There have been many Titles recognized as the 'WWE Tag Team Championships'. To date there have been 4 versions of the titles. All championships at one point or another have carried the standard Tag Team Championship depending on what the status of the Tag Team Division/s are at the time.
The World Tag Team Championship were the original Tag Team Championships in WWE and was originally known as the "World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) World Tag Team Championship". Following the title's introduction in 1971, Luke Graham and Tarzan Tyler became the inaugural champions on June 3. In 1979, the title became known as the "World Wrestling Federation (WWF) World Tag Team Championship" when the promotion was renamed the World Wrestling Federation. It began to be referred to as the "WWF Tag Team Championship" for short in the mid 1990s.
In March 2001, the World Wrestling Federation purchased World Championship Wrestling. Soon after, "The Invasion" took place in which the WCW/ECW Alliance was ultimately dismantled. At WWE Survivor Series 2001, the title was unified with WCW Tag Team Championship in a Steel cage match. The WCW Tag Team Champions, the Dudley Boyz, defeated the WWF Tag Team Champions, the Hardy Boyz, and were named the last WCW Tag Team Champions while becoming the new WWF Tag Team Champions.
After the WWF/WWE name change in 2002, the championship was subsequently referred to as the "World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Tag Team Championship". Then, during a period of open free agency after the Brand Extension, the Tag Team Champions were signed to appear and defend the title on the Raw brand only, leaving the SmackDown! brand without a tag team title. As a result, SmackDown! General Manager, Stephanie McMahon, commissioned a new WWE Tag Team Championship to be the exclusive tag team titles for the SmackDown! brand. With the introduction of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship on the Raw brand after the WWE Championship was moved to the SmackDown! brand, the Tag Team Championship on Raw was now being referred to as the "World Tag Team Championship". This was done so that the names of both tag team titles would mirror the names of the top championships on their respective brands. When the WWE Championship and World Heavyweight Championship switched brands during the 2005 WWE Draft Lottery, however, neither of the tag team titles was renamed.
A part of the SmackDown brand after the company's initial brand extension in the spring of 2002, the original World Tag Team Championship was reassigned that following summer to appear and be defended on the WWE Raw brand. The titles became exclusive to the Raw brand, leaving the SmackDown! brand without a tag team title. As a result, SmackDown General Manager Stephanie McMahon, introduced the new WWE Tag Team Championship and commissioned it to be the tag team title for the SmackDown! brand. She stated that the inaugural champions would be determined from an eight-team tournament. On October 20, 2002, the team of Kurt Angle and Chris Benoit defeated Rey Mysterio and Edge at WWE No Mercy 2002 in the tournament final to become the first ever WWE Tag Team Champions.
On October 17, 2007, SmackDown! and ECW announced a talent sharing agreement that enabled talent from either brand's roster to compete on both brands. As a result, the title became eligible to be contended and defended on both brands. In late 2008 through early 2009, WWE Tag Team Champions The Colóns (Carlito and Primo) engaged in rivalry with the World Tag Team Champions John Morrison and The Miz, which resulted in the announcement on the March 17 edition of ECW on Syfy that at WWE WrestleMania 25 both teams would defend their titles against each other and the winning team would hold both titles. The Colons defeated Morrison and Miz, and thus unified the titles into what became known as the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship, the umbrella term for what officially remained two active championships that were now collectively defended.
This version of the WWE Tag Team Championship was formed in 2010 when the WWE World Tag Team Championship which were WWEs original Tag Team Titles and at this point defended on WWE Raw, was unified with the WWE Tag Team Championship (SmackDown) to form the WWE Unified Tag Team Championship.
As the Unified WWE Tag Team Champions, the champions could appear on and defend the titles on any WWE brand. On August 16, 2010, the World Tag Team Championship was decommissioned in favor of continuing the lineage of the WWE Tag Team Championship following the presentation of new championship belts to then-champions David Hart Smith and Tyson Kidd of The Hart Dynasty. On August 18, 2014, the WWE Tag Team Championships' designs (along with the rest of the championships in WWE) were updated with the new logo. As a result of the 2016 draft, the championship became exclusive to Raw with a subsequent rename, and SmackDown created the WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship as a counterpart title.
The WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship is championship created and promoted by the WWE on the SmackDown brand. It is a counter title to the WWE Tag Team Championship on Raw. General Manager Daniel Bryan announced the championship via Twitter, along with the WWE SmackDown Women's Championship too, and officially unveiled the titles in person on the the August 23, 2016 episode of SmackDown Live.
