Mid 20th Century
137-615: The WWE Intercontinental Championship is a men's professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE , defended on the Raw brand division . It is one of two secondary championships for WWE's main roster, along with the WWE United States Championship on SmackDown . The current champion is Bron Breakker , who is in his second reign. He won the title by defeating Jey Uso on
274-498: A No Holds Barred match . When Patterson's film did not develop properly, Kane turned on the Faction. On June 19, 2000, Patterson helped Brisco win the perpetually contested WWF Hardcore Championship from Crash Holly but during the victory celebration turned on his ally, blinding him with champagne and then breaking a second bottle over Brisco's head, and pinning the (kayfabe) unconscious champion. Brisco pursued Patterson into
411-435: A bona fide athletic contest or competition. Professional wrestling is not a combative sport. Wrestling constituting bona fide athletic contests and competitions, which may be professional or amateur combative sport, shall not be deemed professional wrestling under this Part. Professional wrestling as used in this Part shall not depend on whether the individual wrestlers are paid or have been paid for their performance in
548-422: A cyst from his coronary artery . In October, Patterson recovered from his operation and was released from the hospital. He legally changed his name to Pat Patterson in 2008. Patterson died of liver failure caused by a blood clot at a Miami, Florida , hospital on December 2, 2020. He was 79 years old. Many figures in the wrestling world paid their respects to Patterson, as both an in-ring performer and as
685-415: A performing art evolved from the common practice of match-fixing among American wrestlers in the 19th century, who later sought to make matches shorter, more entertaining, and less physically taxing. As the public gradually realized and accepted that matches were predetermined, wrestlers responded by increasingly adding melodrama, gimmickry, and outlandish stunt work to their performances to further enhance
822-415: A professional wrestling exhibition. All engagements of professional wrestling shall be referred to as exhibitions, and not as matches. In the industry's slang, a fixed match is referred to as a worked match, derived from the slang word for manipulation, as in "working the crowd". A shoot match is a genuine contest where both wrestlers fight to win and are therefore "straight shooters", which comes from
959-762: A tag team with Ray Stevens , the Blond Bombers . The duo won the NWA World Tag Team Championship in 1965 and again in 1967. The Blonde Bombers were described by Bret Hart as "considered by many to be the best tag team of the 1970s". In 1968, Patterson wrestled for NWA Western States Wrestling in Amarillo, Texas as Lord Patrick Patterson, winning the NWA North American Heavyweight Championship and NWA Brass Knuckles Championship . In
1096-594: A "stepping stone" to a WWE world championship. In November 2001, the then- WCW United States Championship was unified into the Intercontinental Championship. In 2002, after the introduction of the first brand split , it became exclusive to Raw and the WWF was renamed WWE . Later that year, the European and Hardcore championships were unified into the Intercontinental Championship, which itself
1233-568: A WWF co-promotion with Super World of Sports in Tokyo, Japan . It first came to Africa on April 6, 1997, when champion Rocky Maivia pinned Savio Vega in Durban, South Africa . Shelton Benjamin made the first Australian defense on April 7, 2005, pinning Gene Snitsky in Brisbane . WWF North American Heavyweight Champion Pat Patterson became the inaugural champion on September 1, 1979. It
1370-413: A background in authentic wrestling no longer mattered. After this time, matches became more outlandish and gimmicky and any semblance professional wrestling had to catch wrestling faded. The personas of the wrestlers likewise grew more outlandish. Gorgeous George , who performed throughout the 1940s and 1950s, was the first wrestler whose entrance into the arena was accompanied by a theme song played over
1507-515: A battle royal at Judgment Day for the title. Christian won the battle royal to win the championship and restore a secondary singles title for Raw wrestlers to compete for. Eventually, WWE did the same thing for SmackDown and created a separate set of titles for that brand; for its secondary title, SmackDown reactivated the United States Championship that had been unified with the Intercontinental Championship in 2001, placing
SECTION 10
#17327761553301644-844: A battle royal in Montreal on February 24, 1987. He also appeared in a battle royal at a house show in Buffalo, New York on December 27. Patterson made a handful of additional appearances in Montreal in 1987, wrestling as a heel (while remaining a face or neutral backstage official in the United States and elsewhere in Canada). His most notable appearance was a win over the up-and-coming Brutus Beefcake on August 10 in Montreal His final match would come three weeks later again in Montreal as he fell in defeat to Beefcake and subsequently received
1781-469: A carny term for a shooting gallery gun whose sights were not deliberately misaligned. Wrestling in the United States blossomed in popularity after the Civil War , with catch wrestling eventually becoming the most popular style. At first, professional wrestlers were genuine competitive fighters, but they struggled to draw audiences because Americans did not find real wrestling to be very entertaining, so
1918-519: A central authority. Nor could any of them stomach the idea of leaving the NWA themselves to compete directly with McMahon, for that would mean their territories would become fair game for the other NWA members. McMahon also had a creative flair for TV that his rivals lacked. For instance, the AWA's TV productions during the 1980s were amateurish, low-budget, and out-of-touch with contemporary culture, which lead to
2055-585: A champion that Curley put forth: Dick Shikat . The National Wrestling Association shut down in 1980. In 1948, a number of promoters from across the country came together to form the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). The NWA recognized one "world champion", voted on by its members, but allowed member promoters to crown their own local champions in their territories. If a member poached wrestlers from another member, or held matches in another member's territory, they risked being ejected from
2192-434: A degree. Vince Russo, the boss of WCW in 2000, completely disregarded kayfabe by routinely discussing business matters and office politics in public, which alienated fans. I watch championship wrestling from Florida with wrestling commentator Gordon Solie . Is this all "fake"? If so, they deserve an Oscar . Pat Patterson (wrestler) Pat Patterson (born Pierre Clermont ; January 19, 1941 – December 2, 2020)
2329-404: A distinct vernacular . It has achieved mainstream success and influence within popular culture , with many terms, tropes , and concepts being referenced in everyday language as well as in film , music , television , and video games . Likewise, numerous professional wrestlers have become national or international icons with recognition by the broader public. In the United States, wrestling
2466-564: A face commentator when partnered with Gorilla Monsoon and Vince McMahon , he hosted a heel interview segment for French WWF broadcasts known as "Le Brunch de Pat", where he would politely ask questions in English but furtively mock his face guests in French . Patterson was on commentary with Monsoon when The Iron Sheik defeated Bob Backlund for the world heavyweight championship, as well as for when Hulk Hogan defeated The Iron Sheik about
