WWE Championship
WWE Championship | |||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Undisputed WWE Championship belt, which represents both the WWE Championship and Universal Championship (2023–present). | |||||||||||||||||||
Details | |||||||||||||||||||
Promotion | WWE | ||||||||||||||||||
Brand | SmackDown | ||||||||||||||||||
Date established | April 25, 1963 | ||||||||||||||||||
Current champion(s) | Cody Rhodes | ||||||||||||||||||
Date won | April 7, 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||
Other name(s) | |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
|
The WWE Championship is a men's
The original world championship of the promotion, it was established by the then-
From its inception until 2001, it was promoted as WWE's sole primary championship. An additional world title, the
History
Origin
The title was introduced in 1963 with
Monday Night War and title unification
In 1991,
In December 2001, the two championships were unified at Vengeance. At the event, Stone Cold Steve Austin defeated Kurt Angle to retain the WWF Championship, while Chris Jericho defeated The Rock for the World Championship. After this, Jericho then defeated Austin, unifying the WWF and World Championships, and becoming the first Undisputed WWF Champion; the Undisputed championship retained the lineage of the WWF Championship and the World Championship was retired.[9] Subsequently, the Big Eagle Belt (formerly representing the WWF Championship) and the Big Gold Belt (formerly representing the World Championship) were used in tandem to represent the Undisputed Championship.[10][11][12] Jericho held the championship for four months until he lost it at WrestleMania X8 against Triple H, who was soon after presented with a single championship belt.[13]
Championship disputes
The Undisputed Championship continued up through the beginning of the first
In May 2002, the WWF was renamed World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and the championships were renamed accordingly. At first, the championship remained unaffiliated with either brand as wrestlers from both brands could challenge the champion. Following the appointment of Eric Bischoff and Stephanie McMahon as General Managers of Raw and SmackDown, respectively, Stephanie McMahon convinced then-Undisputed Champion Brock Lesnar to become exclusive to the SmackDown brand, leaving the Raw brand without a world title.[15][16] In response, on September 2, Bischoff disputed Lesnar's status as champion, stating Lesnar was refusing to defend his title against the designated No. 1 contender, Triple H, and awarded the latter with the newly created World Heavyweight Championship. Immediately afterwards, Lesnar's championship dropped the epithet "Undisputed" and became known as the WWE Championship.[17]
Over the course of the first brand split, the WWE Championship was used as the world title of the SmackDown brand twice and of the Raw brand three times. In all but two cases, the WWE Championship switched brands as a result of the
Just prior to the end of the first brand split, a
Title reunified and second brand split
Following the end of the first brand split in August 2011, both the WWE Champion and World Heavyweight Champion could appear on both Raw and SmackDown. In November 2013, the night after
After
The title changed hands for the first time outside of North America when AJ Styles defeated Jinder Mahal to win his second WWE Championship in Manchester, England on the November 7, 2017, episode of SmackDown. This was also the first time in nearly 15 years that the championship changed hands on an episode of SmackDown; the last time was in 2003 when Brock Lesnar defeated Kurt Angle for the title.[29]
At
In tandem with the Universal Championship
At
On the June 2, 2023, episode of SmackDown, Triple H presented Reigns with a new singular championship belt to represent the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.[36] Amidst confusion of the lineages, Fightful reported that WWE confirmed to them that the two championships are still in fact separate lineages, represented by one belt.[37] This has also been represented on WWE.com, with both Reigns and Cody Rhodes, who defeated Reigns at WrestleMania XL, being shown as champions of both individual titles rather than the combined Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.[38][39]
Brand designation
With the first brand split, an annual
On July 19, 2016, SmackDown moved to Tuesdays and became a live show with its own set of wrestlers and writers, separate from Raw, thus reintroducing the brand split. The draft took place on the live premiere of SmackDown.[41] On the July 18 episode of Raw, SmackDown Commissioner Shane McMahon named Daniel Bryan the SmackDown General Manager and Raw Commissioner Stephanie McMahon named Mick Foley the Raw General Manager.[23][42]
Below is a list of dates indicating the transitions of the WWE Championship between the Raw, SmackDown, and ECW brands.