WWF Tag Team Championships
- Luke Graham and Tarzan Tyler - June 3, 1971 - Live Event
- Karl Gotch and Rene Goulet - December 6, 1971 - Live Event
- King Curtis Iaukea and Mikel Scicluna - February 1, 1972 - Live Event
- Sonny King and Chief Jay Strongbow - May 22, 1972 - Live Event
- Mr. Fuji and Professor Tanaka - June 27, 1972 - Live Event
- Haystacks Calhoun and Tony Garea - May 30, 1973 - Live Event
- Mr. Fuji and Professor Tanaka 2 - September 11, 1973 - Live Event
- Tony Garea and Dean Ho - November 14, 1973 - Live Event
- The Valiant Brothers (Jimmy Valiant and Johnny Valiant) - May 8, 1974 - Live Event
- Dominic DeNucci and Victor Rivera/Pat Barrett - May 13, 1975 - Live Event
- The Blackjacks - (Blackjack Lanza and Blackjack Mulligan) - August 26, 1975 - Live Event
- Louis Cerdan and Tony Parisi - November 8, 1975 - Live Event
- The Executioners (Executioner 1 and Executioner 2) - May 11, 1976 - Live Event
Vacated - November 26, 1976 — Live Event
- Chief Jay Strongbow and Billy White Wolf - December 7, 1976 - Live Event
Vacated — August 1977
- Mr. Fuji and Professor Tanaka - September 27, 1977 - Live Event
- Dino Bravo and Dominic DeNucci - March 14, 1978 - Live Event
- The Yukon Lumberjacks (Yukon Eric and Yukon Pierre) - June 26, 1978 - Live Event
- Tony Garea and Larry Zbyszko - November 21, 1978 - Championship Wrestling
- The Valiant Brothers (Jerry Valiant and Johnny Valiant) - March 6, 1979 - Championship Wrestling
- Ivan Putski and Tito Santana - October 22, 1979 - Live Event
- Bob Backlund and Pedro Morales - August 9, 1980 - Showdown at Shea
Vacated — August 10, 1980 —
- The Wild Samoans (Afa and Sika) 2 - September 9, 1980 - Championship Wrestling
- Tony Garea and Rick Martel - November 8, 1980 - Live Event
- The Moondogs (Moondog Rex and Moondog King/Moondog Spot) - March 7, 1981 - Championship Wrestling
- Tony Garea and Rick Martel 2 - July 21, 1981 - Championship Wrestling
- Mr. Fuji and Mr. Saito - October 13, 1981 - Championship Wrestling
- Jules Strongbow and Chief Jay Strongbow - June 28, 1982 - Live Event
Vacated — June 28, 1982 —
- Mr. Fuji and Mr. Saito 2 - July 13, 1982 - Championship Wrestling
- Jules Strongbow and Chief Jay Strongbow 2 - October 26, 1982 - Championship Wrestling
- The Wild Samoans (Afa and Sika) 3 - March 8, 1983 - Championship Wrestling
- Soul Patrol (Tony Atlas and Rocky Johnson) - November 15, 1983 - Championship Wrestling
- Adrian Adonis and Dick Murdoch - April 17, 1984 - Championship Wrestling
- The U.S. Express (Mike Rotundo and Barry Windham) - January 21, 1985 - Live Event
- The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff - March 31, 1985 - WrestleMania
- The U.S. Express (Mike Rotundo and Barry Windham) 2 - June 17, 1985 - Championship Wrestling
- The Dream Team (Brutus Beefcake and Greg Valentine) - August 24, 1985 - Live Event
- The British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith) - April 7, 1986 - WrestleMania 2
- The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart) - January 26, 1987 - Superstars of Wrestling
- Strike Force (Rick Martel and Tito Santana) - October 27, 1987 - Superstars of Wrestling
- Demolition (Ax and Smash) - March 27, 1988 - WrestlrMania 4
- The Brain Busters (Arn Anderson and Tully Blanchard) - July 29, 1989 - Saturday Night's Main Event
- Demolition (Ax and Smash) 2 - October 2, 1989 - Superstars of Wrestling
- The Colossal Connection (Andre the Giant and Haku) - December 13, 1989 - Superstars of Wrestling
- Demolition (Ax and Smash) 3 - April 1, 1990 - WrestleMania 6
- The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart) 2 - August 27, 1990 - SummerSlam
- The Nasty Boys (Brian Knobbs and Jerry Sags) - March 24, 1991 - WrestleMania 7
- The Legion of Doom (Animal and Hawk) - August 26, 1991 - SummerSlam
- Money Inc. (Ted DiBiase and Irwin R. Schyster) - February 7, 1992 - Live Event
