WWE Finally Implemented A 24/7 Title Last Night, And It's Hideous!

After months, and months, and MONTHS – actually YEARS – worth of begging the WWE to once again implement a 24/7 Championship, utilizing the WWE Network and social media to their fullest, they’ve finally listened. Last night, on Monday Night RAW, Mick Foley presented us with the NEW 24/7 Championship, one of the absolute ugliest fuckin’ things I’ve ever seen…

I don’t know if they were going for a boxing feel, or an old school “big green belt” feel, but whatever they’re puttin down with this one, I ain’t picking up. This title’s CONCEPT, however, I love, and they certainly hit the ground runnin’ as there’s been three champions already!

For those who asked what I would do with this championship, let me throw it back to a blog I wrote ALMOST a year ago…

How Has The WWE Not Brought Back The 24/7 Hardcore Championship Yet?

One of my favorite aspects of the WWF’s Attitude Era was the 24/7 Hardcore Championship. If you’re not aware of what that is, click play on the video above. It ain’t too hard to figure out. Basically, the WWF Hardcore Championship was eligible to be defended “24 hours a day, 7 days a week” with no set of rules or anything, so most of its matches ended up taking place in airports, restaurants, backstage areas of the arena, and anywhere BUT a professional wrestling ring. Some amazing moments came out of segments involving the title (like the one above) and some hilarious, unlikely people were crowned champion in the process, but it eventually made like Spider-Man and faded off into bolivion never to be seen again.

I don’t know how in the world the concept has never made a triumphant return, however. With the WWE Network and the right utilization of social media, the 24/7 Hardcore Championship could quickly become the most engaging championship in the company.

Think about it: the idea was about twenty years ahead of its time. Constant “spontaneous” title changes, but they all took place either during episodes of Monday Night RAW or on a pay-per-view, because when else would they? The WWE could never just broadcast a title match in the middle of the day on a Wednesday or Thursday or something, the airwaves didn’t exist to do so…but they do now.

I get notifications all the time on my phone from the WWE’s app, letting me know that they’re about to go live on a kickoff show or pay-per-view, or that new original content was uploaded to their library, so why can’t they pre-tape a few Hardcore matches in various locations of the town they’re in featuring guys that aren’t being used on television much and hit us with the “LIVE” feeds at completely random times of the day? They could be Network exclusive title matches OR they could hit Twitter/Periscope/Facebook Live all at the same time, and either way would completely captivate wrestling fans in an awesome interactive way. You telling me you wouldn’t open a push notification on a lazy Sunday morning saying “WWE Hardcore Championship Match Happening RIGHT NOW At Waffle House! Tune in now!”?

Look at the success of Zack Ryder’s YouTube show a few years back or UpUpDownDown, Xavier Woods’ video game show…perfect routes for underutilized talent to show their personality and potential to connect with and build an audience. Bringing back this title could do wonders for like, 80% of the modern roster. They’d all get over in that cult-like way with the fans which also opens the door for newfound merch sales (look at the success of “RUSEV DAY” calendars and shirts) and the company’s social platform would grow tenfold. You could work-in ad deals within this, have celebrities win the title, get in on major media and sporting events, the ceiling is infinitely high for this.

So give the people what they want, WWE – bring back the 24/7 Hardcore Championship.