WWE Raw) is a
sports entertainmentSports entertainment is a type of spectacle which presents an ostensibly competitive event using a high level of theatrical flourish and extravagant presentation, with the purpose of entertaining an audience...
television programA television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
for WWE that currently airs on the
USA NetworkUSA Network is an American cable television channel launched in 1971. Once a minor player in basic cable, the network has steadily gained popularity because of breakout hits like Monk, Psych, Burn Notice, Royal Pains, Covert Affairs, White Collar, Monday Night RAW, Suits, and reruns of the various...
in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The show's name is also used to refer to the Raw brand, in which WWE employees are assigned to work and perform on that program, the other program and brand currently being SmackDown. It is the only television broadcast for the Raw brand. The show originally debuted in the United States on the USA Network on January 11, 1993. It remained there until 2000, when Raw was moved to TNN, later known as Spike TV. In 2005, the show was moved back to the USA Network. Since its launch in 1993, Raw continues to air on Monday nights. Raw is generally seen as the company's flagship program due to its prolific history, high ratings, weekly live format, and emphasis on pay-per-views. It is the longest-running weekly episodic TV show in history.
Since its first episode, WWE Raw SuperShow has been broadcasted live from 197 different arenas in 165 cities and towns in nine different nations. Including the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
,
CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
,
AfghanistanAfghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
in 2005 and
IraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
in 2006 and 2007 for specials
Tribute to the TroopsWWE Tribute to the Troops is an annual event held by WWE together with Armed Forces Entertainment in December around Christmas since 2003 as a way of honoring the men and women of the United States armed forces serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. Selected WWE wrestlers and employees travel to the said...
,
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in 1997,
JapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
in 2005 and
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
in 2007. The show was recorded in
MexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
for the first time in October 2011.
Original format
Beginning as WWF Monday Night Raw, the program first aired on January 11, 1993. It screened on the
USA NetworkUSA Network is an American cable television channel launched in 1971. Once a minor player in basic cable, the network has steadily gained popularity because of breakout hits like Monk, Psych, Burn Notice, Royal Pains, Covert Affairs, White Collar, Monday Night RAW, Suits, and reruns of the various...
for one hour. Of the wrestlers featured on that occasion, only The Undertaker is currently under contract with WWE. The original Raw broke new ground in televised professional wrestling. Traditionally, wrestling shows were taped on sound stages with small audiences or at large arena shows. The Raw formula was very different than that of its predecessor,
Prime Time WrestlingWWF Prime Time Wrestling is a professional wrestling television program produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It aired on the USA Network from 1985-1993. A precursor to Monday Night Raw, Prime Time Wrestling was a two-hour long, weekly program that featured stars of the World Wrestling...
. Instead of taped matches, with studio voice overs and taped chat, Raw was a show shot to a live audience, with angles as they happened. The first episode featured Yokozuna defeating Koko B. Ware,
The Steiner BrothersThe Steiner Brothers are the professional wrestling tag team of American brothers Robert "Rick Steiner" Rechsteiner and Scott "Scott Steiner" Rechsteiner...
defeating The Executioners,
WWF Intercontinental ChampionThe WWE Intercontinental Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It is the original secondary title of the promotion. Currently, it is the secondary championship exclusive to the SmackDown brand...
Shawn MichaelsMichael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
defeating Max Moon and The Undertaker defeating
Damien DementoPhillip "Phil" Theis is an American former professional wrestler. He is best known for his stint in the World Wrestling Federation under the ring name Damien Demento.-Early career:...
. The show also featured an interview with
Razor RamonScott Hall is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure with the World Wrestling Federation in the early and mid 1990s under the ring name Razor Ramon, as well as for his period in the mid 1990s and early 2000s with World Championship Wrestling under his real name...
.
Raw originated from the
Grand Ballroom at Manhattan Center StudiosThe Manhattan Center building, built in 1906 and located at 311 West 34th Street in Midtown Manhattan, houses Manhattan Center Studios , its Grand Ballroom, and the Hammerstein Ballroom, one of New York City's most renowned performance venues...
, a small
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
theater, and aired live each week. The combination of an intimate venue and live action proved highly successful. However, the weekly live schedule proved to be a financial drain on the WWF, and taped shows began airing every other week. From early 1994 to September 1999, Raw was shown live on one Monday and then the next day (Tuesday) next Monday's Raw was taped. This meant that Raw was live one week and taped the next.
The storylines and characters during the early years of Raw still had a healthy dose of the old Federation "gimmick-heavy" style. For instance, events occurred such as
Irwin R. SchysterLawrence Michael "Mike" Rotunda is a former American professional wrestler, perhaps best known under the name Irwin R. Schyster or I.R.S. for short. He is currently signed with WWE working as a road agent and making occasional appearances on WWE shows as Irwin R...
tearing up
TatankaChristopher "Chris" Chavis , is a Native American professional wrestler best known for his work with World Wrestling Entertainment as Tatanka from 1991 to 1996 and from 2005 to 2007...
's headdress, the various "Undertaker sightings" in mid-1994 and characters like
Duke "The Dumpster" DroeseMichael "Mike" Droese is a retired American professional wrestler. He is perhaps best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation between 1994 and 1996 under the ring name Duke "The Dumpster" Droese.-Career:Droese was trained as a professional wrestler by Bobby Wales...
,
Doink the ClownDoink the Clown is a professional wrestling gimmick, originally used by Matt Osborne in the World Wrestling Federation from 1993 to 1995. Since Osborne's departure from the WWF, the character has been played by several wrestlers, primarily on the independent circuit, as well as in sporadic special...
, or
Bob "Spark Plugg" HollyRobert "Bob" Howard better known by his ring name Bob "Hardcore" Holly, is a American professional wrestler. He is best known for his 15-year stint with World Wrestling Entertainment ....
.
Raw, uniquely in its day, covered the unexpected, exciting moments, a prelude to "
the Attitude EraThe Attitude Era was a period in World Wrestling Federation and professional wrestling history that began as a direct result of the Monday Night Wars, a television ratings conflict between the WWF and longtime rival promotion World Championship Wrestling that lasted from 1995 to 2001...