2603-410: A fee, a visitor could challenge the wrestler to a quick match. If the challenger defeated the champion in a short time frame, usually 15 minutes, he won a prize. To encourage challenges, the carnival operators staged rigged matches in which an accomplice posing as a visitor challenged the champion and won, giving the audience the impression that the champion was easy to beat. This practice taught wrestlers
2740-497: A green card in 1971, the journalist's dossier of Freedom of Information responses showed nothing further until his successful naturalization in 2002. Patterson's longtime partner was Louie Dondero. Patterson said on WWE Legends' House he and Dondero were together for 40 years. Dondero died of a heart attack on June 28, 1998, the same night as King of the Ring . In August 2006, Patterson underwent emergency heart surgery to remove
2877-462: A haircut with Mr. T as the referee. He began working backstage as a road agent and right-hand man to WWF promoter Vince McMahon, and is credited with inventing and booking the Royal Rumble match. In the late 1990s, he also worked in the talent-relations department. After his retirement, Patterson also worked as a WWF referee. He was selected as the in-ring referee for the main event at
SECTION 20
#17327761553303014-494: A hardcore match the next week. As a result of the victories over Hardy and Dreamer, Van Dam is regarded as the last European and Hardcore champion in WWE history; these were his first and fourth reigns with those respective titles. On September 30, 2002, Bischoff scheduled a match to unify the Intercontinental Championship with the recently created Raw-exclusive World Heavyweight Championship . The unification match took place at No Mercy
3151-405: A legitimate sport. Firstly, wrestling was more entertaining when it was faked, whereas fakery did not make boxing any more entertaining. Secondly, in a rigged boxing match, the designated loser must take a real beating for his "defeat" to be convincing, but wrestling holds can be faked convincingly without inflicting injury. This meant that boxers were less willing to "take dives"; they wanted to have
3288-799: A match against Gus Sonnenberg in January 1929. Bowser then broke away from the trust to form his own cartel, the American Wrestling Association (AWA), in September 1930, and he declared Sonnenberg to be the AWA champion. This AWA should not be confused with Wally Kadbo's AWA founded in 1960. Curley reacted to this move by convincing the National Boxing Association to form the National Wrestling Association , which in turn crowned
3425-549: A month later. Patterson was also calling the action when Jimmy Snuka jumped off the steel cage and splashed Don Muraco in Madison Square Garden in 1983. Patterson retired from wrestling in 1985. Although retired, Patterson continued to occasionally wrestle. On January 26, 1985, he wrestled Nikolai Volkoff in a losing effort in a house show in Cincinnati, Ohio. The following month, he teamed with Andre
3562-424: A more literal meaning in those places. A notable example is India's Pro Wrestling League . In numerous American states, professional wrestling is legally defined as a non-sport. For instance, New York defines professional wrestling as: Professional wrestling means an activity in which participants struggle hand-in-hand primarily for the purpose of providing entertainment to spectators and which does not comprise
3699-407: A new Intercontinental Champion. On May 7, 2010, after failed attempts of getting Intercontinental Champion Drew McIntyre to stop attacking Matt Hardy , Smackdown General Manager Theodore Long fired McIntyre and vacated the title. The following week, Kofi Kingston won a tournament to become the new champion, but Mr. McMahon reverted Long's decision. Due to the decision by Mr. McMahon, the vacancy of
3836-480: A new champion was then set to begin on the May 15 episode of SmackDown . † Neither Jeff Hardy nor Elias were able to compete in the semifinals, as Elias was ( kayfabe ) injured in a car crash and Hardy was accused of causing it and arrested. AJ Styles and Daniel Bryan were given the option of having a bye in the tournament. Styles opted for the bye to automatically advance to the final on June 12 while Bryan opted to have
3973-440: A new city, attendance was high because there was a waiting fanbase cultivated in advance by the cable TV shows. The NWA's traditional anti-competitive tricks were no match for this. The NWA attempted to centralize and create their own national cable television shows to counter McMahon's rogue promotion, but it failed in part because the members of the NWA, ever protective of their territories, could not stomach submitting themselves to
4110-455: A new opponent; Sheamus subsequently won a battle royal to qualify for the vacant spot in the semifinals against Bryan that night. Following the brand split on March 25, 2002, all titles in WWE became exclusive to either the Raw brand or SmackDown brand. The brand split was discontinued on August 29, 2011, and revived on July 19, 2016. The following is a list of dates indicating the transitions of
4247-673: A pair of brass knuckles to knock out DiBiase. Patterson was unsuccessful, however, in winning the WWF Heavyweight Championship from Backlund. In September 1979, the WWF would introduce the WWF Intercontinental Championship , a secondary championship for its midcard wrestlers. Patterson was crowned the company's first Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion after an alleged tournament held in Rio de Janeiro . While Patterson's tournament "victory"
WWE Intercontinental Championship - Misplaced Pages Continue
4384-582: A result of Freedom of Information Act requests show that, as a part of a Portland Police Bureau Morals Division investigation into the Portland gay community, PPB had reported Patterson's presence at " 'gay' parties" and gay bars in the city and that Patterson was known to pick up male prostitutes in Portland. The documents also describe interviewees' suspicions that Louie Dondero was Patterson's romantic partner, as well as his agent, and that they had an open relationship . The same documents reveal that
4521-424: A third secondary title in WWE. However, this recognition was reversed when NXT reverted to being WWE's developmental brand in September 2021. On November 22, 2019, episode of SmackDown , Sami Zayn presented a new belt design to champion Shinsuke Nakamura . The redesigned Intercontinental Championship returned to being on a black strap with an entirely new center plate with an irregular shape. The center portion of
4658-503: A typical American household only received four national channels by antenna, and ten to twelve local channels via UHF broadcasting . But cable television could carry a much larger selection of channels and therefore had room for niche interests. The WWF started with a show called All-American Wrestling airing on the USA Network in September 1983. McMahon's TV shows made his wrestlers national celebrities, so when he held matches in
4795-586: A victory for all the pain to which they subjected themselves. In the 1910s, promotional cartels for professional wrestling emerged in the East Coast (outside its traditional heartland in the Midwest ). These promoters sought to make long-term plans with their wrestlers, and to ensure their more charismatic and crowd-pleasing wrestlers received championships, further entrenching the desire for worked matches. The primary rationale for shoot matches at this point