- The Natural Disasters (Earthquake and Typhoon) - July 20, 1992 - Live Event
- Money Inc. (Ted DiBiase and Irwin R. Schyster) 2 - October 13, 1992 - Wrestling Challenge
- The Steiner Brothers (Rick Steiner and Scott Steiner) - June 14, 1993 - Live Event
- Money Inc. (Ted DiBiase and Irwin R. Schyster) 3 - June 16, 1993 - Live Event
- The Steiner Brothers (Rick Steiner and Scott Steiner) 2 - June 19, 1993 - Live Event
- 1–2–3 Kid and Marty Jannetty - January 10, 1994 - Raw
- Shawn Michaels and Diesel - August 28, 1994 - Live Event
Vacated — November 23, 1994 - Survivor Series
- 1–2–3 Kid and Bob Holly - January 22, 1995 - Royal Rumble
- The Smokin' Gunns (Billy Gunn and Bart Gunn) - January 23, 1995 - Raw
- Owen Hart and Yokozuna - April 2, 1995 - WrestleMania 11
- Two Dudes with Attitude (Shawn Michaels and Diesel) 2 - September 24, 1995 - In Your House
- The Smokin' Gunns (Billy Gunn and Bart Gunn) 2 - September 25, 1995 - Raw
Vacated — February 15, 1996
- The Bodydonnas (Skip and Zip) - March 31, 1996 - WrestleMania 12
- The Godwinns (Henry O. Godwinn and Phineas I. Godwinn) - May 19, 1996 - Live Event
- The Smokin' Gunns (Billy Gunn and Bart Gunn) 3 - May 26, 1996 - In Your House
- The British Bulldog and Owen Hart - September 22, 1996 - In Your House
- Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels - May 26, 1997 -Raw
Vacated — July 14, 1997 — Raw
- Steve Austin and Dude Love - July 14, 1997 - Raw
Vacated — September 7, 1997
- The Headbangers (Mosh and Thrasher) - September 7, 1997 - In Your House
- The Godwinns (Henry O. Godwinn and Phineas I. Godwinn) 2 - October 5, 1997 - In Your House
- The New Age Outlaws (Billy Gunn and Road Dogg) - November 24, 1997 - [[WWE Raw]|Raw]
- Cactus Jack and Chainsaw Charlie - March 29, 1998 - WrestleMania 14
Vacated — March 30, 1998
- The New Age Outlaws (Billy Gunn and Road Dogg) 2 - March 30, 1998 - Raw
- Steve Austin and The Undertaker - July 26, 1998 - In Your House
- The New Age Outlaws (Billy Gunn and Road Dogg) 3 - August 30, 1998 - SummerSlam
- The Corporation (Big Boss Man and Ken Shamrock) - December 14, 1998 - Raw
- Jeff Jarrett and Owen Hart - January 25, 1999 - Raw
- The Hardy Boyz (Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy) - July 5 1999 - Raw
- The Acolytes (Bradshaw and Faarooq) 2 - July 25, 1999 - Fully Loaded
- The Unholy Alliance (Big Show and The Undertaker) - August 22, 1999 - SummerSlam
- The Unholy Alliance (Big Show and The Undertaker) 2 - September 9, 1999 - SmackDown
- The New Age Outlaws (Billy Gunn and Road Dogg) 4 - September 23, 1999 - SmackDown
- The Holly Cousins (Crash Holly and Hardcore Holly) - October 18, 1999 - Raw
- The New Age Outlaws (Billy Gunn and Road Dogg) 5 - November 8, 1999 - Raw
- The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray Dudley and D-Von Dudley) - February 27, 2000 - No Way Out
- Edge and Christian - April 2, 2000 - WrestleMania 16
- Too Cool (Grand Master Sexay and Scotty 2 Hotty) - May 29, 2000 - Raw
- Edge and Christian 2 - une 25, 2000 - King of the Ring
- The Hardy Boyz (Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy) 2 - September 24, 2000 - Raw
- The Hardy Boyz (Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy) 3 - October 23, 2000 - Raw
- Right to Censor (Bull Buchanan and The Goodfather) - November 6, 2000 - Raw
- Edge and Christian 4 - December 10, 2000 - Armageddon
- The Rock and The Undertaker - December 18, 2000 - Raw
- The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray Dudley and D-Von Dudley) 2 - January 21, 2001 - Royal Rumble
- The Hardy Boyz (Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy) 4 - March 5, 2001 - Raw
- The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray Dudley and D-Von Dudley) 3 - March 19, 2001 - Raw
- Edge and Christian 7 - April 1, 2001 - WrestleMania 17
- The Brothers of Destruction (The Undertaker and Kane) - April 19 2001 - SmackDown