", in which it coined Raw as "Uncut, Uncensored, Uncooked." Some of those moments include Razor Ramon losing a match unexpectedly to
The KidSean Michael Waltman is an American professional wrestler currently signed with WWE in their developmental program. He wrestled there under the ring names 1–2–3 Kid and X-Pac off and on from 1993–2002, World Championship Wrestling under the ring name Syxx, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ...
or
Marty JannettyFrederick Marty Jannetty is an American professional wrestler, best known for his time in the World Wrestling Federation as part of tag team The Rockers with partner Shawn Michaels, and later as a singles competitor. While in the WWF, he became a one time Intercontinental Champion and a one time...
beating Shawn Michaels to win the WWF Intercontinental Championship. Raw also was the first WWF television program of any kind to show footage of
Lex LugerLawrence Wendell "Larry" Pfohl , better known by his ring name Lex Luger, is an American former professional wrestler and football player currently working with WWE on their wellness policy...
bodyslamming Yokozuna at the
USS IntrepidUSS Intrepid , also known as The Fighting "I", is one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. She is the fourth US Navy ship to bear the name. Commissioned in August 1943, Intrepid participated in several campaigns in the Pacific Theater of Operations, most notably the Battle...
.
Vince McMahonVincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
,
Rob BartlettRobert Bartlett is a comedian, actor and writer who gained widespread fame as a comedian on the radio and television show Imus in the Morning. His most famous characters include: The Godfather, Dr...
and "Macho Man"
Randy SavageRandall Mario Poffo , better known by his ring name "Macho Man" Randy Savage, was an American professional wrestler, best known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling .Savage held twenty championships during his professional wrestling career and was a...
served as the original hosts of Raw.
Sean MooneySean Mooney is a former World Wrestling Federation play-by-play announcer. He was born and currently resides in Phoenix, Arizona.-WWF career:Mooney debuted on the May 15, 1988 edition of WWF Wrestling Challenge, replacing announcer Craig DeGeorge....
conducted the interviews and
Bobby "The Brain" HeenanRaymond Louis "Ray" Heenan , better known as Bobby "The Brain" Heenan , is a former American professional wrestling manager and color commentator, best known for his time with the American Wrestling Association , World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation...
also helped contribute. On April 19, 1993, Rob Bartlett made his final appearance on the program. He was dropped from the broadcasting team and was replaced by Bobby Heenan the following week, who remained until December 6, 1993, when
Gorilla MonsoonRobert James "Gino" Marella , better known by his ring name of Gorilla Monsoon, was an American professional wrestler, play-by-play announcer, and booker...
kicked him out of the WWF. In reality, this was a storyline between Monsoon and his close friend Heenan, who decided to leave the World Wrestling Federation in order to lighten his travel schedule and because he did not want to take a 50% paycut. Raw also originally featured the Raw Girls; ladies who would parade signs around the ring in between matches that often used the term "Raw" in a pun (as in "Open Wide and Say Raw", among others). After about a year, Raw moved out of the Manhattan Center and traveled to various regular Federation venues in the United States. In mid-1995, Raw briefly showcased "Dok Hendrix and the Raw Band"; a musical performance in-between segments on the show.
The Monday Night Wars and Raw is War
In 1995,
World Championship WrestlingWorld Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
(WCW) began airing its new wrestling show,
WCW Monday NitroWCW Monday Nitro was a weekly professional wrestling telecast produced by World Championship Wrestling, created by Ted Turner and Eric Bischoff. The show aired Monday nights on TNT, going head-to-head with the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw from September 4, 1995 to March 26, 2001...
, live each week on TNT. Raw and Nitro went head-to-head for the first time on September 11, 1995. Due to Raws taping schedule on several occasions, WCW Vice President
Eric BischoffEric Aaron Bischoff is an American entrepreneur, and professional wrestling booker and on-screen personality currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
, who also worked as an on-air personality, would frequently give away the results of WWF's taped Raw shows on the live WCW show. Some fans also looked at Raw taping results on the steadily growing
InternetThe Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
; this caused the
ratingsNielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
of the taped Raw episodes to decrease.
Until September 1999 WWF Raw broadcast live every other week to save costs, but ratings and pay-per-view buy-rate increased, allowing them to justify doing a weekly live show.
At the start of the ratings war in 1995 through to mid-1996, Raw and Nitro exchanged victories over each other in a closely contested rivalry. Beginning in mid-1996, however, thanks primarily to the
nWoThe New World Order was a professional wrestling stable that originally wrestled for World Championship Wrestling . The group later appeared in the World Wrestling Federation after the purchase of WCW by the WWF...
angle, Monday Nitro started a ratings win-streak that lasted for 84 continuous weeks, ending on April 13, 1998.
On February 3, 1997, Monday Night Raw went to a two-hour format, as
the Attitude EraThe Attitude Era was a period in World Wrestling Federation and professional wrestling history that began as a direct result of the Monday Night Wars, a television ratings conflict between the WWF and longtime rival promotion World Championship Wrestling that lasted from 1995 to 2001...
was starting to come in full stream in the WWF. In an attempt to break the momentum of what had turned into ratings domination by WCW's competing Monday Nitro,
Extreme Championship WrestlingExtreme Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1992 by Tod Gordon and closed when his successor, Paul Heyman, declared bankruptcy in April 2001...
(ECW) was brought in as
Jerry LawlerJerry O'Neil Lawler is an American professional wrestler, wrestling commentator, musician, businessman, commercial artist and film actor, known throughout the wrestling world as Jerry "The King" Lawler. He is currently signed to WWE, working on its Raw brand as the color commentator and occasional...
challenged ECW on February 17, 1997.
In an episode where Raw returned to the Manhattan Center, the challenge answered on the following week's show with
TazPeter Senerchia is a retired American professional wrestler and current color commentator best known by his ring name Tazz, originally Tazmaniac and later shortened to simply Taz...
,
Mikey WhipwreckJohn Watson , better known by his ring name Mikey Whipwreck, is a retired American professional wrestler best known for his career with Extreme Championship Wrestling where he became the third ECW Triple Crown Champion....
,
SabuTerry Michael Brunk , better known by his ring name Sabu, is an American professional wrestler best known for his extreme wrestling style...
,
Tommy DreamerThomas James "Tom" Laughlin is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Tommy Dreamer. He is currently working for various promotions on the independent circuit. He is best known for his time spent with Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment...
,
D-Von Dudley, and The Sandman. ECW owner
Paul HeymanPaul Heyman is an American entertainment producer, best known for his career in professional wrestling as a promoter, manager, commentator and journalist. He is also an occasional actor in film....
did a call-in interview on Raw the week after that.
Throughout 1997, further controversial elements emerged with Raw and WWF programming.
