WWE Women's Championship (1956–2010): Difference between revisions

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			{{Short description\|Former women's professional wrestling championship}}
	{{distinguish\|WWE Women's Championship (2016–present)\|WWE Divas Championship}}
			{{about\|the historical championship contested from 1956 to 2010\|the championship of the same name established in 2016\|WWE Women's Championship\|other WWE women's championships\|Women's championships in WWE\|more women who have held championships in WWE\|Women in WWE}}
	{{Infobox pro wrestling championship		{{Infobox pro wrestling championship
	\|name = WWE Women's Championship		\|name = WWE Women's Championship
	\|image = ~~WWE_Women~~'~~s_Championship_2015.jpg.png~~		\|image = WWE Women's Championship (1956-2010).png
	\|caption = The final belt design of the original WWE Women's Championship. <br/>(~~June 2002 - September 2010~~)		\|caption = The final belt design of the original WWE Women's Championship.<br />(2002–2010)
			\|promotion = ] (1956–1984)<br>] (1984–2010)
	\|promotion = ]
	\|created = September 18, 1956		\|created = September 18, 1956
	\|retired = September 19, 2010		\|retired = September 19, 2010<br>(unified with the ])
			\|firstchamp = ]{{efn\|The Fabulous Moolah technically became the inaugural WWF Women's Champion in 1984, but as per WWE's official title history, she became the inaugural champion in 1956 when she first won the ].}}
	\|firstchamp = ]
	\|finalchamp = ]		\|finalchamp = ]
			\|mostreigns = ]<br>(7 reigns){{efn\|The Fabulous Moolah is technically tied for the most reigns at seven, but WWE does not recognize any of the title changes from 1956 until 1984. As officially recognized by WWE, Moolah only has four reigns and Stratus has the most reigns at seven.}}
	\|mostreigns = ] ]
			\|longestreign = ]<br>(1st reign, 3,651 days){{efn\|As per WWE's official title history. The Fabulous Moolah's real consecutive number of days as champion for her first reign is 3,651 days. Moolah first lost the championship in 1966, but WWE does not recognize any of the title changes from 1956 until 1984. Her third reign of 3,841 days, which WWE includes as part of the continuous 10,170-day first reign, is still the longest reign.}}
	\|longestreign = The Fabulous Moolah (])
	\|shortestreign = ]<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/4598286\|title=Mickie's third Reign\|publisher=WWE.com\|~~accessdate~~=2007-10-23}}</ref><br />(<1 hour)		\|shortestreign = ]<ref>{{cite web \|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/4598286 \|title=Mickie's third Reign \|publisher=WWE.com \|access-date=2007-10-23 \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071030153532/http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/4598286 \|archive-date=2007-10-30 }}</ref><br />(3rd reign, <1 hour)
	\|oldest = The Fabulous Moolah (76 years, ~~106~~ days)		\|oldest = ]<br>({{age in years and days\|1923\|7\|22\|1999\|10\|17}})
	\|youngest = ] (22 years, 10 ~~Months~~)		\|youngest = ]<br>({{age in years and days\|1960\|9\|8\|1984\|7\|23}})
	\|pastnames =		\|pastnames =
	* NWA ~~World~~ Women's Championship		* ]<br>(1956–1984)
	* WWF ~~Ladies~~' Championship		* WWF Women's Championship<br>(1984–2002)
	* ~~WWF~~ Women's Championship		* WWE Women's Championship<br>(2002–2010)
	}}		}}
	The '''WWE Women's Championship''' was a ] ] in ~~the~~ ] (WWE) ~~promotion~~. ~~Created~~ in 1956, it was the oldest active professional wrestling championship in ~~World Wrestling Entertainment history~~ until its retirement in 2010 after unification with the ].<ref name="Retirement">{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/wwefeaturepage/features/mccoolhistory/news1/mccool/\|title=Flawless mark on history\|first=Katie A.\|last=Raymond-Santo\|date=2010-09-24\|~~accessdate~~=2010-09-26\|publisher=]}}</ref> A ~~new~~ ] ~~was created in 2016, and although both belts share the name and the original is considered to be the predecessor, the new belt does not carry the lineage of the original~~.		The 1956 to 2010 version of the '''WWE Women's Championship''' was a ] ] in ] (WWE). The company claims a lineage that dates back to September 18, 1956, when ] became the third ]. WWE did not exist at that time, but they claim 1956 for the championship's establishment and do not recognize any title changes from when Moolah became champion until she lost it in 1984. Prior to Moolah losing the championship, she sold the rights to the title to the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and it became the WWF Women's Championship, which would again be renamed in 2002 to WWE Women's Championship when the WWF was renamed to WWE. With the company claiming a lineage beginning in 1956, it made the Women's Championship the oldest active professional wrestling championship in WWE until its retirement in 2010 after it was ] with the ], which briefly became known as the Unified WWE Divas Championship.<ref name="Retirement">{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/wwefeaturepage/features/mccoolhistory/news1/mccool/\|title=Flawless mark on history\|first=Katie A.\|last=Raymond-Santo\|date=2010-09-24\|access-date=2010-09-26\|publisher=]\|archive-date=2016-05-30\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160530043931/http://www.wwe.com/inside/wwefeaturepage/features/mccoolhistory/news1/mccool/\|url-status=live}}</ref> The final champion was ].