4932-436: Is a form of athletic theater that combines mock combat with drama , with the premise that the performers are competitive wrestlers. Professional wrestling is distinguished by its scripted outcomes and emphasis on entertainment and showmanship . The staged nature of matches is an open secret , with both wrestlers and spectators nonetheless maintaining the pretense that performances are bona fide competitions, which
5069-410: Is a true sport. Wrestlers would at all times flatly deny allegations that they fixed their matches, and they often remained in-character in public even when not performing. When in public, wrestlers would sometimes say the word kayfabe to each other as a coded signal that there were fans present and they needed to be in character. Professional wrestlers in the past strongly believed that if they admitted
5206-427: Is generally practiced in an amateur context. No professional league for competitive wrestling exists due to a lack of popularity. For example, Real Pro Wrestling , an American professional freestyle wrestling league, dissolved in 2007 after just two seasons. In other countries, such as Iran and India , wrestling enjoys widespread popularity as a genuine sport, and the phrase "professional wrestling" therefore has
5343-470: Is likened to the suspension of disbelief employed when engaging with fiction . Professional wrestlers perform as characters and usually maintain a " gimmick " consisting of a specific persona , stage name , entrance theme , and other distinguishing traits. Matches are the primary vehicle for advancing storylines, which typically center on interpersonal conflicts, or feuds , between heroic " faces " and villainous " heels ". A wrestling ring , akin to
5480-601: Is the current champion in his second reign. He won the title by defeating Jey Uso on the October 21, 2024, episode of Raw in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania . The Intercontinental Championship's early years have been praised. Samuel Kendall of Comic Book Resources lauded the championship during this era, stating: "It was a foregone conclusion that the Intercontinental Champion was the workhorse of
5617-510: Is widely listed in wrestling title and match histories, the tournament itself never actually took place. Patterson's apocryphal title victory would later become something of an inside joke during Patterson's on-screen tenure as one of Vince McMahon 's "stooges". The fictional tournament was also later profiled in-depth on WWE.com as an April Fool's joke. On November 8, Patterson dropped the North American title to Seiji Sakaguchi . It
WWE Intercontinental Championship - Misplaced Pages Continue
5754-548: The Raw Reunion episode, Patterson won the WWE 24/7 Championship by pinning Drake Maverick backstage. He would lose the title to Gerald Brisco off-screen later that same night. At 78 years old, he became the oldest person ever to win a title in WWE history, beating The Fabulous Moolah 's fourth reign with the original WWF Women's Championship at 76 years old. It was also Patterson's first title reign since June 19, 2000, with
5891-705: The NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship on two occasions that year. On October 2, 1964, Patterson defeated Pepper Martin for the NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship . He held the championship for six weeks before losing to Martin. Patterson won the championship again in 1965 and 1966. In January 1965, Patterson was hired by Roy Shire for his San Francisco , California -based Big Time Wrestling promotion. At Shire's request, Patterson dyed his hair blond to form
6028-624: The New Jersey State Athletic Control Board that professional wrestling is not a real sport because its matches have predetermined outcomes. Shortly thereafter, New Jersey deregulated professional wrestling. The WWF then rebranded itself as a " sports entertainment " company. In the early years of the 20th century, the style of wrestling used in professional wrestling matches was catch wrestling . Promoters wanted their matches to look realistic and so preferred to recruit wrestlers with real grappling skills. In
6165-543: The United States Air Force Office of Special Investigations were investigating another wrestler suspected of being gay, with a view to discharging him; this wrestler subsequently denounced Patterson to INS before retracting. In November 1966, the INS initiated deportation proceedings against Patterson, leading to an interview where he was asked about his effeminacy , dyed hair , about whether he
6302-582: The WCW United States Championship at Survivor Series , causing the United States Championship to become inactive. Then-United States Champion Edge defeated then-Intercontinental Champion Test . In 2002, after the first brand split had begun and the WWF was renamed WWE, Raw general manager Eric Bischoff began unifying his brand's singles championships. On July 22, 2002, the Intercontinental Championship
6439-521: The WWE Championship (1963) and United States Championship (1975), but the second-longest tenured championship, as WWE has only owned the U.S. championship since 2001. Although generally contested in the midcard at WWE shows, it has been defended in the main event of pay-per-views including WrestleMania VI , SummerSlam in 1992 , the third and eighth In Your House shows, Backlash in 2001 , and at Extreme Rules in 2018 . It has been called
6576-622: The World Wrestling Federation (WWF), working as a heel , under the tutelage of manager The Grand Wizard . As a villain, Patterson's primary feuds were with then WWF North American Champion Ted DiBiase and WWF Heavyweight Champion Bob Backlund . During a television taping on June 19 in Allentown, Pennsylvania , Patterson defeated DiBiase for the WWF North American Championship by using
6713-557: The independent circuit , to internationally broadcast events at major arenas. The largest and most influential promotions are in the United States , Mexico , Japan , and northwest Europe (the United Kingdom , Germany/Austria and France ), which have each developed distinct styles, traditions, and subgenres within professional wrestling. Professional wrestling has developed its own culture and community , including
6850-431: The spectacle . By at least the early 20th century, professional wrestling had diverged from the competitive sport to become an artform and genre of sports entertainment . Professional wrestling is performed around the world through various " promotions ", which are roughly analogous to production companies or sports leagues . Promotions vary considerably in size, scope, and creative approach, ranging from local shows on
6987-646: The "title has proven an albatross for the past decade, with almost all title holders doomed to tread water, usually only beating people decisively when the title is on the line". The albatross metaphor was also used to describe the title in 2014 by James Caldwell of Pro Wrestling Torch , while Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer said that year that "the [Intercontinental] title isn't booked to mean much." Various commentators in 2014 and 2015, including from The Baltimore Sun , Rolling Stone , PWInsider, and Pro Wrestling Dot Net have pointed out that
SECTION 50
#17327761553307124-584: The 1920s, a group of wrestlers and promoters known as the Gold Dust Trio introduced moves which have since become staples of the mock combat of professional wrestling, such as body slams, suplexes , punches, finishing moves, and out-of-ring count-outs. By the early 1930s, most wrestlers had adopted personas to generate public interest. These personas could broadly be characterized as either faces (likeable) or heels (villainous). Native Americans, cowboys, and English aristocrats were staple characters in