Memorable moments included
Bret HartBret Hart is a Canadian on-screen personality, writer, actor and Semi-retired professional wrestler. Like others in the Hart wrestling family, Hart has an amateur wrestling background, including wrestling at Ernest Manning High School and Mount Royal College...
cursing profanely at the crowd after losing a Steel Cage match, with commentators apologizing for his foul behavior, before he proceeds in major brawls with
SidSidney Raymond "Sid" Eudy is an American professional wrestler, best known as Sid Vicious in World Championship Wrestling, and as Sid Justice and Sycho Sid in the World Wrestling Federation...
, The Undertaker,
Steve AustinSteve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
, and briefly
Shawn MichaelsMichael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
. Some of the most notable moments cites the profusely intense feud with The Hart Foundation against Michaels and Austin, which saw Raw develop a memorable episode in which Michaels and Austin beat The British Bulldog and Owen Hart for the WWF Tag Team Championship, and during their post-match attack on Michaels, Austin physically charged a disabled Bret Hart to ward them off. Other events saw the new black street gang
Nation of DominationThe Nation of Domination was a professional wrestling stable in World Wrestling Federation from November 18, 1996 to November 28, 1998. The Rock was a 1 time Intercontinental Champion and D'Lo Brown was a 2 time European Champion while in the group.-United States Wrestling Association :The...
formed, and Michaels
D-Generation XD-Generation X was a professional wrestling stable in WWE . The group originated in the midst of the WWF's "Attitude Era" from 1997 to 2000...
"racial graffiti" storyline designed to "implicate Bret Hart's '
The Hart FoundationThe Hart Foundation referred to several teams or stables in the World Wrestling Federation , usually consisted of members or close friends of the Hart wrestling family from Canada....
'", and the "XXX Files" series.
On March 10, 1997, Monday Night Raw became a 2 hour show, the first hour was still known as "Raw", the second "The War Zone", the 2 hour block together was named "Raw Is War". The March 17, 1997 episode featured a heated Bret Hart/Vince McMahon ringside altercation (that unknowingly foreshadowed the
Montreal ScrewjobThe Montreal Screwjob was a controversial, purportedly real life professional wrestling event in which the owner of the World Wrestling Federation, Vince McMahon, double-crossed the defending WWF Champion, Bret Hart, during the main event match of the professional wrestling pay-per-view event...
) with profanity normally not heard on television.
Brian PillmanBrian William Pillman was an American football player and professional wrestler best known for his appearances in the World Wrestling Federation, Extreme Championship Wrestling, and World Championship Wrestling....
did a series of "XXX Files" segments with
Terri RunnelsTerri Lynne Boatright Runnels is a former World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Federation professional wrestling manager, television host and occasional wrestler....
, which further "pushed the envelope". These segments ended prematurely with the September 29, 1997 episode of Raw, after the death of Pillman on October 5, 1997 due to hereditary heart problems.
After
WrestleMania XIVWrestleMania XIV was the fourteenth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation , which took place on March 29, 1998 at the FleetCenter in Boston, Massachusetts....
in March 1998, which featured
Mike TysonMichael Gerard "Mike" Tyson is a retired American boxer. Tyson is a former undisputed heavyweight champion of the world and holds the record as the youngest boxer to win the WBC, WBA and IBF world heavyweight titles, he was 20 years, 4 months and 22 days old...
as a ring enforcer, and Shawn Michaels final match up until 2002, the WWF regained the lead in the Monday Night Wars with its new "WWF Attitude" brand, led in particular by rising stars Steve Austin, The Rock,
Triple HPaul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
and
MankindMichael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he...
. The classic
feudA professional wrestling feud is a staged rivalry between multiple wrestlers or alliances of wrestlers. They are integrated into ongoing storylines, particularly in events which are televised...
between the
villainousIn professional wrestling, a heel is a villain character. In non-wrestling jargon, heels are the "bad guys" in professional wrestling; the term heel coming from the term take to you heels, which means to run away which heel champions tend to do to avoid losing their titles.storylines...
WWF Chairman Vince McMahon (who was re-imagined and re-branded from the color commentator into the evil corporal chairman character Mr. McMahon after the real-life Montreal Screwjob incident) and
fan favoriteIn professional wrestling, a babyface or face or in simple words, a fan favorite is a character who is portrayed as a heroic relative to the heel wrestlers, who are analogous to villains...
Steve Austin caught the imaginations of fans. The April 13, 1998 episode of Raw, headlined by a match between Austin and McMahon, marked the first time that WCW had lost the head-to-head Monday night
ratingsNielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
battle in the 84 weeks since 1996.
While Raw was taking a new approach to programming, Nitro began producing lackluster programming with repetitive storylines. Older stars such as Hogan and Nash frequently occupied the main events, while younger talent such as Rey Mysterio, Jr.,
Chris BenoitChristopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
,
Chris JerichoChristopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer...
, and
Eddie GuerreroEduardo Gory "Eddie" Guerrero was a Mexican-American professional wrestler born into the Guerrero wrestling family. He wrestled in Mexico and Japan for several major professional wrestling promotions...
, Chavo Guerrero, Jr,
Lance StormLance Timothy Evers known professionally by his ring name Lance Storm, is a semi-retired Canadian professional wrestler. He is best known for his work in World Wrestling Entertainment, Extreme Championship Wrestling, and World Championship Wrestling...
and
Shane HelmsGregory Shane Helms is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment where he wrestled as The Hurricane and Gregory Helms. He is also known for his time with World Championship Wrestling where he wrestled as "Sugar" Shane Helms...
were not given opportunities to advance, and the only newcomers elevated to main-event status at this time were
Bill GoldbergGoldberg earned a scholarship to play for the University of Georgia Bulldogs football team where he served as a defensive tackle. He was taken in the 11th round, with the 302nd overall selection, in the 1990 NFL Draft....
and
Diamond Dallas PageDallas Page , better known by his ring name "Diamond" Dallas Page , is an American retired professional wrestler, fitness instructor and actor...
.
Meanwhile, on Raw, fans were immersed in the feud between WWF owner Vince McMahon and Steve Austin. New talent such as Triple H being the new leader of the
D-Generation XD-Generation X was a professional wrestling stable in WWE . The group originated in the midst of the WWF's "Attitude Era" from 1997 to 2000...
(DX) faction, Mankind and The Rock were elevated to main event status on the WWF's program. Superstars such as Kane, Kurt Angle, Val Venis, Goldust and the like were coming through the ranks and exposing the WWF as territory where new talent can ascend unlike the WCW counterpart. Matters were so heated between the two programs that, when both shows were in the
Hampton RoadsHampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
area on the same night (Raw in
Hampton, VirginiaHampton is an independent city that is not part of any county in Southeast Virginia. Its population is 137,436. As one of the seven major cities that compose the Hampton Roads metropolitan area, it is on the southeastern end of the Virginia Peninsula. Located on the Hampton Roads Beltway, it hosts...