Date of transition | Brand | Notes |
---|---|---|
August 26, 2002 | SmackDown! | WWE Undisputed Champion Brock Lesnar signed with SmackDown!, making the title exclusive to the brand. The title was renamed to WWE Championship after the World Heavyweight Championship (original) was established for Raw.[43] |
June 6, 2005 | Raw | WWE Champion John Cena was drafted to Raw during the 2005 WWE Draft Lottery.[44] |
June 11, 2006 | ECW | Following WWE's revival of Money in the Bank contract and defeated John Cena to win the WWE Championship, thus transferring the title to ECW.
The ECW World Heavyweight Championship was reactivated and awarded to Van Dam, who held both titles.[45] |
July 3, 2006 | Raw | The WWE Championship was returned to Raw after Edge defeated Rob Van Dam and John Cena.[46] |
June 23, 2008 | SmackDown | WWE Champion Triple H was drafted to SmackDown during the 2008 WWE Draft.[47] |
April 13, 2009 | Raw | WWE Champion ECW Championship were deactivated in 2010.
|
August 29, 2011 | N/A | End of first brand split. The WWE Champion could appear on both Raw and SmackDown. The WWE Championship and the original World Heavyweight Championship were unified in December 2013, with the World Heavyweight Championship retired as a result. |
July 19, 2016 | SmackDown | Reintroduction of the brand split. WWE Champion Dean Ambrose was drafted to SmackDown during the 2016 WWE Draft. .
The WWE Universal Championship was created for Raw |
November 1, 2019 | Raw | WWE Champion Brock Lesnar quit SmackDown and transferred to Raw. |
April 28, 2023 | SmackDown | new World Heavyweight Championship was created for Raw .
|
Championship belt designs
1963–1982
When introduced in 1963, the original WWWF World Heavyweight Championship was represented by a United States championship belt that Buddy Rogers had defended in various territories prior to becoming the inaugural WWWF world champion. The center plate of this belt was an outline of the continental United States and there were two shield-shaped side plates with grapplers on them; the plates were on a red leather strap. On the center plate, there was a circle flanked by grapplers, and the circle was designed to contain a photograph of the titleholder. Above the circle was a shield with an eagle atop it with stars on opposite sides of the shield. The caption "World's Champion" was added below the circle. This title belt was worn by the inaugural champion Buddy Rogers in 1963 and the second champion Bruno Sammartino.[49]
After Sammartino became champion, a new title belt on a blue strap was created and used until 1965. The enlarged center piece contained a crowned globe and two grapplers, and read "WWWF World Champion"; the two side plates commemorated Sammartino's title win. This belt was stolen in September 1965; a new belt was created with a mostly similar design with a couple of minor differences with the design of the side plates. This is the most recognizable version of Sammartino's belt that was used until 1971 and has been called the "holy grail of professional wrestling artifacts". After defeating Sammartino in January 1971, Ivan Koloff held Sammartino's belt for three weeks before losing it to Pedro Morales.[50][51][52][53]
During Morales's reign, the championship belt was updated several times. First in 1971, this design was on an indigo colored strap and contained three shield-shaped plates. Below the center plate, which read "World Heavyweight Champion" and had a cross at its center, a separate horizontal plate read "WWWF". This was replaced with another design in 1972. This version, on a red strap, read "WWWF Heavyweight Wrestling Champion" around the edges with an eagle at the center, while six side plates represented several countries. 1973 saw the introduction of another yet similar design; this one was on a black strap and contained two grapplers above a differently designed eagle. This version was subsequently held by Stan Stasiak, Bruno Sammartino, "Superstar" Billy Graham – who wore a red leather variation – and Bob Backlund. During the latter's reign, the promotion's name was shortened to World Wrestling Federation (WWF), but the physical championship belt still read "WWWF".[52][53]
1982–2005
After the previous design was destroyed, a new design was introduced in January 1983, nicknamed the "Big Green Belt" due to its size and the color of its strap. This was the first to be created under the WWF name. It included eight (later ten) side plates dedicated to the previous champions. The center plate featured a wrestler holding up a championship belt with a globe behind him. This design, held by Bob Backlund,
On February 5, 1988, just before ending his first championship reign, Hogan introduced another new design, the "Winged Eagle" championship belt, which became the primary design for the next decade with many wrestlers holding this version, and is considered the most popular design of the championship. Its nickname is derived from the eagle's wings seemingly coming off of the center plate, which included the block WWF logo and read "World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion". The championship belt also had four identical side plates. Apart from the usual black leather strap, The Ultimate Warrior wore white, light blue, yellow, and purple variations, with the latter also worn by Sgt. Slaughter. In March 1998, after "Stone Cold" Steve Austin became champion, he was presented with a new design, often dubbed the "Big Eagle" or "Attitude Era" championship belt. The center plate was similar to the previous design, but became fully rounded, and the side plates were updated with the inner side plates containing the McMahon family crest of a lion holding a shield that had the WWF logo. When it was unveiled, it originally contained the block WWF logo and was on a blue strap, but was updated in November 1998 to the WWF scratch logo and on a black strap. In addition to the logo, it read "World Wrestling Federation Champion".[52][53]
