Survivor Series marks the final major PPV event for WWE within the calendar year, and Sunday night the annual event takes center stage once again for the 2020 edition. While NXT was involved in last year's event and even stole the night, this year Survivor Series will return to the traditional Raw vs. SmackDown format as the battle for main-roster supremacy rages on.
Champions from each brand will face off in a series of standard matches and, of course, we'll be treated to a pair of iconic Survivor Series elimination tag matches with one featuring men from each brand and another highlighting the women. It makes for a night of unique pairings just months before WWE hits the Road to WrestleMania.
Survivor Series takes place on Sunday, Nov. 22 from the ThunderDome inside Orlando's Amway Center. The pay-per-view will kick off at 7 p.m. ET following an hour-long kickoff show beginning at 6 p.m., with both streaming live on WWE Network.
WWE Survivor Series card
Drew McIntyre (WWE) vs. Roman Reigns (Universal): Like most matches on the card, this is happening strictly because of the brand champion vs. brand champion layout of the event. Randy Orton won the WWE championship from McIntyre at Hell in a Cell following multiple failed attempts to beat McIntyre in the prior months. On the Nov. 16 edition of Raw, Orton defended his title -- and spot at Survivor Series -- against McIntyre, with the Scot scoring the victory to regain his championship and secure a match with Reigns. Reigns returned to action at SummerSlam and won the universal title at Payback, defeating Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman. Reigns has shown a very dark side since his return and now has Jey Uso serving his needs after defeating him at Hell in a Cell and forcing him to "fall in line." Pick: Roman Reigns wins
Men's Survivor Series -- Keith Lee, AJ Styles, Sheamus, Braun Strowman & Riddle (Raw) vs. Kevin Owens, Jey Uso, King Corbin, Seth Rollins & Otis (SD): Lee, Styles, Strowman and Sheamus cemented their places on the Raw men's team by picking up wins in qualifying matches. Riddle received a second shot to qualify and beat Jeff Hardy and Elias in a triple threat match to secure the final spot. Lee, Strowman and Sheamus as bruisers combined with Styles and Riddle's technique and speed set up Team Raw as a strong group, though there are some internal tensions plaguing the team. The SmackDown side has been coming together with Owens and Uso as the initial qualifiers -- though they had significant issues on the Nov. 6 SmackDown -- and Corbin and Rollins joining the fold. Otis was given the final spot by Adam Pearce on the go-home edition of Raw. Pick: Team Raw wins
Women's Survivor Series -- Nia Jax, Shayna Baszler, Lacey Evans, Peyton Royce & Lana (Raw) vs. Bianca Belair, Ruby Riott, Liv Morgan, Bayley & Natalya (SD): On the Oct. 26 edition of Raw, the first four members of the women's team for the Raw side were announced as Rose and Brooke along with tag champions Jax and Baszler. The fifth spot was up for grabs in a fatal four-way between Lana, Lacey Evans, Nikki Cross and Peyton Royce, with Lana taking advantage of the other three women taking each other out to earn her spot on the team. Rose and Brooke were then injured on the Nov. 16 Raw and Evans and Royce were announced as their replacements. SmackDown has not yet formed a team. Belair was the first to secure her spot and Riott followed up by swooping in to score a win in a three-way with Natalya and Zelina Vega. Morgan won a fatal-four way against Chelsea Green, Tamina and Natalya to secure her spot. Bayley was given a spot by Adam Pearce on Nov. 20, with Natalya finally securing her spot in the match by submitting Tamina on the same show. Pick: Team SmackDown wins
Asuka (Raw women's) vs. Sasha Banks (SD women's): Another champion vs. champion match, and one we've seen several times in recent months. Banks won the Raw women's title from Asuka in July, only to have Asuka regain the belt at SummerSlam the following month. Banks then returned to SmackDown, where she eventually won the SmackDown women's title from Bayley inside Hell in a Cell and defended the title successfully against Bayley on the Nov. 6 edition of SmackDown. Banks and Asuka may not be a fresh pairing, but the duo always deliver high-quality matches. Pick: Asuka wins
The New Day (Raw tag team) vs. The Street Profits (SD tag team): Raw tag champs New Day and SmackDown tag champs The Street Profits actually switched brands in the recent WWE Draft. The two teams then exchanged title belts to align with their new homes while retaining their status as champions. This is a first-time ever match -- assuming WWE doesn't somehow run a form of it ahead of the pay-per-view -- and has potential to be the best tag match held in a WWE ring in 2020 if given the time to live up to potential. Pick: The New Day wins
Bobby Lashley (United States) vs. Sami Zayn (Intercontinental): Intercontinental champion Zayn returned to action in September, wrestling his first match since March. Sidelined due to his concerns over COVID-19, Zayn was stripped of the title but won it back in a wild ladder match at Clash of Champions. Lashley won the United States title from Apollo Crews at Payback and has remained dominant since, though his focus has largely been on his role in The Hurt Business and their ongoing issues with Retribution. Pick: Sami Zayn wins
The Undertaker's Final Farewell: The show was originally advertised as a "celebration of 30 years of The Undertaker," so it already seemed a near guarantee that we'll see him make an appearance during the event. WWE has since confirmed that the event will feature an appearance by Undertaker for a "Final Farewell," seemingly ending his career officially where it all started 30 years ago after several semi-retirements.
Dual-brand battle royal (Kickoff show): This match was announced on Nov. 20. No participants have been announced, but it will include members of both Raw and SmackDown. Pick: Lars Sullivan wins