7261-400: The 1930s and 1940s. Before the age of television, some wrestlers played different personas depending on the region they were performing in. This eventually came to an end in the age of national television wrestling shows, which forced wrestlers to stick to one persona. Wrestlers also often used some sort of gimmick, such as a finishing move, eccentric mannerisms, or out-of-control behavior (in
7398-460: The 1990s, WCW became a credible rival to the WWF, but by end it suffered from a series of creative missteps that led to its failure and purchase by the WWF. One of its mistakes was that it diminished the glamor of its World Heavyweight Championship . Between January 2000 and March 2001, the title changed hands eighteen times, which sapped fan enthusiasm, particularly for the climactic pay-per-view matches. In professional wrestling, two factors decide
7535-553: The 2010s, WWE was criticized for its booking of the Intercontinental Champions, with champions either not defending during long periods of time or losing in many of their non-title matches. Chris Jericho said that WWE promoter Vince McMahon told him that "nobody fucking cares about the Intercontinental Championship" after he asked to be placed in a match for the title at WrestleMania 29 in 2013. Also in 2013, Darren Gutteridge of Pro Wrestling Dot Net wrote that
7672-653: The Atlantic Athletic Corporation (AAC). The AAC shut down in 1960. In 1958, Omaha promoter and NWA member Joe Dusek recognized Verne Gagne as the world champion without the approval of the NWA. Gagne asked for a match against the recognized NWA champion Pat O'Connor. The NWA refused to honor the request, so Gagne and Minneapolis promoter Wally Karbo established the American Wrestling Association in 1960. This AWA should not be confused with Paul Bowser's AWA, which ceased operations just two months prior. Gagne's AWA operated out of Minnesota . Unlike
7809-583: The Giant at a pair of house shows in Canada and defeated Ken Patera and Big John Studd. He took the spot of Mad Dog Vachon on the WWF skit show Le Brunch on WWF Superstars in Canada until late summer in 1987. Several wrestlers like the Rougeau Brothers and Dino Bravo replaced him, and Frenchie Martin hosted Le Studio as a replacement of Le Brunch . Before that he made another appearance, this time in
7946-507: The Intercontinental Champion often loses non-title matches, while Mike Tedesco of Wrestleview questioned how Intercontinental Champions losing too much is supposed to bring prestige to the title. The championship continued to receive criticism into the 2020s. Kendall panned the recent reigns as forgettable and wrote that the title had "turned into a prop to be lugged around, rather than a title that should bestow prestige." Cook wrote that it had been "treated as something of an afterthought" for
8083-569: The Intercontinental Championship between the Raw and SmackDown brands. The inaugural champion was Pat Patterson who, as the WWF North American Heavyweight Champion in September 1979 was also declared "South American Heavyweight Champion" after allegedly winning a tournament in Rio de Janeiro . Patterson unified the two championships into the Intercontinental Championship. Since then, there have been 187 reigns among 91 different champions. Chris Jericho has
8220-400: The Intercontinental Championship received such a rating before Gunther's reign was Shawn Michaels going against Razor Ramon in an Intercontinental Unification ladder match at WrestleMania X . Professional wrestling 1970s and 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s and 2020s Professional wrestling (often referred to as pro wrestling , or simply, wrestling )
8357-418: The May 8 episode of Raw, Patterson, Road Dogg and X-Pac faced Rikishi in a 3 on 1 handicap match and were disqualified after Patterson hit Rikishi with a chair. Afterwards, Patterson lowered his drawers to deliver a Stink Face to Rikishi with brown-stained underwear , which commentator Jim Ross described as a "tractor-sized skidmark". Patterson began to use the soiled underwear as part of his gimmick in
SECTION 60
#17327761553308494-636: The McMahon-Helmsley Faction. On the December 16, 1999 episode of SmackDown , Patterson and Brisco helped Test , who had been injured by D-Generation X . Triple H and Stephanie McMahon then forced Patterson and Brisco to compete for the WWF Tag Team Championship against The New Age Outlaws or be fired. Patterson and Brisco lost the match. In 2000, Patterson and Brisco joined Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. On
8631-408: The NWA, at which point his territory became fair game for everyone. The NWA would blacklist wrestlers who worked for independent promoters or who publicly criticized an NWA promoter or who did not throw a match on command. If an independent promoter tried to establish himself in a certain area, the NWA would send their star performers to perform for the local NWA promoter to draw the customers away from
8768-488: The NWA, which only allowed faces to be champions, Gagne occasionally allowed heels to win the AWA championship so that they could serve as foils for him. In August 1983, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), a promotion in the north-east , withdrew from the NWA. Vince K. McMahon then took over as its boss. No longer bound by the territorial pact of the NWA, McMahon began expanding his promotion into
8905-505: The October 21, 2024, episode of Raw . The championship was established by the then- World Wrestling Federation (WWF) on September 1, 1979, as a result of the WWF North American Heavyweight Championship being unified with an apocryphal South American Heavyweight Championship, with Pat Patterson as the inaugural champion. It is the third-oldest championship currently active in WWE, behind
9042-544: The United States to pursue his professional wrestling career. He eventually became a U.S. citizen . Patterson initially worked for Tony Santos's Big Time Wrestling promotion in Boston, Massachusetts . While living and working in Boston, Patterson met his long-term partner, Louie Dondero. In 1962, Patterson was recruited by Mad Dog Vachon for Don Owen's Portland, Oregon -based Pacific Northwest Wrestling promotion. At
9179-482: The WWE name on it while claiming the lineage of the old WCW title of the same name (much as they did with the Cruiserweight Championship when that became WWE exclusive). On October 2, 2011, at Hell in a Cell , Cody Rhodes introduced a modified version of the classic championship belt design with the white strap, with the modern WWE "scratch logo" and other embellishments. Following the end of
9316-596: The age of 14 at Loisirs Saint Jean Baptiste. He was raised Roman Catholic , and was an altar boy . He expressed an interest to a priest in becoming one himself, but was advised it would not have worked, because he was "too adventurous". Patterson debuted in Montreal, Quebec in 1958, wrestling at the Palais des Sports for promoter Sylvio Samson. Early in his career, he performed as "Killer" Pat Patterson. In 1961, Patterson - despite speaking no English - immigrated to
9453-401: The arena's loudspeakers, his being Pomp and Circumstance . He also wore a costume: a robe and hairnet, which he removed after getting in the ring. He also had a pre-match ritual where his "butler" would spray the ring with perfume. In the 1980s, Vince McMahon made entrance songs, costumes, and rituals standard for his star wrestlers. For instance, McMahon's top star Hulk Hogan would delight
9590-418: The art of staging rigged matches and fostered a mentality that spectators were marks to be duped. The term kayfabe comes from carny slang. By the turn of the 20th century, most professional wrestling matches were "worked" and some journalists exposed the practice: American wrestlers are notorious for the amount of faking they do. It is because of this fact that suspicion attaches to so many bouts that