After Chris Jericho unified the WWF and World Championships into the Undisputed WWF Championship, the "Big Eagle" championship belt was used in tandem with the "Big Gold Belt", the former WCW Championship belt, until a single Undisputed Championship belt was introduced to champion Triple H on the April 1, 2002, episode of Raw.[13] This new belt, dubbed the "Undisputed Championship Belt", was designed by New York-based tattoo artist Keith Ciaramello. Taking inspiration from WCW, this design included a name plate, and like the previous two designs, it had an eagle atop the globe. There were also stars seemingly shooting out from the globe. It originally had the WWF scratch logo and read "World Wrestling Federation Champion"; after the promotion was renamed World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) in May 2002, both the scratch logo and wording were changed accordingly. The inner side plates on this design also contained the McMahon family crest of a lion holding a shield that had the company logo.[54] The championship would drop the "undisputed" moniker in September 2002, becoming the WWE Championship again when it became exclusive to SmackDown!, while the Big Gold Belt was resurrected to represent the World Heavyweight Championship for Raw.[52][53]
2005–2014
After John Cena won the WWE Championship in April 2005, he introduced his own custom belt, the "Spinner Belt", which had a gold and diamond
On the February 18, 2013, episode of Raw, The Rock unveiled a new WWE Championship belt, often dubbed the "Big Logo Belt".[52] The new title was partially designed by Orange County Choppers of American Chopper fame, as well as well-known belt maker Dave Millican.[55] The championship included a large cut-out of the scratch WWE logo (encrusted with diamonds) inside a large irregular heptagonal plate, with the border of the plate featuring diamonds and other gems. The backing behind the logo was the black leather strap itself with a nugget texture. The word "Champion" appeared in a large gold banner underneath the logo. Gold divider bars separated the center plate from its two large side plates. The side plates featured a removable center section that could be customized with the champion's logo in lieu of a nameplate; the default side plates consisted of a red globe with the WWE logo on the globe underneath a crown.[56][53]
After Randy Orton unified the WWE Championship and World Heavyweight Championship, with the latter being retired, the "Big Logo Belt" was used in tandem with the "Big Gold Belt" to represent the renamed WWE World Heavyweight Championship.[57][52]
2014–present
On the August 18, 2014, episode of Raw, reigning champion Brock Lesnar, who had won the title the night before at SummerSlam, was presented with a single championship belt, retiring the Big Gold Belt in the process. This new standard belt, often dubbed the "Network Logo" belt, had a slightly updated design from the belt introduced by The Rock in 2013 as a result of WWE changing their corporate logo to the one originally used for the WWE Network, which had launched earlier that year in February. It included a large center plate dominated by a cut out of the current WWE logo (encrusted with diamonds) inside an irregular heptagon with the capital words "World Heavyweight Champion" along the bottom edges, in very small print. The backing behind the logo was again the black leather strap with nugget texture. The belt retained the gold divider bars introduced in the previous design. The large side plates, like the previous design, included removable round center sections, allowing the holder's personal logo to be added to the championship belt; the default plates showed gold and red world maps with the WWE logo over them but without the crown from the previous design. Customizable side plates have since become a prominent feature with the majority of WWE's championship belts.[a][20][52][53]
The "Network Logo" design would become a blueprint for WWE's men's and women's world championships, with the only differences being the name at the bottom of the center plate and the colors, as well as the women's being smaller. First was the
After Roman Reigns became the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion at WrestleMania 38 in April 2022, both the standard versions of the WWE Championship and Universal Championship belts were used in tandem to represent the undisputed title, although both titles retained their individual lineages. On the June 2, 2023, episode of SmackDown, in celebration of Reigns reaching 1,000 days as Universal Champion, he was presented with a new single title belt to represent the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship. It features the same "Network Logo" design on a black strap, but the WWE logo is encrusted with black diamonds, it has a gold nugget-textured background behind the logo which was made as part of the metal plate instead of colored leather, and the text at the bottom of the plate says "Undisputed Champion"; the side plates remained the same.[36] Despite this, his manager Paul Heyman had continued to carry around the previous WWE and Universal Championship belts until the end of July.[71] On WWE's website, pictures of the previous title belts were still used for the individual title histories of each championship until April 2024 when the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship belt replaced the image for the WWE Championship; the Universal Championship title history remains a picture of the previous blue belt.
