AEW World Championship

Lore & Background

On January 1, 2019, All Elite Wrestling was founded and its inaugural event, Double or Nothing, was scheduled for May 25. The unveiling of the men's world championship was first teased on AEW's YouTube channel on May 22, where actor and comedian Jack Whitehall humorously attempted to reveal the title belt. He subsequently revealed that the winner of Double or Nothing's Buy In pre-show battle royal, called the Casino Battle Royale, would face the winner of the PPV's main event at a future date to determine the inaugural AEW World Champion. AEW president Tony Khan confirmed that since the promotion would not have weight divisions, the AEW World Championship was not a 'heavyweight championship'. However, on occasion, the promotion, as well as AEW wrestlers and commentators, have referred to it as the 'world heavyweight championship'. At Double or Nothing, the pre-show Casino Battle Royale was won by 'Hangman' Adam Page, while Chris Jericho defeated Kenny Omega in the PPV's main event. During the event, Bret Hart unveiled the AEW World Championship belt. The inaugural championship match was scheduled for All Out on August 31. At All Out, Jericho defeated Page to become the inaugural champion. The following day, the physical championship belt was stolen from Jericho's limousine; it was recovered on September 4. During Kenny Omega's reign in April 2021, the title was defended for the first time outside of AEW in Impact Wrestling. At Impact's Rebellion on April 25, 2021, Omega defeated Impact World Champion Rich Swann in a Winner Takes All match. On the June 3, 2022 episode of Rampage, reigning champion CM Punk announced he was injured and required surgery. An interim champion was crowned until Punk's return. To determine the interim champion, AEW set up the AEW Interim World Championship Eliminator Series that culminated at AEW x NJPW: Forbidden Door on June 26. At Forbidden Door, Jon Moxley defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi to become the interim champion. Punk returned in early August and was defeated by Moxley on the August 24 episode of Dynamite in a match to determine the undisputed champion. During the All Out post-event media scrum on September 5, CM Punk got into a legitimate physical altercation backstage with The Elite. As a result, AEW president Tony Khan suspended all involved.

Reader's Guide

The AEW World Championship is the top men's title in All Elite Wrestling. It was first won by Chris Jericho. The title has been defended in other promotions, including Impact Wrestling and on the independent circuit. An interim championship was created in 2022 due to injury. The belt design features five plates on a black leather strap, with a large center plate showing the AEW logo, banners reading 'WORLD' and 'CHAMPION', and a nameplate. The inner side plates were updated in 2024 with a removable center section for the champion's logo.

Did You Know?

• The physical championship belt was stolen from Chris Jericho's limousine the day after he won it, but was recovered on September 4, 2019.
• During Kenny Omega's reign, the title was defended for the first time outside AEW at Impact Wrestling's Rebellion event on April 25, 2021.
• An interim AEW World Champion was crowned in 2022 after CM Punk was injured; Jon Moxley became the interim champion at Forbidden Door.
• The belt design was inspired by the Mid-South North American Heavyweight Championship belt and was created by Dave Millican.