WWE: Bring Back the World Television Title

The World Television Championship is the most unique title in all of professional wrestling, and WWE needs it right now. Read on to find out what makes this title so special.

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When was the last time the WWE floored audiences with a truly great televised championship match? When was the last time you saw the introduction of a new challenger who took the champion to his limit on free TV? When was the last time a struggling WWE star returned out of nowhere to make a case for potential greatness? It doesn’t happen on WWE TV often, but in recent months we’ve seen it a few times as part of John Cena’s United States open challenge, a true bright spot that brought a freshness to Raw that had been sorely missing. With Cena losing the title to Seth Rollins there has been an obvious void in excitement, but one way the WWE can fix that is to bring back one of wrestling’s most cherished championships, the World Television Title.

The most highly recognized TV titles were the NWA and WCW versions, which were held by a variety of legendary superstars such as Roddy Piper, Ric Flair, Booker T, Tully Blanchard, and this writer’s favorite wrestler, Arn Anderson, who holds the record for the longest combined reign.

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What made the TV Title so special is that it required the champion to defend it regularly on television in time-limited matches. Since WCW retired the belt in 2000 we’ve seen ECW bring back a version of it, while Jay Lethal is the current long-running ROH TV Champion. RVD’s two-year run with the title made him a bigger star than the company’s World Champion, and Lethal accomplished much the same thing.

There were multiple benefits to the TV title that WWE desperately needs right now as it manages a roster severely lacking in star power. The TV title was, essentially, a starter belt, used for shepherding rising superstars and giving them the spotlight. This is what Cena was accomplishing with his weekly US title challenges, giving stars such as Zack Ryder, Cesaro, Sami Zayn, and more a moment to shine. The enthusiastic crowd reaction in each of those cases was undeniable. When was the last time anyone cheered for Ryder like that? It was Cesaro’s match against Cena that catapulted him to where he is now, knocking on the door of becoming an A-list superstar.

The other benefit of the TV title is that it gave established stars a belt to hold while being out of the World championship picture. Have a top star like Randy Orton treading water? Give him the TV title for a few months, defend it every week, and see the kind of prestige he can add to it. The young stars will get the rub of working with a bona-fide legend, experience that can only help when moving up the ladder. Think fans wouldn’t go nuts over a feud between Orton and Neville for the TV title? Think of what someone like Kevin Owens could say every week as TV champion, especially if he held it for months.

Titles are almost never defended on free TV anymore as the emphasis is now on PPV buys and WWE Network subscriptions. While that’s understandable, introducing the TV title would help make each show special. The title could be defended on either Raw or SmackDown. Or, since the latter show consistently struggles for relevance, make it SmackDown exclusive. Announce the match on Raw to give it the proper build, and if necessary use WWE Superstars or WWE.com to push the match further.

Remember the years when the WWE had the European, Hardcore, Lightweight championships and more? Those times prove having more titles diminishes their overall value.

Right now the WWE has a problem in that the U.S. and Intercontinental titles are basically interchangeable. Which one means more? What’s the difference, really? There isn’t any, which is why nobody gains anything by holding them. The best thing to do would be to retire the U.S. championship, which doesn’t have as length a WWE lineage, and introduce the TV title in its place, perhaps with a tournament spread out over a few weeks. Call it the “Arn Anderson Invitational”, and since he’s still employed by the company he can come out and congratulate the winner. For an added twist, you could even have Arn back a chosen “successor”, someone who could use the push of a veteran’s presence.

The WWE could use a creative shake-up, and the Television Championship could be just what they need to help turn things around.

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