Custom designs
Custom championship belts have been created to honor certain reigning champions or match their characters. During Hogan's reign in 1986, he had a modified version of the Hogan '86 made, which included a picture of himself at the center. Not much is known about this "mystery belt" as he quickly reverted to the Hogan '86 version. A much larger version similar to the Hogan '86 championship belt was created for André the Giant before WrestleMania III, although he never wore it as champion.[72][52]
A custom championship belt was used by "Stone Cold" Steve Austin during his second reign (1998), which included his "Smoking Skull" logo as well as rattle snakes. As an answer, The Rock also had a custom championship belt designed and constructed, including his trademark "Brahma Bull" logo, but due to creative reasons, it never appeared on television.
Other sports championship belts
In October 2014, WWE presented the San Francisco Giants a replica of the "Network Logo" belt for winning the 2014 World Series.[75][76] This began a tradition for WWE, and they have since created custom WWE Championship belts for winners in professional sports, with the side plates commemorating the achievement. They have also presented a custom belt to exceptionally notable people for their efforts in their profession.[77] WWE had originally presented custom WWE Championships to winners in both male and female sports, but in 2018, they began presenting those in female sports with custom Women's Championship belts.[78]
Since that original gift in 2014, WWE has presented custom WWE Championship belts to winners of the
Reigns
The WWE Championship was the first world championship introduced into the promotion in 1963. The inaugural champion was Buddy Rogers, and there have been 55 different official champions overall and 11 vacancies.[123] The longest reigning champion is Bruno Sammartino, who held the title from May 17, 1963, to January 18, 1971, for a total of 2,803 days (7 years, 8 months, and 1 day); Sammartino also holds the record for longest combined reign at 4,040 days.[124] André the Giant is the shortest reigning champion, officially holding the title for 1 minute, 48 seconds due to selling the title to Ted DiBiase following his title win.[2] The youngest champion is Brock Lesnar, who won the title for the first time at the age of 25 years, 44 days during SummerSlam 2002 in August 2002, while the oldest champion is Mr. McMahon, who won the title for the first and only time at the age of 54 years, 21 days during the September 16, 1999 episode of SmackDown. John Cena holds the record for most reigns with 13 which occurred between 2005 and 2017.[123]
Cody Rhodes is the current champion in his first reign. He won the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship (WWE and Universal Championships) by defeating Roman Reigns in a
See also
Notes
- SmackDown Tag Team Championships.
References
- ^ Nemer, Paul (September 2, 2002). "Full WWE Raw Results – 9/2/02". WrestleView. Retrieved November 24, 2009.
- ^ a b "The 5 shortest WWE Title reigns in history". Retrieved June 26, 2016.
- 411Mania. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
- ^ "Rogers' 1st reign". WWE. Archived from the original on January 19, 2016. Retrieved November 9, 2014.
- ISBN 978-1-4596-5345-0.
Mindful of the pros and cons of being a member, McMahon rejoined the NWA at the 1971 convention in Mexico City. One requirement by the Alliance was that Morales' WWWF championship be recognized as a regional heavyweight title, and not a "world" title.
- ^ "WWE Entertainment, Inc. acquires WCW from Turner Broadcasting". WWE Corporate. March 23, 2001. Archived from the original on April 8, 2005. Retrieved May 24, 2008.
- ^ "WWE Raw Results". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
- ^ "Monday Night Raw – November 19, 2001: That's One Heck Of A Reset". KB's Wrestling Reviews. July 29, 2012. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
- ^ "WCW World Champion – Chris Jericho". WWE.com. Archived from the original on February 15, 2008.