, Nitro in
Norfolk, VirginiaNorfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
), DX was sent to film a "war" segment at the
Norfolk ScopeNorfolk Scope is a multipurpose culture, entertainment, convention and sports arena at the northern perimeter of downtown Norfolk, Virginia, designed by Italian architect/engineer Pier Luigi Nervi in conjunction with the local firm of Williams and Tazewell...
where they berated WCW and interviewed fans on camera who stated that they received their Nitro tickets for free (presumably in an attempt by WCW to pack the arena to capacity due to low ticket sales).
On January 4, 1999, Mick Foley, who had wrestled for WCW during the early 1990s as Cactus Jack, won the WWF Title as Mankind on Raw. On orders from Bischoff, Nitro announcer
Tony SchiavoneNoah Anthony "Tony" Schiavone is an American sports broadcaster. He is the play-by-play broadcaster for the Gwinnett Braves of the International League...
gave away this previously taped result on a live Nitro, and then sarcastically added "that'll sure put some butts in the seats" consequently resulting in over 600,000 viewers switching channels to watch Raw. This was also the night that Nitro aired a
WCW World Heavyweight ChampionshipThe World Championship Wrestling World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation . It existed within WCW between 1991 and 2001. Following the acquisition of WCW by World Wrestling...
match in which
Kevin NashKevin Scott Nash is an American professional wrestler and actor. As of 2011, Nash is signed to a five year contract with WWE under their WWE Legends program and appears as part of their Raw brand roster...
blatantly laid down for
Hulk HoganTerrance Gene "Terry" Bollea , better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American Semi-retired professional wrestler, actor, television personality, and musician currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
after Hogan
poked him in the chestThe Fingerpoke of Doom is a nickname for an infamous incident in American professional wrestling that happened on January 4, 1999 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, during a live broadcast of WCW Monday Nitro, the flagship show of World Championship Wrestling...
. The next week, and for months after, many fans in the Raw audience brought signs which read, "Mick Foley put my ass in this seat!" On September 27, 1999, Mick Foley helped WWF Raw achieve some of its highest ratings ever with a segment featuring himself (as Mankind) and The Rock. The segment called "This is Your Life" included Mankind bringing out people from The Rock's past, such as a home economics teacher, gym teacher and old high school girlfriend. The "This is Your Life" segment remains one of the highest rated segments in Raw viewership history, with an 8.4
ratingNielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
.
The end of the Wars
A new television contract with Viacom led to changes in WWF broadcasting. On September 25, 2000, Raw moved from the USA Network to TNN (which later became Spike TV).
WCW's sharp decline in revenue and ratings led to Time Warner's sale of the company to the WWF in 2001. The final edition of Nitro aired on March 26, 2001. The show began with Vince McMahon making a short statement about his recent purchase of WCW and ended with a simulcast Raw on TNN and Nitro on TNT with an appearance by Vince's son
Shane McMahonShane Brandon McMahon is an American executive, currently serving as the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of YOU On Demand. A former executive and professional wrestler for World Wrestling Entertainment , he is the son of WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon and former US Senate candidate Linda...
. Shane interrupted his father's gloating over the WCW purchase to explain that Shane was the one who actually owned WCW, setting up what became the WWF's "Invasion" storyline.
The RAW IS WAR logo and name were retired in September 2001, following the September 11 attacks and sensitivity over the word war, and because the Monday Night Wars were "over".
Brand Extension
In early to mid-2002, WWF underwent a process they called the "Brand Extension". WWF divided itself into two "de facto" wrestling promotions with separate rosters, storylines and authority figures. Raw and SmackDown! would host each division, give its name to the division and essentially compete against each other. The split was a result of WWF purchasing their two biggest competitors,
WCWWorld Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
and
ECWExtreme Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1992 by Tod Gordon and closed when his successor, Paul Heyman, declared bankruptcy in April 2001...
. The brand extension was publicly announced during a telecast of WWF Raw on March 25, 2002, and became official the next day. The March 25th episode of RAW was the final RAW to use the Attitude era depiction and the last to use the theme song
Thorn In Your EyeWWF Full Metal: The Album was an album released by the World Wrestling Federation in 1996. It featured mostly recent theme tunes of wrestlers on the roster at the time...
.
Wrestlers now would become show-exclusive, wrestling for their specific show only. At the time this excluded the
WWE Undisputed ChampionshipThe WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
and
WWE Women's ChampionshipThe WWE Women's Championship was a professional wrestling championship in the World Wrestling Entertainment promotion. Created in 1956, it was the oldest active professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment history until its retirement in 2010 as a result from a unification...
, as those WWE titles would be defended on both shows. In August 2002, WWE Undisputed Champion
Brock LesnarBrock Edward Lesnar is an American mixed martial artist, actor and a former professional and amateur wrestler. He is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion and is ranked the No.5 Heavyweight in the world by Sherdog...
refused to defend the title on Raw, in effect causing his title to become exclusive to SmackDown! The following week on Raw, General Manager Eric Bischoff awarded a newly instated
World Heavyweight ChampionshipThe World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
to Raw's designated number one contender,
Triple HPaul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
. Because the WWE Undisputed Championship was now SmackDown! exclusive it was no longer seen as "undisputed". Following this, the
WWE Women's ChampionshipThe WWE Women's Championship was a professional wrestling championship in the World Wrestling Entertainment promotion. Created in 1956, it was the oldest active professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment history until its retirement in 2010 as a result from a unification...
soon became Raw-exclusive as well. As a result of the Brand Extension, an annual "draft lottery" was instituted to exchange members of each roster and generally refresh the lineups.
WWE Raw claimed to have earned the distinction of having the most original episodes of any fictional weekly program on August 2, 2005 when it broadcasted the 636th episode. It was said to have taken the place of
GunsmokeGunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. The stories take place in and around Dodge City, Kansas, during the settlement of the American West....
, which held that distinction.
