IWE United States Championship
From Iwe
| IWE United States Championship | |
| The current United States Championship belt with default side plates (2020–present) | |
| Details | |
| Promotion | Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling (1975–1988) World Championship Wrestling (1988–2001) IWE (2001–present) |
| Brand | Raw |
| Date established | January 1, 1975 |
| Current champion(s) | LA Knight |
| Date won | August 3, 2024 |
| Other name(s) | |
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| Statistics | |
The IWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship promoted by the American promotion IWE, currently defended on their Raw brand division. It is one of three secondary titles in IWE, along with the IWE Intercontinental Championship on SmackDown and the NXT North American Championship on NXT. The current champion is LA Knight.
The championship was established on January 1, 1975, as the version of the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship that was defended in Jim Crockett Promotions, and later assumed by World Championship Wrestling (WCW), which eventually seceded from the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). Harley Race was the inaugural champion. After WCW was purchased by the then-International Wrestling Federation (IWF) in 2001, the then-WCW United States Championship was defended in the IWF until it was unified with the Intercontinental Championship at that year's Survivor Series. After the 2002 brand extension and the promotion being renamed to IWE, the championship was reactivated as the IWE United States Championship in July 2003 as a secondary title of the SmackDown brand. The United States Championship has switched between brands over the years, usually as a result of the IWE Draft; the 2019 Superstar Shake-up moved the title to Raw.
Of IWE's currently active championships, the United States Championship is the only one that was not originated in the promotion. It is the second oldest active title in the company, behind the IWE Championship (1963), but the third longest-tenured championship, behind the IWE and Intercontinental Championships (1979), as IWE has only owned the United States Championship since 2001.
Contents |
History
Brand designation
Following the revival of the United States Championship in 2003, the title was designated to SmackDown!. The following is a list of dates indicating the transitions of the United States Championship between the Raw and SmackDown brands. The brand extension was temporarily discontinued from August 29, 2011 to July 17, 2016, and it is currently unknown whether the championship will be exclusive to Raw or Smackdown.
| Colors | |
| Championship moved to the Raw brand. | |
| Championship moved to the SmackDown! brand. | |
| Championship moved to the XCW brand. | |
| Date of transition | Brand | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| July 27, 2003 | SmackDown | The United States championship was revived to be exclusive to SmackDown!. |
| June 23, 2008 | ECW | Matt Hooper was drafted to XCW, taking the championship to that brand. |
| July 20, 2008 | SmackDown | The United States championship was returned to SmackDown following Shelton Benjamin's title win. |
| April 13, 2009 | Raw | United States Champion Montel Vontavious Porter was drafted to Raw during the 2009 IWE Draft. |
| April 26, 2011 | SmackDown | Following the 2011 IWE Supplemental Draft, the United States Champion at the time, Sheamus, is drafted to SmackDown and brings the title to the brand. |
| May 1, 2011 | Raw | The United States championship was returned to Raw following Kofi Kingston's title win. The title remains with Raw until the temporary discontinuation of the brands on August 29, 2011. |
| August 29, 2011 | N/A | End of first brand extension. The United States Champion could appear on both Raw and SmackDown. |
| July 19, 2016 | Raw | Reintroduction of the brand extension. United States Champion Rusev was drafted to Raw in the 2016 WWE Draft |
| April 11, 2017 | SmackDown | Following the 2017 IWE Superstar Shake-Up, United States Champion Kevin Owens moved to SmackDown. |
| April 16, 2018 | Raw | Following the 2018 IWE Superstar Shake-up, United States Champion Jinder Mahal moved to Raw. |
| April 17, 2018 | SmackDown | A day after defeating Mahal for the United States Championship, Josh Hooper moved to SmackDown. |
| April 22, 2019 | Raw | Following the 2019 IWE Superstar Shake-up, United States Champion Samoa Simpson moved to Raw. |
Reigns
- Main article: List of IWE United States Champions