9727-561: The audience by tearing his shirt off before each match. The first major promoter cartel emerged on the East Coast, although up to that point, wrestling's heartland had been in the Midwest. Notable members of this cartel included Jack Curley , Lou Daro, Paul Bowser and Tom and Tony Packs. The promoters colluded to solve a number of problems that hurt their profits. Firstly, they could force their wrestlers to perform for less money. As
9864-424: The cartel grew, there were fewer independent promoters where independent wrestlers could find work, and many were forced to sign a contract with the cartel to receive steady work. The contracts forbade them from performing at independent venues. A wrestler who refused to play by the cartel's rules was barred from performing at its venues. A second goal of the wrestling cartels was to establish an authority to decide who
10001-418: The case of heels). The matches could also be gimmicky sometimes, with wrestlers fighting in mud and piles of tomatoes and so forth. The most successful and enduring gimmick to emerge from the 1930s were tag-team matches. Promoters noticed that matches slowed down as the wrestlers in the ring tired, so they gave them partners to relieve them. It also gave heels another way to misbehave by double-teaming. Towards
10138-403: The center plate features an oval-shape. The top half of the oval says "Intercontinental" and the bottom half says "Champion"; the word "Heavyweight" sits in a banner on the inner side of the oval above the word "Champion". At the center of the oval is a diamond shape, representing a wrestling ring viewed from above, with the WWE logo over a globe. On the sides of the center, plate is two halves of
10275-461: The championship was contested in an Elimination Chamber match for the first time. In July 2016, WWE reintroduced the brand split. During the 2016 draft , then-Intercontinental Champion The Miz was drafted to SmackDown. Just days later, he successfully defended the title against Raw draftee Darren Young at Battleground , making the title exclusive to SmackDown. During the following year's Superstar Shake-up , Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose
10412-423: The character in shows must be considered fictional, wholly separate from the life of the performer. This is similar to other entertainers who perform with a persona that shares their own name. Some wrestlers also incorporate elements of their real-life personalities into their characters, even if they and their in-ring persona have different names. Kayfabe is the practice of pretending that professional wrestling
10549-481: The coming weeks, attempting to rub the soiled underwear into the faces of opponents. As a result, WWE commentators began to refer to Patterson as “Poopstain Patterson” during the broadcasts. On June 12, 2000, when the Faction unmasked Kane , Patterson photographed Kane's "hideously scarred" face, and threatened to "expose him to the world" if he did not comply. Kane was forced to wrestle The Rock (then his ally) in
10686-512: The commission. The Commission did on very rare occasions hand out such authorizations, such as for a championship match between Jim Londos and Jim Browning in June 1934. This decree did not apply to amateur wrestling, which the commission had no authority over. Wrestling fans widely suspected that professional wrestling was fake, but they did not care as long as it entertained. In 1933, a wrestling promoter named Jack Pfefer started talking about
10823-535: The company and the next in line for the World Heavyweight Championship". Steve Cook of 411Mania wrote that "nearly anybody that was a big deal in WWE held the championship at some point." Steve Austin said he considered the Intercontinental Championship to be as important as the world titles and he remains in possession of the physical belt that represented the championship during his reign because of its historical importance. Throughout
10960-473: The company. After Murray Hodgson rescinded the allegations, he was rehired, while Garvin was fired, later reaching a settlement with WWF. Over the years he made appearances on pay-per-views or TV programming breaking up fights. In 1997, Patterson, along with Gerald Brisco , became comedy heels as the on-screen stooges of Vince McMahon, assisting their boss in his rivalries with Stone Cold Steve Austin , Mankind and The Rock . Patterson and Brisco were among
11097-540: The current fashion of wrestling is the universal discussion as to the honesty of the matches. And certainly the most interesting phrase of this discussion is the unanimous agreement: "Who cares if they're fixed or not—the show is good." Newspapers tended to shun professional wrestling, as journalists saw its theatrical pretense to being a legitimate sport as untruthful. Eventually promoters resorted to publishing their own magazines in order to get press coverage and communicate with fans. The first professional wrestling magazine
11234-453: The default side plates consist of the WWE logo over a globe. On the September 30, 2024, episode of Raw , upon Jey Uso winning the championship from Bron Breakker the week prior, the championship received slight changes by adding blue on the globes in the centerplate. The WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship Tournament was a tournament to decide a new WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion after previous champion Ultimate Warrior
11371-672: The duo winning the AWA World Tag Team Championship later that year. Patterson performed intermittently for the AWA until 1983. In 1979, Patterson toured Japan with New Japan Pro-Wrestling . Patterson made his professional return to Quebec in 1980, wrestling a number of bouts for the Montreal, Quebec-based Lutte Internationale promotion. He held the Canadian International Tag Team Championship on five occasions between 1980 and 1983. In 1979, Patterson debuted in
11508-502: The encouragement of PNW promoter Harry Elliot, who was aware of Patterson's homosexuality, Patterson developed the character of "Pretty Boy" Pat Patterson, an effeminate wrestler who wore lipstick, sunglasses, and a beret and carried a cigarette holder . In 1963, Patterson wrestled for promotions in Texas, Arizona and Oklahoma as part of a talent exchange organized by Owen. Patterson returned to Pacific Northwest Wrestling in 1964. He held
11645-405: The end of the 1930s, faced with declining revenues, promoters chose to focus on grooming charismatic wrestlers with no regard for their skill because it was charisma that drew the crowds, and wrestlers who were both skilled at grappling and charismatic were hard to come by. Since most of the public by this time knew and accepted that professional wrestling was fake, realism was no longer paramount and
11782-603: The facade of kayfabe as best as they could. In 1989, Vince McMahon testified before the New Jersey government that professional wrestling was not a true sport and therefore should be exempted from sports-related taxes. Many wrestlers and fans resented McMahon for this, but Lou Thesz accepted it as the smart move as it gave the industry more freedom to do as it pleased, and because by that point professional wrestling no longer attempted to appear real. The demise of WCW in 2001 provided some evidence that kayfabe still mattered to