- ^ The complex history of WWE's era of unification. WWE.com (September 12, 2012). Retrieved on September 5, 2013.
- ^ "WWWF/WWF/WWE World Heavyweight Title". Wrestling-titles.com. Retrieved March 18, 2007.
- World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved December 23, 2008.
- ^ a b "The unification of the WWE Championship and WCW Championship". WWE.
- ^ "WWE Entertainment To Make RAW and SMACKDOWN Distinct Television Brands". Archived from the original on October 17, 2014. Retrieved April 26, 2009.
- Canadian Online Explorer. Archived from the original on January 17, 2016. Retrieved December 21, 2008., Lesnar defected to Stephanie McMahon's SmackDown. Lesnar decided to remain exclusively on SmackDown, forcing Eric Bischoff's Raw brand to create its own World Championship.
After the July 22nd episode of Raw
- Canadian Online Explorer. Archived from the originalon June 29, 2012. Retrieved December 21, 2008.
The entire WWE roster was broken up into two separate camps, yahoo, with some rivalry (especially between future General Managers Eric Bischoff and Stephanie McMahon) occurring.
- ^ Nemer, Paul (September 2, 2002). "Full WWE RAW Results – 9/2/02". WrestleView. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
- ^ "SmackDown results: Truth and Consequences". WWE. Retrieved July 30, 2011.
- ^ Caldwell, James (December 15, 2013). "CALDWELL'S WWE TLC PPV RESULTS 12/15: Live, in-person coverage of Cena vs. Orton unification match from Houston".
- ^ a b "Brock Lesnar receives the new WWE title belt on 'Monday Night Raw'". USA Today. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
- ^ Johnson, Mike. "Future of top WWE championship already hinted at". PWInsider.com. Retrieved June 29, 2016.
- ^ Benigno, Anthony. "Seth Rollins addressed 'The Roman Reigns Scandal'". WWE. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
- ^ a b "WWE Championship". WWE. Archived from the original on June 29, 2016. Retrieved June 29, 2016.
- Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
- Wrestling Observer. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
- ^ "WWE SmackDown Live results, July 26, 2016". WWE. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
- ^ "WWE World Championship". WWE. Archived from the original on July 27, 2016. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
- ^ "WWE Championship". WWE. Archived from the original on December 14, 2016. Retrieved December 13, 2016.
- ^ Keller, Wade (November 7, 2017). "Keller's WWE SmackDown Report 11/7: Jinder vs. Styles for WWE Title, Usos vs. Jordan & Gable for Tag Team Titles". Pro Wrestling Torch. Archived from the original on November 8, 2017. Retrieved November 7, 2017.
- ^ Powell, Jason (October 31, 2019). "WWE Crown Jewel results: Powell's live review of Brock Lesnar vs. Cain Velasquez for the WWE Championship, Seth Rollins vs. Bray Wyatt in a Falls Count Anywhere match for the WWE Universal Championship, Braun Strowman vs. Tyson Fury, Lacey Evans vs. Natalya". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
- CBSSports. Archivedfrom the original on November 2, 2019. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
- ^ Powell, Jason (April 3, 2022). "WrestleMania 38 results: Powell's live review of night two with Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar for the Unified WWE Championship, RK-Bro vs. The Street Profits vs. Alpha Academy for the Raw Tag Titles, Edge vs. AJ Styles, Johnny Knoxville vs. Sami Zayn in an Anything Goes match, Pat McAfee vs. Austin Theory, Bobby Lashley vs. Omos". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved April 3, 2022.
- ^ Thompson, Andrew (April 25, 2023). "Paul Levesque unveils new World Heavyweight Title, champion to be crowned at WWE Night of Champions". POST Wrestling. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
- ^ Keller, Wade (April 24, 2023). "4/24 WWE Raw results: Keller's report on Triple H announcement, Bad Bunny appearing in person, Rey vs. Priest". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
- ^ Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
- ^ "More on WWE streamlining titles, future plans". Fightful. June 11, 2023. Retrieved June 11, 2023.
- ^ "WWE Championship". WWE. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
- ^ "Universal Championship". WWE. Retrieved April 17, 2024.
- World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved December 21, 2008.
