The brand extension, also referred to as the brand split, is the separation of the American professional wrestling promotion WWE's roster of wrestlers into distinct divisions, or "brands". The promotion's wrestlers are assigned to a brand via the annual WWE Draft and exclusively perform on that brand's weekly television show, with some exceptions. Throughout its history, WWE has utilized the brand extension twice. The first brand split occurred from 2002 to 2011, while the ongoing second began in 2016.
The Royal Rumble match is a professional wrestling match based on the classic Battle Royal match in which a number of wrestlers aim at eliminating their competitors by tossing them over the top rope, with both feet touching the floor. The match is typically the main event of WWE's January pay-per-view event known as the Royal Rumble. The winner of the event is the last wrestler remaining after all others have been eliminated. Stone Cold Steve Austin holds the record for victories with three, achieved in 1997, 1998, and 2001, while Hulk Hogan, Shawn Michaels, John Cena, Batista, Triple H, Randy Orton, Edge, and Brock Lesnar have all won the match twice. The match has been won from the number 1 position on four occasions, by Shawn Michaels in 1995, Chris Benoit in 2004, by Edge in 2021, and Rhea Ripley in 2023.
The NXT Championship is a professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is defended as the top men's championship of NXT, the promotion's developmental brand. The current champion is Carmelo Hayes, who is in his first reign. He won the title by defeating Bron Breakker at NXT Stand & Deliver on April 1, 2023.
NXT is a brand of the American professional wrestling promotion WWE that was introduced on February 23, 2010. Brands are divisions of WWE's roster where wrestlers are assigned to perform on a weekly basis when a brand extension is in effect. Wrestlers assigned to NXT primarily appear on the brand's weekly television program, NXT. It serves as a developmental brand for Raw and SmackDown, which are WWE's primary brands considered as the main roster. Due to its developmental status, NXT operates regardless if there is a brand extension in effect or not.
Joseph Ruud is an American professional wrestler performing as Erick Redbeard. He is best known for his time in WWE. Having previously wrestled in Japan, where he trained and performed for Pro Wrestling Noah, Ruud signed a contract with WWE in 2011. He was sent to its developmental territory, Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW), before debuting on the NXT brand in 2012 under the ring name Erick Rowan, a member of the Wyatt Family. He went on to become a one-time NXT Tag Team Champion and a two-time SmackDown Tag Team Champion. Ruud was released from WWE in April 2020, returning to the independent circuit.
The NXT Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is defended on NXT, the promotion's developmental brand. The current champion is Tiffany Stratton, who is in her first reign. She won the vacant title by defeating Lyra Valkyria in a tournament final at NXT Battleground on May 28, 2023. Previous champion Indi Hartwell relinquished the title due to injury and being drafted to Raw in the 2023 WWE Draft.
Matthew Thomas Rehwoldt is an American color commentator and retired professional wrestler who currently serves as a color commentator for Impact Wrestling. He is previously known for his time in WWE, where he performed under the ring name Aiden English.
Sarah Rowe is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Valhalla as the manager of The Viking Raiders. From 2017 to 2019, she was a member of the stable The Riott Squad with Liv Morgan and Ruby Riott and performed under the name Sarah Logan.
WWE 205 Live is an American professional wrestling streaming television program that was produced by WWE. It premiered on November 29, 2016 as a replacement for WWE Superstars, and ended on February 11, 2022. The show originally aired exclusively on the WWE Network until March 2021 when the American version of the WWE Network merged under Peacock, after which, it was available on Peacock in the United States and the WWE Network in international markets.
The 2019 Royal Rumble was the 32nd annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw, SmackDown, and 205 Live brand divisions. The event took place on January 27, 2019, at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona. During the event, WWE reported there were 48,193 people in attendance.
The 2019 WWE Superstar Shake-up was the thirteenth WWE draft – and the last to be branded as the Superstar Shake-up – produced by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE between the Raw, SmackDown, and 205 Live brands. Instead of a traditional draft, changes between the brands were made behind the scenes, with moving wrestlers simply appearing on a brand's show or announced via WWE's website or social medias. The event began on the April 15 and 16 episodes of Monday Night Raw and SmackDown Live, respectively, on the USA Network. The April 15 and 16 episodes were initially the only episodes advertised for the Superstar Shake-up, but more draft moves were confirmed throughout the remainder of the month and into early May.
NXT UK was a brand of the American professional wrestling promotion WWE that was introduced in June 2018. Brands are divisions of WWE's roster where wrestlers are assigned to perform on a weekly basis. Wrestlers assigned to NXT UK primarily appeared on the brand's weekly television program, NXT UK, and the brand's periodic livestreaming events. The brand served as a sub-brand of WWE's developmental territory, NXT, with NXT UK wrestlers also occasionally appearing on its show, NXT, as well as NXT's major events. Unlike WWE's other brands, NXT UK was produced exclusively in the United Kingdom and was specifically centered on wrestlers from the country. The brand went on hiatus following the Worlds Collide event on 4 September 2022; in 2023, it will be relaunched as NXT Europe, expanding the brand to include all European countries.
Demi Bennett is an Australian professional wrestler. She is signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Rhea Ripley, and is the current Women's World Champion in her first reign—she originally won the title as the SmackDown Women's Championship and it was renamed in June 2023.
The 2019 Worlds Collide was the inaugural Worlds Collide professional wrestling streaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's NXT, NXT UK, and 205 Live brand divisions. The event took place on January 26 and 27, 2019, at the Phoenix Convention Center in Phoenix, Arizona as part of that year's Royal Rumble weekend. The event aired on tape delay on the WWE Network as one single event on February 2, 2019.
WWE Worlds Collide, also known as NXT Worlds Collide, is a professional wrestling event series produced by WWE, an American-based professional wrestling promotion. Established in 2019, the concept is interbrand competition between WWE's various brand divisions. Although the event has been held primarily for WWE's developmental territories, NXT and the former NXT UK, other brands have also been featured. The event was put on hiatus after the 2020 event but returned in 2022. The 2022 event was also the last event for NXT UK as it will be relaunched as NXT Europe in 2023.
The 2020 Worlds Collide was the second Worlds Collide professional wrestling livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's NXT and NXT UK brand divisions. The event aired exclusively on the WWE Network and took place on January 25, 2020, at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.
Eric Bugenhagen is an American professional wrestler and former collegiate wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Rick Boogs. Aside from his wrestling career, Bugenhagen also runs a YouTube channel focused on weight training and comedy.
The 2022 Worlds Collide was the third Worlds Collide professional wrestling livestreaming event produced by WWE. While the event was held primarily for wrestlers from the promotion's NXT and NXT UK brand divisions, Worlds Collide also featured some wrestlers from WWE's main roster brands, Raw and SmackDown. It took place on Sunday, September 4, 2022, at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida, and was the first Worlds Collide to livestream on Peacock. This was the first Worlds Collide event since 2020 and also the final event for NXT UK, which will relaunch as NXT Europe in 2023. This was also NXT's last major event in which the brand was referred to as "NXT 2.0", as nine days later, the "2.0" moniker was dropped.