11919-648: The finale of WWE Legends' House , which aired June 12, 2014. NBC News described Patterson as "the first openly gay pro wrestling star." People magazine described him as the "First Gay Wrestling Star." In the 1960s, after the end of the main part of the Lavender scare , the Justice Department's Immigration and Naturalization Service spent several years, from the end of 1964 onwards, looking for evidence of "homosexual activity" in order to have Patterson deported back to Canada. Documents disclosed as
12056-418: The first WrestleMania at Madison Square Garden on March 31, 1985 , as well as the main event of WrestleMania XI . In 1992, Patterson, along with Terry Garvin , were accused of sexual harassment of underage ring boys by former announcer Murray Hodgson, and former ring boy Tom Cole, who alleged that Patterson groped him and engaged in sexual harassment when he was 14. Both he and Garvin resigned from
12193-549: The first brand split on August 29, 2011, the title could be defended on both Raw and SmackDown . On August 18, 2014, the Intercontinental Championship belt, along with all other pre-existing championship belts in WWE at the time, received a minor update, replacing the long-standing scratch logo with WWE's current logo that was originally used for the WWE Network that launched earlier that year in February. On May 31, 2015,
12330-470: The first place. "Double-crosses", where a wrestler agreed to lose a match but nevertheless fought to win, remained a problem in the early cartel days. At times a promoter would even award a victorious double-crosser the title of champion to preserve the facade of sport. But promoters punished such wrestlers by blacklisting them, making it quite challenging to find work. Double-crossers could also be sued for breach of contract, such as Dick Shikat in 1936. In
12467-401: The following month and saw then-World Heavyweight Champion Triple H defeat then-Intercontinental Champion Kane , making him the Raw brand's sole male singles champion. Over Bischoff's objections, Raw co-general manager Stone Cold Steve Austin reactivated the Intercontinental Championship on the May 5, 2003 episode of Raw and declared any former champion on the Raw roster eligible to enter
12604-424: The founding members of The Corporation . In order to mock Hulk Hogan , they used "Real American" as their entrance music and parodied Hogan's flexing routine as they approached the ring. On the May 18, 1998 episode of Raw, Patterson and Brisco competed in a 2 on 1 Street Fight against Austin that ended in a no contest when Vince McMahon and Dude Love attacked Austin. Later in 1999, the two became entangled with
12741-610: The game is not popular here. Nine out of ten bouts, it has been said, are pre-arranged affairs, and it would be no surprise if the ratio of fixed matches to honest ones was really so high. The wrestler Lou Thesz recalled that between 1915 and 1920, a series of exposés in the newspapers about the integrity of professional wrestling alienated a lot of fans, sending the industry "into a tailspin". But rather than perform more shoot matches, professional wrestlers instead committed themselves wholesale to fakery. Several reasons explain why professional wrestling became fake whereas boxing endured as
12878-415: The globe. The left side features the continents of North and South America as well as Africa and Europe, while the globe on the left shows Asia and Australia; both globes show a portion of Antarctica. The rest of the center plate is filled with ornamentation. Like all of WWE's other championships, the belt features two side plates with a removable center section that can be customized with the champion's logos;
13015-460: The government. They pledged to stop allocating exclusive territories to its promoters, to stop blacklisting wrestlers who worked for outsider promoters, and to admit any promoter into the Alliance. The NWA would flout many of these promises, but its power was nonetheless weakened by the lawsuit. Paul Bowser's AWA joined the NWA in 1949. The AWA withdrew from the Alliance in 1957 and renamed itself
13152-473: The independent. By 1956, the NWA controlled 38 promotions within the United States, with more in Canada, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand. The NWA's monopolistic practices became so stifling that the independents appealed to the government for help. In October 1956 the US Attorney General's office filed an antitrust lawsuit against the NWA in an Iowa federal district court. The NWA settled with
13289-480: The industry was anything but a competitive sport. The first wrestling promoter to publicly admit to routinely fixing matches was Jack Pfefer . In 1933, he started talking about the industry's inner workings to the New York Daily Mirror , resulting in a huge exposé. The exposé neither surprised nor alienated most wrestling fans, although some promoters like Jack Curley were furious and tried to restore
13426-496: The industry's inner workings to the New York Daily Mirror , maintaining no pretense that wrestling was real and passing on planned results just before the matches took place. While fans were neither surprised nor alienated, traditionalists like Jack Curley were furious, and most promoters tried to maintain the facade of kayfabe as best they could. Not the least interesting of all the minor phenomena produced by
13563-485: The match to Christian. In October 2004, Patterson retired from World Wrestling Entertainment. Patterson returned to WWE in a limited capacity in May 2005. While retired as a producer for WWE, he still acted as a creative consultant. At Breaking Point , Patterson made an appearance in his hometown of Montreal in an in-ring segment with Dolph Ziggler . Patterson was a regular cast member on the WWE Network original reality show Legends' House . On July 22, 2019, during
13700-498: The members of wrestling cartels as the champion drew big crowds wherever he performed, and this would occasionally lead to schisms. By 1925, this cartel had divided the country up into territories which were the exclusive domains of specific promoters. This system of territories endured until Vince McMahon drove the fragmented cartels out of the market in the 1980s. This cartel fractured in 1929 after one of its members, Paul Bowser , bribed Ed "Strangler" Lewis to lose his championship in
13837-405: The most reigns with nine. At 666 days, Gunther 's reign is the longest in the title's history, both as a singular reign and for most cumulative days as champion. Prior to his reign, Pedro Morales had the longest combined reign at 619 days over two reigns, and held this record for over 41 years. Dean Douglas had the shortest reign at just 13 minutes and 52 seconds. Chyna is the only woman to win
13974-568: The new Head of Creative. The championship has been featured in the main event of numerous episodes of SmackDown , and has even received two five-star ratings from Meltzer. The first was Gunther defending against Sheamus at Clash at the Castle , while the second was Gunther defending against Sheamus and Drew McIntyre in a triple threat match at WrestleMania 39: Night 2 , making it the first time Meltzer gave more than one five-star match rating for any main roster championship reign. The last time
14111-425: The new WWF Intercontinental Champion after former champion Stone Cold Steve Austin forfeited the belt after his neck injury. The tournament was held between September 8 and October 5, 1997, with the finals occurring on October 5 at the pay-per-view. The tournament brackets were: Notes: Ken Shamrock initially won the match. But he was injured so Faarooq advanced. The WWF Intercontinental Championship Tournament
14248-550: The oldest person to win a title in WWE history, after winning the WWE 24/7 Championship at age 78. He was described by journalist Dave Meltzer as " Vince McMahon 's right-hand man" and "one of the chief architects of the WWE , playing an integral role in helping it become a global phenomenon ". Patterson was born into an impoverished French-speaking family in the Ville-Marie borough of Montreal , Quebec , Canada on January 19, 1941. He began training to wrestle at