- ^ "WWE's destiny to be determined during SmackDown's LIVE premiere". WWE. June 20, 2016. Retrieved June 28, 2016.
- ^ Fernandes, Steven (June 28, 2016). "WWE Championship name change official, Bellas and more news". Pro Wrestling Insider. Retrieved June 29, 2016.
- ^ Nemer, Paul (September 2, 2002). "Full WWE RAW Results - 9/2/02". Wrestleview. Retrieved June 29, 2016.
- ^ "2005 WWE Draft Lottery". WWE. June 13, 2005. Retrieved December 21, 2008.
- ^ "KB's Wrestling Reviews".[permanent dead link]
- ^ Zeigler, Zack (July 4, 2006). "Edge reclaims WWE Championship". WWE. Retrieved May 18, 2008.
- ^ Caldwell, James (June 23, 2008). "CALDWELL'S WWE RAW REPORT 6/23: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of live three-hour Draft Raw". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved May 25, 2017.
- ^ Sitterson, Aubrey (April 13, 2009). "Rough Draft". WWE. Retrieved April 20, 2009.
- ^ Murphy, Ryan (March 16, 2013). "From The Garden to an attic: How the original WWE Title was lost for 50 years — and found". WWE. Retrieved May 19, 2017.
- ^ IPWHF News (June 4, 2022) [May 24, 2020]. "IPWHF to enshrine Bruno Sammartino title belt, 'holy grail' of pro wrestling artifacts". International Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame. Retrieved May 13, 2023.
- ^ "BRUNO'S BELT". International Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame. Retrieved May 13, 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Melok, Bobby; Powers, Kevin (February 15, 2013). "The history of the WWE Championship". WWE.com. Retrieved May 19, 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f g h WWE (April 27, 2023). WWE's rare WWE Title collection revealed!. YouTube. Retrieved May 2, 2023.
- ^ a b Murphy, Ryan. "Seven Rare Championships from the WWE Vault". WWE. Retrieved September 13, 2012.
- ^ Murphy, Ryan (February 13, 2013). "The making of the new WWE Title: How the WWE Championship was reinvented in 540 days". WWE. Retrieved May 13, 2023.
- 411Mania.
- ^ "WWE Champions". WWE. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
- ^ "All-new WWE Women's Championship introduced at WrestleMania". WWE. April 3, 2016. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
Lita introduced the all-new WWE Women's Championship at WrestleMania, and revealed that Charlotte, Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch will compete for this title tonight.
- ^ Flanagan, Neal (June 9, 2023). "New WWE Women's Championship belt presented to Asuka". POST Wrestling. Retrieved June 9, 2023.
- ^ Tedesco, Mike (July 25, 2016). "WWE Raw Results – 7/25/16 (Live from Pittsburgh, fallout from Battleground, new era of Raw begins)". Wrestleview. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
- ^ Martin, Adam (August 23, 2016). "Daniel Bryan to reveal two new championships exclusive to Smackdown Live tonight from Connecticut". WrestleView. Retrieved August 23, 2016.
- ^ Defelice, Robert (June 12, 2023). "Rhea Ripley Crowned Women's World Champion, Given New Title Belt On 6/12 WWE Raw". Fightful. Retrieved June 12, 2023.
- Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
- ^ Pollock, John (June 18, 2018). "WWE announces NXT UK brand with two additional championships to be introduced". Retrieved August 26, 2018.
- ^ Monday Night Raw (Television production). Phoenix, Arizona: USA Network. June 20, 2016.
- ^ SmackDown Live (Television production). Houston, Texas: USA Network. December 6, 2016.
- ^ SmackDown Live (Television production). Buffalo, New York: USA Network. July 26, 2016.
- ^ Battleground (Pay-per-view). Washington, D.C.: WWE Network. July 24, 2016.
- ^ SummerSlam (Pay-per-view). Brooklyn, New York: WWE Network. August 21, 2016.
- ^ SmackDown Live (Television production). Detroit, Michigan: USA Network. December 20, 2016.
- PWTorch. Archivedfrom the original on July 30, 2023. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
- ^ "7 Championship Secrets Finally Revealed". (July 2009). WWE Magazine, p. 37.
- ^ Robinson, Jon. "Edge Interview". p. 2. Retrieved November 18, 2006.
