WWE retires Universal Championship; HERE's a list of Superstars to win it

WWE has officially retired the Universal Championship, naming Roman Reigns its final titleholder after a record 1,316-day reign, ending its legacy from 2016 to 2024. Here is the list of Superstars to win it. 

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The WWE Universal Championship, once a cornerstone of the company’s top-tier titles, has officially been retired. Although WWE.com still lists the title's activity period as “2016–Present,” its status has been updated to "retired" in the header—confirming the end of its legacy.

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The Universal Championship was introduced in 2016 during WWE’s second brand split, intended as the premier title for the Raw brand while the WWE Championship remained exclusive to SmackDown.

The inaugural Universal Champion was Finn Bálor, who defeated Seth Rollins at SummerSlam 2016 to make history. Tragically, Bálor suffered a shoulder injury during the match and was forced to relinquish the title the very next night on Raw, ending his reign at just one day.

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Shortly afterward, Kevin Owens won a fatal 4-way elimination match with assistance from Triple H, claiming the vacant title.

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Kevin Owens' reign lasted until Fastlane 2017, where he lost the title to Goldberg.

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Goldberg’s short reign led into the era of Brock Lesnar, who won the title at WrestleMania 33. Lesnar held the Universal Championship for over 500 days in his first reign, defending it sporadically. He would go on to hold the title multiple times, becoming one of its defining champions.

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Roman Reigns won the title at SummerSlam 2018, but was forced to vacate it later that year due to his leukemia diagnosis. He returned later in 2020 with a new attitude and aligned himself with Paul Heyman. At Payback 2020, he won the Universal Championship again and began what would become a record-breaking 1,316-day reign—the longest in the title’s history.

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The title then passed through the hands of Seth Rollins at Wrestlemania 35. 

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“The Fiend” Bray Wyatt won the title at Crown Jewel 2019, adding a horror-themed twist to the championship’s legacy.

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In 2020, Braun Strowman captured the title at WrestleMania 36, stepping in for Roman Reigns, who had opted out due to COVID-19 concerns. This era saw fewer crowds and cinematic storytelling, including Wyatt’s surreal feud with Strowman.

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In April 2022, Reigns unified the Universal and WWE Championships by defeating Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 38, becoming the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion. While both belts were still presented, WWE treated them as a single entity.

At WrestleMania 40 in 2024, Cody Rhodes defeated Reigns to win the Undisputed Title. Initially recognized as holding both titles, WWE has since clarified that Roman Reigns is the final Universal Champion, officially retiring the title.