14385-437: The platform used in boxing , serves as the main stage ; additional scenes may be recorded for television in backstage areas of the venue, in a format similar to reality television . Performers generally integrate authentic wrestling techniques and fighting styles with choreography , stunts , improvisation , and dramatic conventions designed to maximize entertainment value and audience engagement. Professional wrestling as
14522-432: The previous two decades. The championship was only defended on two pay-per-views in 2021 and was not defended at any within the first quarter of 2022, including WrestleMania 38 ; its absence on the premiere event was widely criticized by fans. After Vince McMahon retired as chairman, CEO, and Head of Creative on July 22, 2022, the championship has been featured more prominently after Paul "Triple H" Levesque took over as
14659-717: The promotion's closing in 1991. In the spring of 1984, the WWF purchased Georgia Championship Wrestling (GCW), which had been ailing for some time due to financial mismanagement and internal squabbles. In the deal, the WWF acquired the GCW's timeslot on TBS . McMahon agreed to keep showing Georgia wrestling matches in that timeslot, but he was unable to get his staff to Atlanta every Saturday to fulfill this obligation, so he sold GCW and its TBS timeslot to Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP). JCP started informally calling itself World Championship Wrestling (WCW). In 1988, Ted Turner bought JCP and formally renamed it World Championship Wrestling. During
14796-535: The ropes just before the three count was made. On May 4, 1981, Patterson's feud with Sgt. Slaughter culminated in an alley street fight match in Madison Square Garden . The match was voted Match of the Year by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Patterson began doing color commentary in 1980 with Vince McMahon, calling WWF Championship Wrestling from 1980 to 1984. While Patterson was
14933-508: The same year, he undertook a six-week tour of Japan, facing Antonio Inoki in a series of bouts. After Stevens turned face in the late 1960s, he had a feud with the heel Patterson, culminating in a Texas Death match , in which Stevens won the title from Patterson. In 1970 and 1971, Patterson wore a mask during his matches, and would cheat by placing a foreign object under the mask to add power to his headbutts . In 1972, Patterson turned face again, after feuding with Lars Anderson , who
15070-399: The similarly introduced WWF Hardcore Championship , which also used the " 24/7 rule ". He was only the second person ever to win both the 24/7 and Hardcore Championships, after R-Truth . He was working backstage as a WWE official from 2005 until his death in 2020. Patterson was openly gay , having come out in the early 1970s. It was not acknowledged publicly or in WWE storylines until
15207-440: The stamina for an hours-long fight. Audiences also preferred short matches. Worked matches also carried less risk of injury, which meant shorter recovery. Altogether, worked matches proved more profitable than shoots. By the end of the 19th century, nearly all professional wrestling matches were worked. A major influence on professional wrestling was carnival culture. Wrestlers in the late 19th century worked in carnival shows. For
15344-426: The territories of his former NWA peers, now his rivals. By the end of the 1980s, the WWF would become the sole national wrestling promotion in the U.S. This was in part made possible by the rapid spread of cable television in the 1980s. The national broadcast networks generally regarded professional wrestling as too niche an interest, and had not broadcast any national wrestling shows since the 1950s. Before cable TV,
15481-532: The title and Kingston's championship win are not recognized as WWE continued to recognize McIntyre as champion during that period. At Over the Limit , Kingston defeated McIntyre to win his second official Intercontinental Championship. On May 12, 2020, the Intercontinental Championship was declared vacant after champion Sami Zayn elected to refrain from competing during the COVID-19 pandemic . A tournament to crown
15618-633: The title originally referred to North and South America . In 1985, the championship belt design changed, the centerplate now centered on the Atlantic Ocean , in a map including western Africa and Europe . On April 7, 1989, the championship was first defended outside of North America, by Rick Rude against the Ultimate Warrior in Turin, Italy . On March 30, 1991, Mr. Perfect made the first Asian defense against The Texas Tornado at
15755-445: The title. The youngest champion was Jeff Hardy , who won the championship for the first time at the age of 23, while the oldest champion was Ric Flair , who won the championship at the age of 56. There have been 10 vacancies throughout the title's history. Only five men have held the title for a continuous reign of one year (365 days) or more: Pedro Morales, Don Muraco , Randy Savage , The Honky Tonk Man , and Gunther. Bron Breakker
15892-519: The trial, witnesses testified that most of the "big matches" and all of the championship bouts were fixed. By the 1930s, with the exception of the occasional double-cross or business dispute, shoot matches were essentially nonexistent. In April 1930, the New York State Athletic Commission decreed that all professional wrestling matches held in the state had to be advertised as exhibitions unless certified as contests by
16029-471: The truth, their audiences would desert them. Today's performers don't "protect" the industry like we did, but that's primarily because they've already exposed it by relying on silly or downright ludicrous characters and gimmicks to gain popularity with the fans. It was different in my day, when our product was presented as an authentic, competitive sport. We protected it because we believed it would collapse if we ever so much as implied publicly that it
16166-535: The way of proceedings: the "in-show" happenings, presented through the shows; and real-life happenings outside the work that have implications, such as performer contracts, legitimate injuries, etc. Because actual life events are often co-opted by writers for incorporation into storylines of performers, the lines between real life and fictional life are often blurred and become confused. Special discern must be taken with people who perform under their own name (such as Kurt Angle and his fictional persona ). The actions of
16303-591: The women's locker room, where Patterson was hiding in drag. Subsequently, Vince McMahon scheduled them to fight over the Hardcore Championship in an Evening Gown match at King of the Ring 2000 ; in the course of the match, Crash Holly attacked both men and pinned Patterson to become Hardcore Champion. The Intercontinental Championship, unified with the World Heavyweight Championship at No Mercy on October 20, 2002,
16440-420: The wrestlers quietly began faking their matches so that they could give their audiences a satisfying spectacle. Fixing matches was also convenient for scheduling. A real ("shoot") match could sometimes last hours, whereas a fixed ("worked") match can be made short, which was convenient for wrestlers on tour who needed to keep appointments or share venues. It also suited wrestlers who were aging and therefore lacked