- ^ "Daniel Bryan's eco-friendly WWE Championship: photos". WWE.com. Retrieved January 30, 2019.
Bryan's title is made from 100 percent sustainable organic hemp and carved from a naturally fallen oak.
- ^ "San Francisco Giants celebrate with the WWE World Heavyweight Championship". www.wwe.com. Retrieved May 31, 2017.
- ^ "Daniel Bryan joins the San Francisco Giants World Series Parade: photos". www.wwe.com. Retrieved May 31, 2017.
- ^ "Custom WWE World Championships in the sports world: photos". WWE.com. Retrieved November 29, 2019.
- ^ Pappolla, Ryan (September 26, 2018). "Triple H sends custom title to WNBA Champions Seattle Storm". WWE. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (November 2, 2015). "Congrats to the 2015 MLB World Series Champions the Kansas City Royals!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (November 3, 2016). "Congrats to the Chicago Cubs on a long-awaited (and well-deserved) World Series win. We got you something for the celebration... Enjoy It" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (November 2, 2017). "Congrats to the Astros on an amazing World Series win. WWE looks forward to celebrating with Houston at Survivor Series. Bring this along!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Laboon, Jeff (October 30, 2018). "Triple H sends custom WWE Championship to the 2018 World Series Champion Boston Red Sox". WWE. Retrieved November 28, 2019.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (October 31, 2019). "A back-and-forth World Series that crowned new MLB Champions for their very first time. Congratulations to the Washington Nationals on your historic win. Time to bring the celebration to DC!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ WWE [@WWE] (November 3, 2021). "Congratulations to @solerpower12, @austinriley1308 & the entire @Braves organization on an incredible #WorldSeries victory. Enjoy this custom #WWETitle for the celebration! #BattleATL" (Tweet). Retrieved November 3, 2021 – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (February 3, 2015). "WWE Title on its way to Gillette Stadium for Patriots parade! Congrats Rob Gronkowski, Julian Edelman, Super Bowl Champs" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (February 8, 2016). "Congratulations to the Denver Broncos on winning Super Bowl 50! We have something coming your way shortly... Champs Are Here" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (February 6, 2017). "A never-say-quit team, a football dynasty, and an amazing Super Bowl 51. Congrats Patriots, this title is coming to New England!!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (February 5, 2018). "To quote Zach Ertz, you're "the World Champions" .... so you need a World Title! Congratulations Eagles!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Laboon, Jeff (February 4, 2019). "Triple H congratulates New England Patriots' Super Bowl LIII victory with custom WWE Championship". WWE. Retrieved November 28, 2019.
- ^ Laboon, Jeff (June 17, 2015). "Golden State Warriors celebrate 2015 NBA Championship with WWE World Heavyweight Title". WWE. Retrieved June 9, 2018.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (June 20, 2016). "An unprecedented comeback and a long overdue NBA Championship... THAT is something to celebrate. Congrats Cavs!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (June 13, 2017). "The NBA Championship is back in the Bay...and Kevin Durant is going to have his hands full with all this gold. Congratulations Warriors!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Laboon, Jeff (June 9, 2018). "Golden State Warriors celebrate 2018 NBA Championship with custom WWE Title". WWE. Retrieved June 9, 2018.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (June 14, 2019). "Congrats to Kyle Lowry, Kawhi Leonard and the entire Raptors organization on bringing their first NBA title to Toronto! Can't wait to celebrate with all of you at SummerSlam, August 11 Scotiabank Arena. Until then, enjoy this WWE Championship!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Conway, Tim (October 12, 2020). "Triple H Sends WWE Championship Belt to LeBron James, Lakers After Finals Win". Bleacher Report. Retrieved October 12, 2020.
- ^ WWE.com Staff (July 10, 2015). "Megan Rapinoe celebrates with the WWE World Heavyweight Championship". WWE. Retrieved May 31, 2017.
- ^ Powers, Kevin (November 13, 2015). "Sheamus delivers WWE World Heavyweight Championship to Notre Dame Football". WWE. Retrieved May 31, 2017.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (June 13, 2016). "Congratulations to the Stanley Cup Champion Penguins! Can never go wrong w/ an HBK Line! Title Coming Your Way" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (June 12, 2017). "Back-to-back NHL Champions...gonna need a bigger trophy case in Pittsburgh. Congratulations to the Penguins!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Laboon, Jeff (June 8, 2018). "Washington Capitals celebrate 2018 Stanley Cup with custom WWE Championship". WWE. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
- ^ Laboon, Jeff (June 13, 2019). "St. Louis Blues celebrate 2019 Stanley Cup with custom WWE Championship". WWE. Retrieved November 28, 2019.