			A new ] was created in April 2016, and although both championships share the same name and the original is considered to be the predecessor, the new championship does not carry the lineage of the original. In September 2016, the newer title was renamed as Raw Women's Championship but reverted to WWE Women's Championship in June 2023.

	==History==		==History==
			], the inaugural and longest reigning Women's Champion, recognized by WWE as holding the title for 28 years (1956–1984); she is shown here with the original championship belt]]
	On September 18, 1956, ] became the inaugural Women's Champion as recognized by World Wrestling Entertainment.<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/30445413212111221\|title=WWE: Inside WWE > Title History > Women's > 19560918 - Fabulous Moolah\|accessdate=2007-10-06\|publisher=WWE.com}}</ref> The Women's Championship is descended from the original ] of the National Wrestling Alliance, which is still active today. In 1983, the ] (WWF, now WWE) disaffiliated with the NWA and recognized then-NWA World Women's Champion ] as the promotion's World Women's Champion. The Fabulous Moolah's reign is considered to have lasted 28 years by the promotion. The WWF soon renamed their recognition of the title as the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) Women's Championship.

			On September 18, 1956, ] became the third ].<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingGuestColumn/oct5_schramm.html\|title=Moolah: Twenty-eight years was the reign\|author=Chris Schramm\|publisher=SLAM! Wrestling\|access-date=2007-10-26\|date=October 5, 1998\|archive-date=2012-12-08\|archive-url=https://archive.today/20121208220604/http://www.canoe.ca/SlamWrestlingGuestColumn/oct5_schramm.html\|url-status=usurped}}</ref> At that time, ] did not exist and would not become a company until 1963, when the ] pulled out of the ] (NWA) to establish the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF). Moolah, who bought the rights to the championship in the 1970s, defended the championship as the NWA World Women's Champion up until May 19, 1984; by this time, the WWWF had been renamed to World Wrestling Federation (WWF). In 1983, the WWF disaffiliated with the NWA and Moolah sold the championship's rights to the WWF in 1984, and she was recognized as the WWF Women's Champion.<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.wrestlingmuseum.com/pages/bios/halloffame/moolahbio.html \|title=The Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame: Fabulous Moolah \|publisher=The Ring Chronicle \|author=Steve Slagle \|access-date=2007-10-26 \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110526141104/http://www.wrestlingmuseum.com/pages/bios/halloffame/moolahbio.html \|archive-date=2011-05-26 }}</ref> Instead of beginning her reign in 1984, the WWF claimed the lineage of her reign from when she first became champion in 1956. The preceding champions and the title changes between 1956 and when Moolah lost it in 1984 are not recognized by WWE (although they are recognized by the NWA<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.eccw.com/championship/nwaworldwomens\|title=NWA World Women's Championship\|publisher=]\|access-date=2009-03-26\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100118031548/http://eccw.com/championship/nwaworldwomens\|archive-date=January 18, 2010}}</ref>). As a result, The Fabulous Moolah's first reign is considered to have lasted 28 years by the promotion.<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/30445413212111221\|title=WWE: Inside WWE > Title History > Women's > 19560918 – Fabulous Moolah\|access-date=2007-10-06\|publisher=WWE.com\|archive-date=2011-12-31\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111231021400/http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/30445413212111221\|url-status=dead}}</ref>
	In 1990, the Women's Championship became inactive after ] vacated the championship following her departure from the WWF.<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/30445413212111223\|title=Women's Championship reign\|publisher=]\|accessdate=2007-11-24}}</ref><ref>{{cite book\|author=Ellison, Lillian\|title=The Fabulous Moolah: First Goddess of the Squared Circle\|year=2003\|isbn=978-0-06-001258-8\|publisher=ReaganBooks\|page=197}}</ref> Then in December 1993, the title was reactivated with ] winning a tournament for the vacant Women's Championship.<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/30445413212111214\|title=Alundra Blayze's first reign\|publisher=]\|accessdate=2009-03-22}}</ref> However, the Women's Championship became inactive again when Blayze was released from the WWF. Blayze, as Madusa, unexpectedly signed with ] in 1995 and threw the championship belt, which was still in her possession, in a trash can on an episode of '']'' (in her 2015 ] induction speech, Blayze "returned" the belt).<ref name=renahome>{{cite web\|url=http://www.miamiherald.com/675/story/278156.html\|title=Rena enjoys home life\|author=Scott Fishman\|publisher=Miami Herald\|accessdate=2007-10-23\|date=October 20, 2007}} {{Dead link\|date=September 2010\|bot=H3llBot}}</ref> The Women's Championship was reactivated again in September 1998 when ] defeated ] to win the title.<ref name=renahome/>

