The Kansas City Chiefs received an unflattering shoutout Saturday during WWE’s 2025 Royal Rumble event.
Reigning WWE Tag Team Champions #DIY, comprised of Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa, took on the Motor City Machine Guns, Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin, in a two-out-of-three falls match at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind.
During the match, the referee missed an illegal double-team move executed by Gargano and Ciampa. The move nearly cost the Machine Guns a pinfall.
The referee slip-up had announcers Wade Barrett and Pat McAfee throwing shade at the Chiefs and NFL officiating.
“I’ve not seen officiating this bad since the last Kansas City Chiefs game,” Barrett said.
“I love the greatness of the Chiefs,” replied McAfee. “But some of those calls, I go, ‘Ehhh, what’s going on?'”
NFL officials are catching some serious strays from Wade Barrett at the Royal Rumble.
"I've not seen officiating this bad since the last Kansas City Chiefs game." pic.twitter.com/KEcR35h8jA
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 2, 2025
The #DIY duo retained their tag team titles thanks to some outside interference from the Street Profits, which the WWE referee once again missed.
What did we just WITNESS?!#RoyalRumble pic.twitter.com/3hgTjK0Iea
— WWE (@WWE) February 2, 2025
Opposing NFL stars have blasted NFL officials for allegedly favoring the Chiefs throughout the season. Even Troy Aikman scrutinized some of the calls Kansas City benefited from during its current run to the Super Bowl.
The Chiefs’ favorable calls being compared to poor officiating in another sport would be bad enough. But being called out by announcers in the WWE, a completely scripted program, makes the shot against the Chiefs and the NFL feel much worse.