Return to USA Network
On March 10, 2005,
ViacomViacom Inc. , short for "Video & Audio Communications", is an American media conglomerate with interests primarily in, but not limited to, cinema and cable television...
and WWE decided not to go on with the agreement with Spike TV, making it so Raw and other
WWE programsWWE has a wide range of programs that air all over the world, including television shows, films, webcasts, video on demand and pay-per-view events.-Television and webcasts:In the United States:...
on the network would cease when their deal expired in September 2005. On April 4, 2005, WWE announced a 3-year deal with
NBC UniversalNBCUniversal Media, LLC is a media and entertainment company engaged in the production and marketing of entertainment, news, and information products and services to a global customer base...
to bring Raw back to its former home, the
USA NetworkUSA Network is an American cable television channel launched in 1971. Once a minor player in basic cable, the network has steadily gained popularity because of breakout hits like Monk, Psych, Burn Notice, Royal Pains, Covert Affairs, White Collar, Monday Night RAW, Suits, and reruns of the various...
, with 2 yearly specials on
NBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
and a
SpanishSpanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
Raw on
TelemundoTelemundo is an American television network that broadcasts in Spanish. The network is the second-largest Spanish-language content producer in the world, and the second-largest Spanish-language network in the United States, behind Univision....
. On the same week as Raws return to the
USA NetworkUSA Network is an American cable television channel launched in 1971. Once a minor player in basic cable, the network has steadily gained popularity because of breakout hits like Monk, Psych, Burn Notice, Royal Pains, Covert Affairs, White Collar, Monday Night RAW, Suits, and reruns of the various...
, Spike TV scheduled
Ultimate Fighting ChampionshipThe Ultimate Fighting Championship is the largest mixed martial arts promotion company in the world that hosts most of the top-ranked fighters in the sport...
's live
Ultimate Fight NightUltimate Fight Night was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on August 6, 2005. The event took place at Cox Pavilion in Paradise, Nevada and was broadcast live on Spike TV in the United States and Canada. The telecast drew a 1.5 overall rating in the United...
in Raw
's old timeslot in an attempt to go head-to-head with Raw.
The show's first night back on USA was billed as the "WWE Homecoming" and featured the return of former
WWE ChampionsThe WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
such as
Hulk HoganTerrance Gene "Terry" Bollea , better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American Semi-retired professional wrestler, actor, television personality, and musician currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
,
Steve AustinSteve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
,
Shawn MichaelsMichael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
,
Mick FoleyMichael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he...
,
Triple HPaul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
and
Vince McMahonVincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
along with cameos from legends such as
Roddy PiperRoderick George Toombs , better known by his ring name "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, is a Canadian semi-retired professional wrestler and film actor who is currently signed to WWE. In professional wrestling, he is best known for his work with WWE...
,
Jimmy HartJames "Jimmy" Ray Hart is a professional wrestling manager, executive, composer, and musician currently signed with WWE. He is best known for his work in the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling under his nickname "The Mouth of the South." He has managed many professional...
,
Jimmy SnukaJames William "Jimmy" Reiher is a semi-retired Fijian professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring name Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka. Originally from the Fiji Islands, Snuka wrestled for several promotions in the 1970s and 1980s. Snuka is a two-time world heavyweight champion, having been a...
and
Harley RaceHarley Leland Race is a retired American professional wrestler and current promoter and trainer. During his career as a wrestler, he held the NWA World Heavyweight Championship 7 times...
. Also, it featured a 30 minutes Iron Match between Shawn Michaels and Kurt Angle. WWE Homecoming was three hours long — the second longest an episode of Raw has ever run in its 12-year history. USA also showed Raw Exposed, an hour of the best moments of Raw during its previous run on USA. WWE announced that Raw received its highest ratings in three years, gaining close to six million viewers.
The following week, Vince McMahon fired
Jim RossJames William "Jim" Ross is a professional wrestling commentator, former professional wrestling referee, restaurateur, occasional wrestler, and former company executive of WWE, where he currently works as a commentator on the WWE Raw brand...
for not helping after Steve Austin gave him and his entire family the
Stone Cold StunnerA stunner is a common term in professional wrestling referring to the seated three-quarter facelock jawbreaker maneuver, predominantly used by Stone Cold Steve Austin and named for his Stone Cold Stunner finisher...
.
Jonathan CoachmanJonathan William Coachman , also known as "The Coach", is a former professional wrestling color commentator and authority figure. He is also a former college basketball player, and football play-by-play announcer...
, the second analyst at the table, took over Ross's duties as play-by-play for two weeks until former
ECWExtreme Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1992 by Tod Gordon and closed when his successor, Paul Heyman, declared bankruptcy in April 2001...
announcer
Joey StylesJoseph Carmine Bonsignore better known by his ring name Joey Styles, is an American professional wrestling play-by-play commentator and former professional in the field of advertising sales...
was hired.
On the May 1, 2006 edition of Raw,
Joey StylesJoseph Carmine Bonsignore better known by his ring name Joey Styles, is an American professional wrestling play-by-play commentator and former professional in the field of advertising sales...
announced he was quitting (
kayfabeIn professional wrestling, kayfabe is the portrayal of events within the industry as "real" or "true". Specifically, the portrayal of professional wrestling, in particular the competition and rivalries between participants, as being genuine or not of a worked nature...
). His vacating of the announcer position set the stage for Jim Ross to return to Raw's commentary booth, thus ending the storyline where Ross got fired by
Linda McMahonLinda Marie McMahon is an American professional wrestling magnate and politician. She is notable for her career developing WWE with her husband Vince McMahon. She was in the company from 1980 to 2009. During this time, WWE grew from a small regional business in New York to a large multinational...
. This freed Styles to become a commentator for the ECW brand when it launched in June.
In
CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, after an 11 year run on
TSNThe Sports Network, commonly abbreviated as TSN, is a Canadian English language Category C specialty channel and is Canada's leading English language sports TV channel. TSN premiered in 1984, in the first group of Canadian specialty cable channels...
, Raw moved to rival sports broadcaster The Score after it was announced that TSN would be carrying
Monday Night FootballMonday Night Football is a live broadcast of the National Football League on ESPN. From to it aired on ABC. Monday Night Football was, along with Hallmark Hall of Fame, and the Walt Disney anthology television series, one of the longest running prime time commercial network television series...
for the 2006 season. The Score claimed that unlike TSN they would never preempt Raw, however that promise only lasted a few months. Then in 2007, The Score started airing the show with a 15 minute tape delay. The first 15 minutes of the hour contains a countdown pre-show recapping the previous week's events.
During the September 25, 2006 episode of Raw in
Oklahoma City, OklahomaOklahoma City is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma.Oklahoma City may also refer to:*Oklahoma City metropolitan area*Downtown Oklahoma City*Uptown Oklahoma City*Oklahoma City bombing*Oklahoma City National Memorial...