			In 1990, the Women's Championship became inactive after ] vacated the championship following her departure from the WWF.<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/30445413212111223\|title=Women's Championship reign\|publisher=]\|access-date=2007-11-24\|archive-date=2012-06-21\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120621143148/http://www.wwe.com/classics/titlehistory/women/30445413212111223\|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite book\|author=Ellison, Lillian\|title=The Fabulous Moolah: First Goddess of the Squared Circle\|year=2003\|isbn=978-0-06-001258-8\|publisher=ReaganBooks\|page=197}}</ref> Then in December 1993, the title was reactivated with ] winning a tournament for the vacant Women's Championship.<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/30445413212111214\|title=Alundra Blayze's first reign\|publisher=]\|access-date=2009-03-22\|archive-date=2012-10-16\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121016133154/http://www.wwe.com/classics/titlehistory/women/30445413212111214\|url-status=dead}}</ref> However, the Women's Championship became inactive again when Blayze was released from the WWF. Blayze, as Madusa, unexpectedly signed with ] in 1995 and threw the championship belt, which was still in her possession, in a trash can on an episode of '']'' (in Blayze's 2015 ] speech, she "returned" the title).<ref name=renahome>{{cite news\|title=Rena enjoys home life\|author=Scott Fishman\|publisher=Miami Herald\|date=October 20, 2007}}</ref> The Women's Championship was reactivated again in September 1998 during the ] when ] defeated ] to win the title.<ref name=renahome/>
	After the ] in 2002, the championship was subsequently referred to as the WWE Women's Championship. With the ] in March 2002, the Women's Championship at first was still defended on both the '']'' and '']'' brands, while most titles were exclusive to one brand. In September, the Women's Championship became exclusive to only the ''Raw'' brand. The Women's Championship remained the sole championship contested by women, until July 4, 2008 when a counterpart to the championship, called the ], was created for the ''SmackDown'' brand.

	] ~~in early 2009~~]]		] in her third reign as Women's Champion after defeating ] for the title at the ]]]
			After the ] in 2002, the championship was subsequently referred to as the WWE Women's Championship. With the ] in March 2002, the Women's Championship at first was still defended on both the ] and ] brands, while most titles were exclusive to one brand. In September, the Women's Championship became exclusive to only the Raw brand. The Women's Championship remained the sole championship contested by women, until July 4, 2008, when a counterpart to the championship, called the ], was created for the SmackDown brand. On April 13, 2009, the Women's Championship became exclusive to the SmackDown brand when reigning champion ] was drafted from Raw to SmackDown during the ] to replace the current ] ], who had been drafted to Raw.
	On April 13, 2009, the Women's Championship became exclusive to the ''SmackDown'' brand when reigning champion ] was drafted from ''Raw'' to ''SmackDown'' during the ] to replace the current ] ], who had been drafted to ''Raw''. On June 28 at ] pay-per-view, ] became the first woman to hold both the Women's Championship and the Divas Championship. Other women that have held both championships include ], Melina, ], and ]. Michelle McCool and Melina are the only women in WWE history to record multiple reigns with both the Women's and Divas championships.

