John Cena drops major hint at post-retirement WWE future; reveals "cool things" planned

John Cena is preparing to say goodbye to the WWE Universe. The 16-time world champion is less than three weeks from his final WrestleMania as he will be retiring from in-ring action at the end of this year. The rumor mill is running rampant with buzz surrounding Cena's future in retirement, and now the man himself is revealing a few scoops.

Big Match John has been wrestling for more than 25 years. Cena has been a face of World Wrestling Entertainment for most of those years, and in recent years, he's continued making his name as a Hollywood heavyweight. The heel superstar previously dismissed rumors of a potential ring return after retirement, but he does have plans to continue working the industry he's loved since he as a child.

Cena is adamant that he will have some sort of working relationship while retired. Speaking to PEOPLE earlier today, the Massachusetts native was asked what his career has meant to him, and if there's anything left on his WWE bucket list. Cena once again teased "cool" happenings for his final run, and touched on his longterm future with the Stamford-based company.

"Gosh, I think if anything, if you get to that point... Man, I don't know. I want to be careful by not spoiling the cool moments that we have, but this is something that goes beyond WWE programming. I just love it, and I think that when I can no longer compete, I will always be a member of the WWE family in some capacity, whether I can pass on my wisdom through mentorship or be an advocate and a spokesperson for the brand. They certainly will have to shoo me away, because I'm like you, I'm a fan first and I love it so much," John Cena said. [H/T - PEOPLE]

The Face That Runs The Place will headline his final WrestleMania event. Officials have confirmed that Cena vs. Rhodes will be the main event of Night Two.

John Cena's updated WWE schedule

John Cena will retire from in-ring WWE competition at the end of this year. While more dates will be added as the year goes on, below is an updated look at Cena's schedule:

April 21: RAW in Las Vegas
April 25: SmackDown in Fort Worth
May 9: SmackDown in Dayton
May 10: Backlash in St. Louis
May 25: Saturday Night's Main Event in Tampa
May 30: SmackDown in Knoxville
June 6: SmackDown in Bakersfield
June 13: SmackDown in Lexington
June 20: SmackDown in Grand Rapids

Cena is believed to be working 35-40 dates in his retirement campaign. He began the tour on January 6 during the RAW Netflix premiere.