, the opening of Raw suffered a blackout. Spotlights were the only lights running in the house, thus the opening match (between
LitaAmy Christine Dumas , known by her primary stage name Lita, is the lead singer for the band The Luchagors as well as a retired professional wrestler and WWE Diva active from 1999 to 2006....
and
Candice MichelleCandice Michelle Beckman-Ehrlich better known as Candice Michelle or just Candice, is an American model, actress, and professional wrestler best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment....
) was contested in the dark. Power in the presentation was later restored. Another similar moment happened back on May 26, 1996 in
Florence, South Carolina-Municipal government and politics:The City of Florence has a council-manager form of government. The mayor and city council are elected every four years, with no term limits...
for WWF
In Your House 8: Beware of DogIn Your House 8: Beware of Dog was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation , that originally took place on May 26, 1996 from the Florence Civic Center in Florence, South Carolina. Due to a severe thunderstorm, the power went out during the event,...
, when a major thunderstorm hit the
Florence Civic CenterThe Florence Civic Center is a 10,000-seat multi-purpose arena in Florence, South Carolina. It hosted the infamous eighth WWF In Your House pay-per-view in 1996, during which a storm knocked out the power and thus the broadcast signal during the event. The card was retelecast two nights later from...
causing major chaos for the PPV. That Tuesday,
Beware of DogIn Your House 8: Beware of Dog was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation , that originally took place on May 26, 1996 from the Florence Civic Center in Florence, South Carolina. Due to a severe thunderstorm, the power went out during the event,...
, returned to
North Charleston, South CarolinaNorth Charleston is the 3rd largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina with incorporated areas in Berkeley, Charleston, and Dorchester counties. On June 12, 1972 the city of North Charleston incorporated and was the 9th largest city in South Carolina. According to the 2010 Census, North...
to finish out three matches that were not shown because of the lost power feed.
That October, Raw held a three-hour season premiere called the "Raw Family Reunion", where the Raw brand debuted a new logo and theme song,
Papa RoachPapa Roach is an American rock band from Vacaville, California. Their first major-label release was the triple-platinum album Infest . The group's success continued with their gold album Lovehatetragedy , their platinum album Getting Away with Murder , The Paramour Sessions , and Metamorphosis...
's "
...To Be Loved"...To Be Loved" is the first single from Californian rock band Papa Roach's fifth album, The Paramour Sessions, and eighth released single in total. The song hit American radio stations on August 7, 2006...
". The episode also featured talent from the SmackDown! and ECW brands. Later that month, on October 23 Raw aired its 700th episode, according to the WWE making it the longest running weekly entertainment show, without a
hiatusIn television scheduling, a hiatus refers to a break of at least several weeks in the normal schedule of a broadcast programming. It can occur during a season of a television program, or can be between television seasons .- Planned hiatus :Many times television stations will implement a hiatus...
, in television history.
On June 25, 2007, Raw was scheduled in
Corpus Christi, TexasCorpus Christi is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas. The county seat of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patricio counties. The MSA population in 2008 was 416,376. The population was 305,215 at the 2010 census making it the...
to be a three-hour special memorial show for the
storylineIn professional wrestling, kayfabe is the portrayal of events within the industry as "real" or "true". Specifically, the portrayal of professional wrestling, in particular the competition and rivalries between participants, as being genuine or not of a worked nature...
death of the
Mr. McMahonVincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
character. Two weeks earlier, the show had broadcast an angle in which Mr. McMahon was murdered by a bomb planted within his limousine. The 'Mr. McMahon' tribute was cancelled on the day it was due to air after
the real life deathThe Chris Benoit double murder suicide occurred over a three-day period ending on June 24, 2007. World Wrestling Entertainment professional wrestler Chris Benoit killed his wife, Nancy Benoit, strangled his seven-year-old son, Daniel, and subsequently committed suicide by hanging. Autopsy results...
of current superstar
Chris BenoitChristopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
and his family. The show then became a three-hour tribute to Benoit. What made this tribute different from others (e.g. Eddie Guerrero and Owen Hart) was that the show had no original matches and no live audience. Instead, the three-hour show aired highlights from the WWE DVD 'Hard Knocks: The Chris Benoit Story', and a selection of Benoit's most famous matches. Several wrestlers paid tribute in the form of real interviews about him, and Vince McMahon broke character to address the viewers about what had happened. However, when the facts of Benoit's death came to light, WWE pulled this episode from international markets which aired Raw on a
tape delayIn radio and television, broadcast delay refers to the practice of intentionally delaying broadcast of live material. A short delay is often used to prevent profanity, bloopers, violence, or other undesirable material from making it to air, including more mundane problems such as technical...
basis. Several channels announced the episode was being withheld for legal reasons. A substitute Raw, hosted by
Todd GrishamTodd Grisham is an American presenter/announcer who is best known for his time in the WWE as a backstage interviewer, play-by-play commentator and occasional ring announcer...
from WWE Studios, was created featuring recaps of John Cena's WWE Championship victories, mainly the ones that had occurred over the past year. The episode started with a message from Vince McMahon which originally aired on the June 26 edition of ECW. Some countries that received WWE programming up to three weeks late had all Chris Benoit matches edited out. The WWE even removed all Chris Benoit matches and interviews from the WWE 24/7 service.
In December, Raw celebrated its 15th anniversary in a three-hour spectacular on the USA Network with the returns of
Steve AustinSteve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
,
Rob Van DamRobert Alexander "Rob" Szatkowski , better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam , is an American professional wrestler and actor who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
,
The GodfatherCharles Wright is an American businessman and former professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure with the World Wrestling Federation throughout the 1990s and early 2000s under the ring names Papa Shango, Kama, Kama Mustafa, The Godfather, and The Goodfather .After leaving the wrestling...
,
Steve BlackmanSteve Blackman is a American professional wrestler who is best known for his career in the World Wrestling Federation under his own name.-Stampede Wrestling and South Africa :...
,
Howard FinkelHoward Finkel is a professional wrestling ring announcer currently working with WWE in a variety of roles. Hired in 1975 by Vincent J. McMahon's World Wide Wrestling Federation, "The Fink" was the first person brought in to Vincent K...
,
Ted DiBiaseTheodore Marvin "Ted" DiBiase, Sr. is a retired professional wrestler, manager, ordained minister and color commentator. DiBiase achieved championship success in a number of wrestling promotions, holding thirty titles during his professional wrestling career...