	The Women's Championship was unified with the Divas Championship at ] in September 2010~~. This match was won by ] and unified both titles~~ creating the Unified WWE Divas Championship, ~~thus~~ making the Women's Championship defunct as the unified title ~~follows~~ the lineage of the Divas Championship; the title eventually dropped the "Unified" moniker ~~to be called the WWE Divas Championship~~.<ref name="Retirement"/><ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/divas/\|title=History of the Unified Divas Championship\|date=2010-09-21\|~~accessdate~~=2010-09-21\|publisher=]}}</ref>		The Women's Championship was unified with the Divas Championship at ] in September 2010, creating the Unified WWE Divas Championship and making the Women's Championship defunct as the unified title followed the lineage of the Divas Championship; the title eventually dropped the "Unified" moniker.<ref name="Retirement"/><ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/divas/\|title=History of the Unified Divas Championship\|date=2010-09-21\|access-date=2010-09-21\|publisher=]\|archive-date=2012-03-12\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120312191811/http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/divas/\|url-status=live}}</ref>

	On April 3, 2016 at ], a new ] was introduced to succeed the Divas Championship~~, however,~~ ~~this~~ new title does not carry the lineage of the original Women's Championship, but ~~WWE~~ ~~acknowledges~~ it as ~~its~~ ~~predecessor~~.		On April 3, 2016, at ], a new ] (called the Raw Women's Championship from September 2016 to June 2023) was introduced to succeed the Divas Championship. This new title does not carry the lineage of either the Divas Championship or the original Women's Championship, but is acknowledged by WWE as the successor of both.

			==Tournaments==
	=== Brand designation history ===
			===WWF Women's Championship Tournament (1993)===
	Following the ] on March 25, all titles in WWE became exclusive to either the ''Raw'' brand or ''SmackDown'' brand. The following is a list of dates indicating the transitions of the Women's Championship between the ''Raw'' and ''SmackDown'' brands.
			The WWF Women's Championship Tournament was a tournament to decide the new ] after the title was reinstated after three years of inactivity.<ref>{{cite web \|url=http://www.wwe.com/classics/titlehistory/women/30445413212111214 \|title=19931213 – Alundra Blayze \|publisher=WWE.com \|access-date=2015-12-18 \|archive-date=2016-01-16 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160116100158/http://www.wwe.com/classics/titlehistory/women/30445413212111214 \|url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="ReferenceA">{{cite web \|url=http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/usa/wwf/womentny.html \|title=WWE Title Tournaments \|publisher=Prowrestlinghistory.com \|access-date=2015-12-18 \|archive-date=2015-10-30 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151030022609/http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/usa/wwf/womentny.html \|url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web \|url=http://www.thehistoryofwwe/93.htm \|title=WWF 1993 \|publisher=The History of WWE }}{{Dead link\|date=July 2018 \|bot=InternetArchiveBot \|fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

			{{6TeamBracket-Info \|style=2
			\| RD1=Quarterfinals
			\| RD2=Semifinals
			\| RD3=Finals
			\| RD1-seed1 =
			\| RD1-seed2 =
			\| RD1-team1 = ''']'''
			\| RD1-team2 = Black Venus
			\| RD1-score1 = Pin
			\| RD1-score2 =
			\| RD1-seed3 =
			\| RD1-seed4 =
			\| RD1-team3 = '''Rusty Thomas'''
			\| RD1-team4 = Angie Marino
			\| RD1-score3 = Pin
			\| RD1-score4 =
			\| RD2-seed1 =
			\| RD2-seed2 =
			\| RD2-team1 = ''']'''
			\| RD2-team2 = Allison Royal
			\| RD2-score1 = Pin
			\| RD2-score2 =
			\| RD2-team3 = '''Heidi Lee Morgan'''
			\| RD2-team4 = Rusty Thomas
			\| RD2-score3 = Pin
			\| RD2-score4 =
			\| RD3-team1 = '''Alundra Blayze'''
			\| RD3-team2 = Heidi Lee Morgan
			\| RD3-score1 = Pin
			\| RD3-score2 =
			}}

