reigns Took Time Off From WWE Due To Illness

• Reigns was diagnosed with Leukemia in 2007 before becoming a WWE Superstar.
• Reigns had to vacate the WWE Universal Championship in 2018.
• Roman Reigns took time off from WWE in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic due to being immunocompromised.

Several years ago, Roman Reigns had to take a leave of absence from WWE after announcing to the world that he had been diagnosed with his second bout of Leukemia. Reigns at the time was the reigning WWE Universal Champion and had been scheduled to defend his title at WWE Crown Jewel 2018 against Braun Strowman and Brock Lesnar but had to vacate the championship. Reigns had originally been diagnosed with Leukemia in May 2007 during his career in the NFL as part of the Minnesota Vikings. He was able to recover and went into remission in 2009. Reigns was out of action from WWE until February 2019, when he would make an appearance on Monday Night Raw to announce that he was once again in remission.

Over a year later, the COVID-19 pandemic began to spread across the world. At the time, Reigns was the WWE Universal Champion and was originally scheduled to defend the title against Goldberg at WrestleMania 36. Reigns removed himself from the event and decided to go on hiatus due to being immunocompromised from his leukemia. Reigns returned to WWE in August 2020, turning heel by attacking Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman at SummerSlam. This bold move marked the beginning of his “Tribal Chief” gimmick.

Roman Reigns Signed A New WWE Contract In 2022

The New Deal Has A Reduced Schedule For The Tribal Chief

• Roman Reigns signed his most recent WWE contract in 2022.
• Roman Reigns wanted more time with his family.
• WWE and Vince McMahon accommodated Roman’s needs.

When Roman Reigns signed a new contract with WWE beginning in 2022, as part of the stipulations, he elected to work on a reduced schedule. The reason behind this decision by Reigns is so that he can have more time with his family and his need to be more “in control” of his life, inside and outside the ring.

The following is an excerpt taken from his interview with Sports Illustrated Media podcast, as he spoke about the terms of his WWE contract:

“The main thing is, when you’ve been on the road for almost ten years straight, and someone who has been at the highest level, the main event level, I’ve ran a full schedule for a long time. Even before we went to FOX, it changed to where it was SmackDown on Friday, two live events on Saturday and Sunday, and the occasional Monday Night Raw. That’s a four-night schedule, which isn’t as bad as it used to be. We used to do Friday, Saturday, Sunday live events, Monday Night Raw, tape SmackDown on Tuesday. We were only getting a day and a half. This is before private travel, buses, and all that. Fly out Wednesday morning, get half of Wednesday, you get home and you’re tired. Half of Wednesday, then you have Thursday and are trying to handle personal life and family and everything that comes with that. Then you’re back out on Friday. For me, it was trying to balance everything. Someone who has five children, we’re in a critical portion of their lives where they are so young and this is where we build these relationships and bonds and they get to know who their dad is. For me, it was extremely important that I can build my fatherhood as the priority and the number one hat that I wear. In WWE, Vince (McMahon) and everybody was very good about accommodating that and making sure to keep me in the WWE family (H/T: Fightful).”

Roman Reigns Wrestled Even Fewer Matches In 2024

Roman Reigns Wrestled Twice At WrestleMania 40

• Roman Reigns wrestled six times in 2024.
• The Tribal Chief was the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion for well over 1,000 days.
• He lost the title to Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 40.

At WrestleMania 40, Reigns wrestled two matches. On Night One, he and The Rock faced Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins in a tag team match. The two were successful, with The Rock picking up the pinfall victory over Rhodes. However, on Night Two, he lost his Undisputed WWE Universal Championship to Rhodes in one of the most anticipated main events of all time in WWE.

After months of being away, Reigns returned to WWE at SummerSlam 2024 and cost Solo Sikoa the WWE Championship. In the latter half of 2024, he was focused on his feud with Sikoa and reclaiming his spot as the Tribal Chief. Of the six matches he wrestled in 2024, three of them involved Sikoa in some capacity.

Roman Reigns Has Spoken On His Future

The Tribal Chief Will Not Be Wrestling For Too Much Longer

• Roman spoke about his wrestling future with Vanity Fair.
• Reigns’ current contract expires in 2026 after WrestleMania 42.
• He wants to do a less physical form of entertainment.

In 2025, it has been noticeable that Reigns is taking more and more extended times away from the ring. In a Vanity Fair interview, he was asked directly how much longer he was going to be stepping into the squared circle. In response, he stated that he has ambitions outside of WWE, saying:

“After I finish the contract that I’m in, we probably got another year or two max. Then it’s time to take on a less physical form of entertainment.”

It was also noted in the interview that Reigns’ current WWE contract will expire following WrestleMania 42.