,
Eric BischoffEric Aaron Bischoff is an American entrepreneur, and professional wrestling booker and on-screen personality currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
,
Marty JannettyFrederick Marty Jannetty is an American professional wrestler, best known for his time in the World Wrestling Federation as part of tag team The Rockers with partner Shawn Michaels, and later as a singles competitor. While in the WWF, he became a one time Intercontinental Champion and a one time...
,
GangrelDavid William Heath is an American professional wrestler and pornographic film director. He is best known for his time in the World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name Gangrel.-Beginning:...
,
Trish StratusPatricia Anne Stratigias , better known by her ring name Trish Stratus, is a Canadian professional wrestler, actress and television personality currently signed with WWE. She is also a former fitness model....
,
LitaAmy Christine Dumas , known by her primary stage name Lita, is the lead singer for the band The Luchagors as well as a retired professional wrestler and WWE Diva active from 1999 to 2006....
,
SunnyTamara "Tammy" Lynn Sytch is an American professional wrestling manager, personality,and occasional wrestler. She achieved her greatest success under the ring name Sunny within the World Wrestling Federation during the 1990s, and is widely considered as one of the first Divas...
,
Molly HollyNora Kristina Greenwald , better known by her ring name Molly Holly, is an inactive American professional wrestler. Greenwald is best known for her appearances with World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment .Greenwald began her professional wrestling career in WCW, where she...
,
Hulk HoganTerrance Gene "Terry" Bollea , better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American Semi-retired professional wrestler, actor, television personality, and musician currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
and
Mick FoleyMichael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he...
(as Mankind) among others. Along with several reunions of former tag teams and also included a 15-man "15 Years of Raw"
battle royalIn professional wrestling, a battle royal is a multi-competitor match type in which wrestlers are eliminated until one is left and declared winner...
. The Raw 15th Anniversary DVD was also released which featured some of the most memorable moments in Raw history.
WWE began their 2008 year with a new HD set, which consists of more than 1,000,000
LEDA light-emitting diode is a semiconductor light source. LEDs are used as indicator lamps in many devices and are increasingly used for other lighting...
s. The introduction of this new set retired the old set, which was used from April 2002 to January 2008. Raw's first show in HD was held in the
Hampton ColiseumThe Hampton Coliseum is a multi-use cultural, entertainment and sports arena in Hampton, Virginia. Construction on the arena began on May 24, 1968 and the venue opened in 1970 as the first large multi-purpose arena in the Hampton Roads region and the state of Virginia, opening a year prior to...
in
Hampton, VirginiaHampton is an independent city that is not part of any county in Southeast Virginia. Its population is 137,436. As one of the seven major cities that compose the Hampton Roads metropolitan area, it is on the southeastern end of the Virginia Peninsula. Located on the Hampton Roads Beltway, it hosts...
. That June, the World Heavyweight Championship returned to Raw after
CM PunkPhillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion....
used his
Money In the BankThe Money in the Bank ladder match is a professional wrestling ladder match held by WWE. The match can feature anywhere from six to ten participants from any WWE brand, with the objective being to retrieve a briefcase that is suspended 20 feet above the ring...
contract for an impromptu title match, defeating SmackDown's Edge.
On September 8, 2008, Raw announced that a "talent exchange" was started between ECW and Raw, allowing their respective talent to appear and compete on either brand. This is similar to an earlier "talent exchange" between SmackDown and ECW. On November 3, 2008, Raw celebrated its 800th episode with a three-hour episode. The actual 800th episode aired on September 22, 2008.
In 2009, at
No Way OutNo Way Out was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on February 15, 2009 at the KeyArena in Seattle, Washington. It was the 11th and final event under the No Way Out name and featured talent from the Raw, SmackDown and ECW brands...
that February 15, Edge won the
World Heavyweight ChampionshipThe World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
in Raws
Elimination ChamberThe Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE promotion. It features a large chain-linked circular steel structure or "chamber" which encloses the ring. The chamber's floor is platformed over the ringside area which elevates it to ring level and within...
match, thus making it a SmackDown exclusive title and giving SmackDown two top tier championships. As a result of the
2009 WWE DraftThe 2009 World Wrestling Entertainment Draft was the seventh Draft produced by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE. The Draft took place over two days: the first day was televised live for three hours on April 13; the second part, the "Supplemental Draft", was held on April 15...
in April, WWE Champion
Triple HPaul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
was drafted to the Raw brand, while the World Heavyweight Championship moved to the Raw brand after Edge lost the title to
John CenaJohn Felix Anthony Cena is an American professional wrestler, actor, rapper, and television personality. He is currently signed to WWE as a member of its WWE Raw brand....
at
WrestleMania XXVWrestleMania XXV was the twenty-fifth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on April 5, 2009 at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas...
. SmackDown would regain the World Heavyweight Championship at
Backlash (2009)Backlash was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on April 26, 2009 at the Dunkin' Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island. The 11th and final event under the Backlash banner, it featured talent from all three WWE brands: Raw,...
when Edge defeated John Cena to win the championship. In addition, SmackDown and Raw would exchange both women-exclusive championships with Raw gaining the
WWE Divas ChampionshipThe WWE Diva's Championship is a unified professional wrestling championship in WWE. It is competed for by WWE Divas. The championship was created by WWE in 2008, and was introduced in storyline by then-SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero as an alternative to Raw's Women's Championship...
and SmackDown gaining the
WWE Women's ChampionshipThe WWE Women's Championship was a professional wrestling championship in the World Wrestling Entertainment promotion. Created in 1956, it was the oldest active professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment history until its retirement in 2010 as a result from a unification...
. Also, SmackDown and Raw exchanged the
WWE Intercontinental ChampionshipThe WWE Intercontinental Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It is the original secondary title of the promotion. Currently, it is the secondary championship exclusive to the SmackDown brand...
which is now exclusive to SmackDown and the
WWE United States ChampionshipThe WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
which is exclusive to Raw Brand, for the first time ever.
On June 15, 2009, McMahon announced on a special three-hour edition of Raw that he had "sold" the
WWE Raw franchiseWWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
to
Donald TrumpDonald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have...