- The Two-Man Power Trip (Steve Austin and Triple H) - April 29, 2001 - Backlash
- Chris Benoit and Chris Jericho - May 21, 2001 - Raw
- The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray Dudley and D-Von Dudley) 4 - June 21, 2001 - SmackDoWN
- Diamond Dallas Page and Kanyon - August 9, 2001 - SmackDown
- The Brothers of Destruction (The Undertaker and Kane) 2 - August 19, 2001 - SummerSlam
- The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray Dudley and D-Von Dudley) 5 - September 17, 2001 - Raw
- Chris Jericho and The Rock - October 22, 2001 - Raw
- The Hardy Boyz (Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy) 5 - November 12, 2001 - Raw
- The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray Dudley and D-Von Dudley) 6 - November 18, 2001 Survivor Series
Unified with the WCW Tag Team Championship.
- Spike Dudley and Tazz - January 7, 2002 - Raw
WWE Tag Team Championship
- Rico and Rikishi - May 19, 2002 - Judgment Day
- Edge and Hulk Hogan - July 4, 2002 - SmackDown
- The Un-Americans (Christian and Lance Storm) - July 21, 2002 - Vengance
- Hurri-Kane (The Hurricane and Kane) - September 23, 2002 - Raw
- Christian and Chris Jericho - October 14, 2002 - Raw
Brand Split 1
Raw - WWE World Tag Team Championship | SmackDown - WWE Tag Team Championship |
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Lineage continues from above.
Vacated — March 24, 2003
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New Lineage
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The WWE World Tag Team Championship and WWE Tag Team Championship were unified on April 5, 2009.
WWE Unified Tag Team Championship
- The Colóns (Carlito and Primo) - April 5, 2009 - WrestleMania 24
- Edge and Chris Jericho - June 28, 2009 - The Bash
- Jeri-Show (Chris Jericho and Big Show) - July 26, 2009 - Night of Champions
- D-Generation X (Triple H and Shawn Michaels) - December 13, 2009 - TLC
- The Hart Dynasty (David Hart Smith and Tyson Kidd) - April 26, 2010 - Raw
WWE Tag Team Championships
- Drew McIntyre and Cody Rhodes - September 19, 2010 - Night of Champions
- The Nexus (John Cena and David Otunga) - October 24, 2010 - Bragging Rights
- The Nexus (Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel) - October 25, 2010 - Raw
- Santino Marella and Vladimir Kozlov - December 6, 2010 - Raw
- The Corre (Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel) 2 - February 20, 2011 Elimination Chamber
- The Corre (Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel) 3 - February 21, 2011 - Raw
- The New Nexus (David Otunga and Michael McGillicutty) - May 23, 2011 - Raw
- Air Boom (Evan Bourne and Kofi Kingston) - August 22, 2011 - Raw
- Kofi Kingston and R-Truth - April 30, 2012 - Raw
- Team Hell No (Kane and Daniel Bryan) - September 16, 2012 - Night of Champions
- The Shield (Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns) - May 19, 2013 - Extreme Rules
- Cody Rhodes and Goldust - October 14, 2013 - Raw
- The New Age Outlaws (Road Dogg and Billy Gunn) - January 26, 2014 - Royal Rumble KickOff
- Goldust and Stardust 2 - September 21, 2014 - Night of Champions
- The Miz and Damien Mizdow - November 23, 2014 - Survivor Series
- Cesaro and Tyson Kidd - February 22, 2015 - Fastlane
- The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Big E with Xavier Woods) - April 26 2015 - Extreme Rules
- Prime Time Players Titus O'Neil and Darren Young - June 14 2015 - Money on the Bank
- The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Big E with Xavier Woods) - August 23 2015 - SummerSlam
Brand Split 2
WWE Raw Tag Team Championship | WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship |
---|---|
Lineage continued from above.
VACATED - April 9 2018 - RAw
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New Lineage.
VACATED - April 30 2019 - Jeff Hardy was injured and needed surgery.
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