			===WWE Women's Championship Tournament (2006)===
			The WWE Women's Championship Tournament was a tournament to crown a new ] after champion ] retired from her wrestling career.<ref name="ReferenceA"/><ref>{{cite web \|url=http://www.wwe.com/classics/titlehistory/women/2439826111 \|title=20061105 – Lita \|publisher=WWE.com \|access-date=2015-12-18 \|archive-date=2016-01-16 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160116170348/http://www.wwe.com/classics/titlehistory/women/2439826111 \|url-status=dead }}</ref> The first round started on September 25, 2006, and ended at ] when ], who Stratus defeated in her retirement match, defeated ].
			<onlyinclude>
			{{8TeamBracket-NoSeeds
			\| RD1=Quarterfinals<br />{{small\|'']''}}<br />{{small\|September 25}}<br />{{small\|October 2, 9 and 15}}
			\| RD2=Semifinals<br />{{small\|''Raw''}}<br />{{small\|October 23 and 30}}
			\| RD3=Final<br />{{small\|]}}
			\| RD1-team1 = ''']'''
			\| RD1-team2 = ]
			\| RD1-score1 = Pin
			\| RD1-score2 = 0:28
			\| RD1-team3 = ''']'''
			\| RD1-team4 = ]<br>]<br>]
			\| RD1-score3 = Strip
			\| RD1-score4 = 1:14
			\| RD1-team5 = ''']'''
			\| RD1-team6 = ]
			\| RD1-score5 = Pin
			\| RD1-score6 = 2:51
			\| RD1-team7 = ''']'''
			\| RD1-team8 = ]
			\| RD1-score7 = Pin
			\| RD1-score8 = 2:43
			\| RD2-team1 = ''']'''
			\| RD2-team2 = ]
			\| RD2-score1 = Pin
			\| RD2-score2 = 2:19
			\| RD2-team3 = ''']'''
			\| RD2-team4 = ]
			\| RD2-score3 = Pin
			\| RD2-score4 = 4:00
			\| RD3-team1 = ''']'''
			\| RD3-team2 = ]
			\| RD3-score1 = Pin
			\| RD3-score2 = 8:09
			}}
			* Melina defeated Wilson in a ].
			* Maria defeated Candice, Victoria and Wilson in ].
			* The final match between Lita and James was a ].
			</onlyinclude>

			== Brand designation history ==
			Following the ] on March 25, all titles in WWE became exclusive to either the Raw brand or SmackDown brand. The following is a list of dates indicating the transitions of the Women's Championship between the Raw and SmackDown brands.

	{\| class="wikitable" style="width:75%; font-size:85%; text-align:center;"
	\|-
	! style="background:#ddd;" colspan="2"\|Colors
	\|-
	\| style="background:#fbb;"\|<br />
	\|Championship moved to the '']'' brand.
	\|-
	\| style="background:#bbf;"\|<br />
	\|Championship moved to the '']'' brand.
	\|-
	\|}
	{\| class="wikitable" style="font-size:85%; text-align:center; width:75%;"		{\| class="wikitable" style="font-size:85%; text-align:center; width:75%;"
	\|-		\|-
	! ~~rowspan=1\|~~Date of transition \|\| Notes		! Date of transition \|\| Brand \|\| Notes
	\|-		\|-
			\|September 23, 2002
			\|style="background:#fbb;"\|]
			\|The WWE Women's Championship became exclusive to ].<br />In 2008, the ] was established for ] as the counterpart to the Women's Championship.
	\|-		\|-
			\|]
	\|style="background:#fbb;"\|September 2002
			\|style="background:#bbf;"\|]
	\|Women's Championship became exclusive to ''Raw''.
			\|Women's Champion ] was drafted to ] during the ].
	\|-
	\|style="background:#bbf;"\|April 13, 2009
	\|Following the 2009 WWE Draft, the Women's Champion at the time, ], was drafted to ''SmackDown'' and brought the title to the brand. The title remained with ''SmackDown'' until the unification with the ] in September 2010.
	\|-		\|-
			\|{{nowrap\|September 19, 2010}}
			\|N/A
			\|At ], ] unified the ] with the Women's Championship. The Women's Championship was retired and the Divas Championship became briefly known as the Unified WWE Divas Championship and defended on both '']'' and '']''.
	\|}		\|}