16577-425: Was Wrestling As You Like It , which printed its first issue in 1946. These magazines were faithful to kayfabe . Before the advent of television, professional wrestling's fanbase largely consisted of children, the elderly, blue-collar workers and minorities. When television arose in the 1940s, professional wrestling got national exposure on prime-time television and gained widespread popularity. Professional wrestling
16714-579: Was unified with the European Championship in a ladder match , in which then-Intercontinental Champion Rob Van Dam defeated then-European Champion Jeff Hardy . On August 19, 2002, Bischoff made a six-minute gauntlet match for the Hardcore Championship , with the winner facing Van Dam in a second unification match the next week on Raw . Tommy Dreamer successfully retained his title in that match, and lost to Van Dam in
16851-468: Was vacated for the first time soon after. Mr. Perfect then won a tournament to crown a new Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion. On October 17, 1999, Chyna became the only woman to hold the Intercontinental Championship by defeating Jeff Jarrett at No Mercy . Following the World Wrestling Federation 's (WWF) purchase of World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in March 2001, the title was unified with
16988-554: Was a Canadian-American professional wrestler and producer, widely known for his long tenure in the professional wrestling promotion WWE , first as a wrestler, then as a creative consultant and producer ("booker"). He is recognized by the company as their first Intercontinental Champion and creator of the Royal Rumble match. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as part of the class of 1996 . In 2019, Patterson became
17125-512: Was a homosexual and whether "he molested little boys". In December 1966, Patterson was served with a deportation notice, requiring him to leave the United States on or before January 10, possibly as an attempt to dupe Patterson into leaving with an expectation of an easy green card but with the intention of excluding him through psychological exam ; however Patterson was fighting again in Arizona 4 days later. After Patterson's application for
17262-417: Was a tournament to decide a new WWF Intercontinental Champion after previous champion Triple H vacated the title due to injury. A tournament was announced to crown a new #1 contender for William Regal 's WWE Intercontinental Championship. CM Punk won the tournament by defeating Rey Mysterio in the tournament final at Armageddon. The WWE Intercontinental Championship Tournament was a tournament to crown
17399-488: Was challenges from independent wrestlers. But a cartelized wrestler, if challenged, could credibly use his contractual obligations to his promoter as an excuse to refuse the challenge. Promotions would sometimes respond to challenges with "policemen": powerful wrestlers who lacked the charisma to become stars, but could defeat and often seriously injure any challenger in a shoot match. As the industry trend continued, there were fewer independent wrestlers to make such challenges in
17536-786: Was during Patterson's reign as champion that he turned face, after a botched attempt by the Grand Wizard to "sell" Patterson's contract to "Captain" Lou Albano for $ 100,000; Albano's protégés, the Wild Samoans, attacked Patterson after he cut a promo insulting Albano. Patterson held the Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship until April 21, 1980, when he was defeated by Ken Patera in New York City, New York . The match ended in controversial fashion after Patterson placed his right leg on
17673-955: Was managed by Dr. Ken Ramey. Later that year, he teamed with Rocky Johnson and won the tag team championship. In 1975 and 1981, Patterson won the Cow Palace Battle Royal in San Francisco. In 1977, Patterson wrestled for Eddie Graham 's Tampa , Florida -based Championship Wrestling from Florida promotion. During his run, he won the NWA Florida Television Championship and the NWA Florida Tag Team Championship , as well as briefly serving as booker . In 1978, Patterson joined Verne Gagne 's Minneapolis , Minnesota -based American Wrestling Association . He reformed The Blond Bombers with Ray Stevens, with
17810-559: Was moved to the Raw brand, making the title exclusive to Raw. Two years later during the 2019 WWE Superstar Shake-up , Intercontinental Champion Finn Bálor moved to SmackDown, making the title exclusive back to SmackDown. Later that year, the NXT brand, WWE's developmental territory , became WWE's third major brand when it was moved to the USA Network in September, thus making the NXT North American Championship
17947-571: Was previously considered a niche interest, but the TV networks at the time were short on content and thus were willing to try some wrestling shows. In the 1960s, however, the networks moved on to more mainstream interests such as baseball, and professional wrestling was dropped. The core audience then shrunk back to a profile similar to that of the 1930s. In 1989, Vince McMahon was looking to exempt his promotion (the World Wrestling Federation ) from sports licensing fees. To achieve this, he testified before
18084-558: Was required to vacate the title after he defeated Hulk Hogan for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania VI . The WWF Intercontinental Championship Tournament was a tournament to decide a new WWF Intercontinental Champion after previous champion Ahmed Johnson forfeited the title. He suffered ( kayfabe ) injuries to both kidneys when he was attacked by the debuting Faarooq after winning an 11-man battle royal. The tournament to determine
18221-460: Was resurrected on May 18, 2003, at Judgment Day in a battle royal. Patterson, as the first Intercontinental Champion, was at ringside to present the belt to the victor. Booker T eliminated Christian for the win, but the referee was unconscious. As Patterson attempted to give the championship belt to Booker T, Christian attacked him, stole the Intercontinental Championship belt and used it to knock out Booker T. The referee then recovered and awarded
18358-536: Was said he had unified his title with the South American Heavyweight Championship, in a tournament in Rio de Janeiro , although both the tournament and South American Championship were entirely fictional. On April 1, 1990, at WrestleMania VI , Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion the Ultimate Warrior defeated WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan to win the world title; so the Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship
18495-415: Was something other than what it appeared to be. I'm not sure now the fear was ever justified given the fact that the industry is still in existence today, but the point is no one questioned the need then. "Protecting the business" in the face of criticism and skepticism was the first and most important rule a pro wrestler learned. No matter how aggressive or informed the questioner, you never admitted
18632-417: Was the "world champion". Before the cartels, there were multiple wrestlers in the U.S. simultaneously calling themselves the "world champion", and this sapped public enthusiasm for professional wrestling. Likewise, the cartel could agree on a common set of match rules that the fans could keep track of. The issue over who got to be the champion and who controlled said champion was a major point of contention among
18769-471: Was unified into the World Heavyweight Championship (original version) . The next year, it was reactivated for Raw, followed by the United States Championship's reactivation as a counterpart championship on SmackDown. The Intercontinental Championship has switched between brands over the years, usually as a result of the WWE Draft ; the 2023 draft moved the title back to Raw. The term "intercontinental" in
#329670