Christmas is here and one WWE broadcast which was synonymous
with spreading the Christmas cheer did not make it on the
air this time around, and that’s the annual Tribute to the
Troops.

Since 2003, WWE has held a Tribute to the Troops show every
single year although the 2019 edition did not air on
television. Since its inception, there were 20 television
broadcasts with WWE Superstars sharing the screen with
various armed forces of the United States.

It’s a concept that was floated by former WWE champion John
“Bradshaw” Layfield to then-WWE Chairman Vince McMahon, and
McMahon ran with it, holding the first seven Tribute to the
Troops events in war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan, before
moving the event Stateside in 2010. Since 2010, WWE held it
at major arenas and military bases depending on the
location, with hundreds of U.S. service members surrounding
the ring in uniform.


But the 2024 holidays came and unlike previous years, there
were no mention at all of Tribute to the Troops and it looks
like the event, although popular with the military, will not
continue moving forward.

The event got WWE several awards along the years, with the
USO Legacy of Hope awarded in 2004, the Three-Commander Coin
Award from the Army and Air Force Exchange Service, the
Secretary of Defense Exceptional Public Service Award which
was awarded to Vince McMahon who then gave it to JBL for the
idea of the show, and the Corporate Patriot Award at the GI
Film Festival.

Both President George W. Bush and Barrack Obama also
recorded custom messages which aired in the 2008, 2011, and
2012 episodes of the show.