	===Reigns===		==Reigns==
	{{Main\|List of WWE Women's Champions}}		{{Main\|List of WWE Women's Champions (1956–2010)}}
	], ~~who held~~ the ~~championship~~ ~~when~~ it was ~~deactivated~~ in 2010.]]		] was the final champion before the title was retired in 2010.]]
	~~The~~ inaugural champion was ], who defeated ] on September 18, 1956.<ref name="moolah1">{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/30445413212111221\|title=The Fabulous Moolah's first reign\|~~accessdate~~=April 4, 2016\|publisher=WWE}}</ref> Moolah ~~by far has~~ the longest reign by holding it for 10 years. ~~Under~~ the ~~WWWF~~ ~~banner~~, ~~Moolah~~ ~~has~~ ~~the~~ ~~longest~~ ~~reign~~ ~~with~~ 27 ~~years~~. The Fabulous Moolah ~~has~~ the most reigns with 8. ~~Under~~ ~~the~~ WWE ~~banner~~, ] has the most reigns with 7. Mickie James ~~has~~ the shortest ~~reign~~ ~~with~~ 1 hour. ~~While~~ in ~~Paris~~ on April 24, ~~2007,~~ ~~James~~ ~~defeated~~ ~~then~~-~~champion~~ ~~Melina~~ ~~and~~ ~~Victoria~~ in a ~~Triple~~ ~~Threat~~ ~~Match.~~ ~~However,~~ ~~Jonathan~~ ~~Coachman,~~ ~~the~~ ~~Acting~~ ~~General~~ ~~Manager~~ ~~for~~ ~~''Raw''~~ ~~said~~ ~~that~~ ~~since~~ ~~Mickie~~ ~~pinned~~ ~~Victoria~~, ~~Melina~~ ~~deserved~~ an ~~immediate~~ ~~rematch~~, ~~which~~ ~~she~~ ~~won~~.<ref ~~name="melina2"~~>{{cite web\|url=~~http~~://www.wwe.com~~/inside~~/titlehistory/~~women~~/~~4598294~~\|~~title~~=~~Melina's~~ ~~second~~ ~~reign~~\|~~accessdate~~=~~April~~ 4, ~~2016~~\|publisher=WWE}}</ref>		Over the championship's fifty-six year history, there were 59 recognized reigns between 29 recognized champions and 4 ] (there are 6 reigns and 3 people that are not recognized by the promotion). As per WWE's official title history, the inaugural champion was ], who defeated ] on September 18, 1956.<ref name="moolah1">{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/30445413212111221\|title=The Fabulous Moolah's first reign\|access-date=April 4, 2016\|publisher=WWE\|archive-date=December 31, 2011\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111231021400/http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/30445413212111221\|url-status=dead}}</ref> Moolah had the longest reign by holding it for 10 years, although the WWE considers it to be longer at 28 years, as title changes between 1956 and 1984 are not recognized by the promotion. The Fabulous Moolah is technically tied with ] for the most reigns with 7, but because WWE does not recognize the title changes between 1956 and 1984, Moolah only has 4 and Stratus has the most reigns with 7. Mickie James's third reign is the shortest at less than 1 hour.<ref name="melina2">{{cite web \|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/4598294 \|title=Melina's second reign \|access-date=April 4, 2016 \|publisher=WWE \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110818003050/http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/4598294 \|archive-date=August 18, 2011 }}</ref> Only four women held the championship for a continuous reign of one year (365 days) or more: The Fabulous Moolah (who achieved the feat on six separate occasions), ], ], and ].<ref>{{cite web \|title=WWE Women's Championship Title History \|url=https://www.wwe.com/titlehistory/wwe-womens-championship/ \|url-status=live \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190101100747/https://www.wwe.com/titlehistory/wwe-womens-championship \|archive-date=January 1, 2019 \|access-date=October 17, 2008 \|publisher=]}}</ref>