- ^ WWE.com Staff (January 28, 2017). "Triple H tweets out a WWE Championship with custom plates for Serena Williams". WWE. Retrieved November 28, 2019.
- ^ Laboon, Jeff (May 20, 2017). "WWE sends custom title to Premier League Champions". WWE. Retrieved May 31, 2017.
- ^ WWE.com Staff (May 6, 2018). "Triple H sends custom WWE Title to Premier League Champions Manchester City". WWE. Retrieved May 10, 2018.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (June 6, 2017). "From WWE to FC Bayern München: Five years at Bundesliga... ....ONE Champion! This is headed your way David Alaba & Franck Ribéry" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (July 13, 2017). "Mumbai Indians and Rohit Sharma, as promised, the WWE Title is on its way... Congratulations!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (July 24, 2017). "Felicidades a las Chivas por la #12 Here is something to help with the Championship celebration..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ De La Pena, Arturo (June 25, 2017). "Triple H sends custom WWE Title to Argentinian Primera División League champions Boca Juniors". WWE.com. Retrieved June 26, 2017.
- ^ New York Yankees [@Yankees] (August 15, 2017). "Champions deserve championship belts. WWE stars stopped by to award Aaron his belt for the HR Derby" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (November 24, 2017). "From us at WWE to F1 Champion Lewis Hamilton, finish the season strong at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix...hope to see you when WWE comes to Abu Dhabi on December 7 & 8" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ WWE.com Staff (July 30, 2018). "Triple H sends custom WWE Title to Champions League winners Real Madrid". WWE. Retrieved August 20, 2018.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (September 13, 2018). "After an exceptional resurgence, history was captured at the Overwatch League's First Finals. Congrats London Spitfire and Cloud9! Jack Etienne, this custom title is coming to you!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (July 19, 2019). "An incredible tournament, an awe-inspiring final, and a team of worthy champions. Congratulations to England Cricket for winning the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2019! This custom WWE Championship is YOURS!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (September 9, 2019). "An incredible end to 4 HOURS and 50 MINUTES in the finals of the US Open. Congratulations to Rafael Nadal…this custom WWE Championship should help celebrate your 19th Grand Slam Title!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "Triple H Sends Custom Title to CFL Grey Cup Champions the Winnipeg Blue Bombers". Fox Sports. January 18, 2020.
- ^ WWE.com Staff (June 20, 2017). "Triple H visits London police officer wounded in London Bridge attack". WWE.com. Retrieved June 26, 2017.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (December 9, 2015). "Honored to present a Troops WWE World Heavyweight Championship to Captains Stacey K. Wright and Scott Gray at US Navy" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (December 14, 2016). "This Championship is in recognition of all you do for our country. Thank you Cmd. Sgt Troxell, Elaine Rogers & Maj. Gen. Becker" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (December 6, 2017). "Thank you to Captain Roy Love, Commanding Officer of US Navy Base San Diego and his staff for hosting Tribute to the Troops and helping WWE honor our armed forces today and always" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (December 5, 2018). "Thank You to Major General Felix Gedney, Colonel Henry Perry, and all the servicemen and women at Ft. Hood for allowing us to host Tribute to the Troops this morning and for your continued service to our country" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Mattias. "20 ans de Christophe Agius et Philippe Chéreau : la WWE leur offre une ceinture personnalisée". catch-newz.com (in French). Retrieved June 11, 2020.
- ^ Triple H [@TripleH] (February 14, 2024). "It's that time of year when the @Chiefs break out the hardware… big congrats to the back-to-back champs!" (Tweet). Retrieved February 15, 2024 – via Twitter.
- ^ a b c "WWE Championship". WWE. Retrieved March 9, 2017.
- ^ "Bruno Sammartino". WWE. Retrieved November 9, 2014.
External links
- Official WWE Championship Title History
- Wrestling-Titles.com: WWE Championship
- WWE Title Belts: A Guide to the Gold
- Wikimedia Commons contain images and other files on WWE Championship