	~~The~~ ~~only~~ ~~male~~ ~~Women's~~ ~~Champion~~ ~~was~~ ]. ~~On January 30~~, ~~2000,~~ ~~Wippleman~~ ~~won~~ ~~the~~ ~~WWF~~ ~~Women's~~ ~~Championship~~ ~~from~~ ] ~~while~~ he ~~was~~ ~~in a disguise and used~~ the name "Hervina" ~~in a "Lumberjill Snow bunny" match; the match took place in a snow filled pool surrounded by female wrestlers whose purpose was to keep the competitors from leaving the pool~~.<ref name="hervina1">{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/304454132121112213\|title=Hervina's first reign\|~~accessdate~~=April 4, 2016\|publisher=WWE}}</ref>		Despite the title being contested mainly by female wrestlers, the championship was once held by a male, ], who won it under the name "Hervina".<ref name="hervina1">{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/304454132121112213\|title=Hervina's first reign\|access-date=April 4, 2016\|publisher=WWE\|archive-date=April 20, 2009\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090420160630/http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/304454132121112213\|url-status=dead}}</ref>

			== References ==
	The women's division was deemed inactive in 1990 during Robin's reign.<ref name="robin1">{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/30445413212111223\|title= Rockin' Robin's first reign\|accessdate=April 4, 2016\|publisher=WWE}}</ref> Alundra Blayze won the Women's Championship after it was reactivated in 1993.<ref name="blayze1">{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/30445413212111214\|title=Alundra Blayze's first reign\|accessdate=April 4, 2016\|publisher=WWE}}</ref> ] departed from the company during her reign. Trish Stratus won her seventh title reign in her final match at ] in 2006 against Lita before retiring the same night, thus vacating the championship the next day.<ref name="trish7">{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/women/243982611\|title=Trish Stratus' seventh reign\|accessdate=April 4, 2016\|publisher=WWE}}</ref> Michelle McCool unified the Women's and Divas Championships in Layla's place, thus leaving Layla the final and undefeated champion.<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/wwefeaturepage/features/mccoolhistory/news1/mccool/\|title=Flawless mark on history\|first=Katie A.\|last=Raymond-Santo\|date=September 24, 2010\|accessdate=April 4, 2016\|publisher=]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.wwe.com/inside/wwefeaturepage/features/mccoolhistory/womenschampions/\|title=Hall of Women's Champions\|accessdate=April 4, 2016\|publisher=]}}</ref>
			;Notes
			{{Noteslist}}

			;Footnotes
	== See also ==
	{{Portal\|Professional wrestling}}
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]

	== References ==
	{{Reflist\|30em}}		{{Reflist\|30em}}

	== External links ==		== External links ==
	*		*
	*		*
	*		*

	{{~~Former~~ WWE Championships}}		{{WWE Championships}}
			{{Women in WWE}}
	{{WWE Women's Championship}}		{{WWE Women's Championship}}

	{{DEFAULTSORT:Wwe Women's Championship}}		{{DEFAULTSORT:Wwe Women's Championship}}
	]		]
	]
	]

Latest revision as of 00:39, 6 November 2024

Former women's professional wrestling championship This article is about the historical championship contested from 1956 to 2010. For the championship of the same name established in 2016, see WWE Women's Championship. For other WWE women's championships, see Women's championships in WWE. For more women who have held championships in WWE, see Women in WWE.

WWE Women's Championship

The final belt design of the original WWE Women's Championship.
(2002–2010)

Details

Promotion

National Wrestling Alliance (1956–1984)
World Wrestling Entertainment (1984–2010)

Date established

September 18, 1956

Date retired

September 19, 2010
(unified with the WWE Divas Championship)

Other name(s)

NWA Women's Championship
(1956–1984)
WWF Women's Championship
(1984–2002)
WWE Women's Championship
(2002–2010)

Statistics
First champion(s)	The Fabulous Moolah
Final champion(s)	Layla El
Most reigns	Trish Stratus (7 reigns)
Longest reign	The Fabulous Moolah (1st reign, 3,651 days)
Shortest reign	Mickie James (3rd reign, <1 hour)
Oldest champion	The Fabulous Moolah (76 years, 87 days)
Youngest champion	Wendi Richter (23 years, 319 days)

The 1956 to 2010 version of the WWE Women's Championship was a women's professional wrestling world championship in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). The company claims a lineage that dates back to September 18, 1956, when The Fabulous Moolah became the third NWA World Women's Champion. WWE did not exist at that time, but they claim 1956 for the championship's establishment and do not recognize any title changes from when Moolah became champion until she lost it in 1984. Prior to Moolah losing the championship, she sold the rights to the title to the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and it became the WWF Women's Championship, which would again be renamed in 2002 to WWE Women's Championship when the WWF was renamed to WWE. With the company claiming a lineage beginning in 1956, it made the Women's Championship the oldest active professional wrestling championship in WWE until its retirement in 2010 after it was unified with the WWE Divas Championship, which briefly became known as the Unified WWE Divas Championship. The final champion was Layla.

A new WWE Women's Championship was created in April 2016, and although both championships share the same name and the original is considered to be the predecessor, the new championship does not carry the lineage of the original. In September 2016, the newer title was renamed as Raw Women's Championship but reverted to WWE Women's Championship in June 2023.

History

On September 18, 1956, The Fabulous Moolah became the third NWA World Women's Champion. At that time, WWE did not exist and would not become a company until 1963, when the Capitol Wrestling Corporation pulled out of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) to establish the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF). Moolah, who bought the rights to the championship in the 1970s, defended the championship as the NWA World Women's Champion up until May 19, 1984; by this time, the WWWF had been renamed to World Wrestling Federation (WWF). In 1983, the WWF disaffiliated with the NWA and Moolah sold the championship's rights to the WWF in 1984, and she was recognized as the WWF Women's Champion. Instead of beginning her reign in 1984, the WWF claimed the lineage of her reign from when she first became champion in 1956. The preceding champions and the title changes between 1956 and when Moolah lost it in 1984 are not recognized by WWE (although they are recognized by the NWA). As a result, The Fabulous Moolah's first reign is considered to have lasted 28 years by the promotion.

In 1990, the Women's Championship became inactive after Rockin' Robin vacated the championship following her departure from the WWF. Then in December 1993, the title was reactivated with Alundra Blayze winning a tournament for the vacant Women's Championship. However, the Women's Championship became inactive again when Blayze was released from the WWF. Blayze, as Madusa, unexpectedly signed with World Championship Wrestling in 1995 and threw the championship belt, which was still in her possession, in a trash can on an episode of WCW Monday Nitro (in Blayze's 2015 WWE Hall of Fame speech, she "returned" the title). The Women's Championship was reactivated again in September 1998 during the Attitude Era when Jacqueline Moore defeated Sable to win the title.

After the WWF/WWE name change in 2002, the championship was subsequently referred to as the WWE Women's Championship. With the WWE Brand Extension in March 2002, the Women's Championship at first was still defended on both the Raw and SmackDown brands, while most titles were exclusive to one brand. In September, the Women's Championship became exclusive to only the Raw brand. The Women's Championship remained the sole championship contested by women, until July 4, 2008, when a counterpart to the championship, called the WWE Divas Championship, was created for the SmackDown brand. On April 13, 2009, the Women's Championship became exclusive to the SmackDown brand when reigning champion Melina was drafted from Raw to SmackDown during the 2009 WWE Draft to replace the current WWE Divas Champion Maryse, who had been drafted to Raw.

The Women's Championship was unified with the Divas Championship at Night of Champions in September 2010, creating the Unified WWE Divas Championship and making the Women's Championship defunct as the unified title followed the lineage of the Divas Championship; the title eventually dropped the "Unified" moniker.

On April 3, 2016, at WrestleMania 32, a new WWE Women's Championship (called the Raw Women's Championship from September 2016 to June 2023) was introduced to succeed the Divas Championship. This new title does not carry the lineage of either the Divas Championship or the original Women's Championship, but is acknowledged by WWE as the successor of both.

Tournaments

WWF Women's Championship Tournament (1993)

The WWF Women's Championship Tournament was a tournament to decide the new WWF Women's Champion after the title was reinstated after three years of inactivity.

Quarterfinals

Semifinals

Finals

Alundra Blayze

Allison Royal

Alundra Blayze

Heidi Lee Morgan

Heidi Lee Morgan

Black Venus

Heidi Lee Morgan

Rusty Thomas

Rusty Thomas

Angie Marino

WWE Women's Championship Tournament (2006)

The WWE Women's Championship Tournament was a tournament to crown a new WWE Women's Champion after champion Trish Stratus retired from her wrestling career. The first round started on September 25, 2006, and ended at Cyber Sunday when Lita, who Stratus defeated in her retirement match, defeated Mickie James.

Quarterfinals
Raw
September 25
October 2, 9 and 15

Semifinals
Raw
October 23 and 30

Final
Cyber Sunday

Lita

Candice