, who appeared on-screen to confirm it and declared he would be at the following commercial-free episode in person. WWE issued a press release on the scripted sale while the USA Network later issued a statement confirming the "sale" as part of a storyline. The statement was issued in response to multiple news sources having mistakenly reported the event as legitimate. Due to the mistake, on the day following the announcement, WWE's stock on the
New York Stock ExchangeThe New York Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located at 11 Wall Street in Lower Manhattan, New York City, USA. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed companies at 13.39 trillion as of Dec 2010...
notably fell. Despite USA Network's acknowledgment that the sale was fictional, Randy Katz, a securities lawyer with Baker & Hostetler, commented on the
Fox Business NetworkFox Business Network is an American cable news and satellite news television channel that began broadcasting on October 15, 2007. It is owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation...
that a probe by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission against WWE and USA Network owner
General ElectricGeneral Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
"certainly is a possibility." The next week, Vince McMahon repurchased Raw from Donald Trump and announced that a "Guest star" initiative originally introduced by Trump in response to the position of General Manager being vacant would go in effect on June 29. Each weekly guest host is usually either a
WWE Hall of FameThe WWE Hall of Fame is a hall of fame for professional wrestlers maintained by WWE. It was officially created on the February 1, 1993 episode of the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw television program...
r, a former or returning talent, or other
celebrityA celebrity, also referred to as a celeb in popular culture, is a person who has a prominent profile and commands a great degree of public fascination and influence in day-to-day media...
. The guest host or hostess assumes the role of a brand General Manager, serving as Raw's authority figure for the day. The following year, it was announced that with
Vickie GuerreroVickie Lynn Guerrero is an American professional wrestling personality, manager, shifting authority figure and occasional wrestler. She is the widow of professional wrestler Eddie Guerrero, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand...
(and subsequently
Bret HartBret Hart is a Canadian on-screen personality, writer, actor and Semi-retired professional wrestler. Like others in the Hart wrestling family, Hart has an amateur wrestling background, including wrestling at Ernest Manning High School and Mount Royal College...
) becoming the new full time GM, the guest stars (while continuing to appear) would no longer have booking power.
In 2010,
TNA Impact!Impact Wrestling is a professional wrestling television program for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling that currently airs in the United States and Canada on Spike...
, which normally airs on Thursdays, went head to head with Raw in a three-hour live broadcast. This would be the first time since March 2001 that two major wrestling promotions would go head-to-head in a Monday night ratings competition. TNA promoted the debut of
Hulk HoganTerrance Gene "Terry" Bollea , better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American Semi-retired professional wrestler, actor, television personality, and musician currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
leading to the broadcast. WWE countered by announcing the return of
Bret HartBret Hart is a Canadian on-screen personality, writer, actor and Semi-retired professional wrestler. Like others in the Hart wrestling family, Hart has an amateur wrestling background, including wrestling at Ernest Manning High School and Mount Royal College...
, who had not appeared with the company since the
Montreal ScrewjobThe Montreal Screwjob was a controversial, purportedly real life professional wrestling event in which the owner of the World Wrestling Federation, Vince McMahon, double-crossed the defending WWF Champion, Bret Hart, during the main event match of the professional wrestling pay-per-view event...
in 1997.
The ratings showed that, much like the first Monday Night War, Raw came out on top, averaging 5.6 million viewers while iMPACT! was watched by more than 3 million viewers for the opening hour, though towards the end of the show the viewership declined to 2.2 million viewers.
On March 8, 2010, Impact! permanently moved to Monday nights to compete head-to-head with Raw. After declining ratings, Spike executives announced that starting April 5, Impact! would air an hour earlier than Raw. However Impact! was moved back to Thursdays as the 'New
Monday Night WarsMonday Night Wars is the common term describing the period of mainstream televised American professional wrestling from September 4, 1995, to March 26, 2001. During this time, the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw went head-to-head with World Championship Wrestling's Monday Nitro in a...
' resulted in Raw getting better ratings and audience of TNA getting reduced. Since then on April 19, 2010, many of the WWE Raw superstars were stranded in
BelfastBelfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
due to the ash cloud from
EyjafjallajökullEyjafjallajökull is one of the smaller ice caps of Iceland, situated to the north of Skógar and to the west of Mýrdalsjökull. The ice cap covers the caldera of a volcano with a summit elevation of . The volcano has erupted relatively frequently since the last glacial period, most recently in...
(a volcano in
IcelandIceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
) hovering over most of Europe and causing many flights to be put on hold. Former ring announcer
Lilian GarciaLilian Annette García , is a Spanish-American singer. She is best known as the former ring announcer for WWE's Raw brand. During her time in WWE, she became the first Diva to remain with the promotion for ten years.-Early life and career:...
announced that night while the SmackDown roster took part in production of the Raw episode. The following month on May 17, 2010, Raw aired its second overall commercial free episode from the
Air Canada CentreThe Air Canada Centre is a multi-purpose indoor sporting arena located on Bay Street in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada.The arena is popularly known as the ACC or the Hangar ....
in
TorontoToronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
,
OntarioOntario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
,
CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
That summer on August 30, 2010, Raw aired its 900th episode, SmackDown superstars and NXT rookies also appeared on this milestone episode. It featured the Undertaker and Bret Hart were scheduled to wrestle for the first time in almost 14 years, but, before that could take place, the Undertaker was taken out by the
NexusThe Nexus was a villainous professional wrestling stable in the professional wrestling promotion, WWE, that competed on its Raw brand. The group originally consisted of all eight rookies of NXT season one and shifted their roster several times throughout their existence...
and
KaneGlenn Thomas Jacobs is a Spanish-born American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name, Kane. He is signed to WWE, appearing on its SmackDown brand, but is currently inactive due to injury....
. That November, Raw went "Old School" for one night with the old ring and titantron designs. This episode featured
WWE LegendsThe WWE Hall of Fame is a hall of fame for professional wrestlers maintained by WWE. It was officially created on the February 1, 1993 episode of the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw television program...
"Hacksaw" Jim DugganJames Edward Duggan , better known by his ring name "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan, is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment in the 1980s, when it was known as World Wrestling Federation , and World Championship Wrestling...
,
Mae YoungJohnnie Mae Young is an American Semi-retired professional wrestler and currently a WWE Ambassador.Young was an influential pioneer in women's wrestling, helping to increase its popularity during World War II and training many generations of wrestlers...
,
The Million Dollar ManTheodore Marvin "Ted" DiBiase, Sr. is a retired professional wrestler, manager, ordained minister and color commentator. DiBiase achieved championship success in a number of wrestling promotions, holding thirty titles during his professional wrestling career...
,
Ron SimmonsRonald "Ron" Simmons is an American semi-retired professional wrestler and retired American football player. He is recognised as being the first Black world heavyweight champion in professional wrestling and the first of only two African Americans to win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship,...
, The Iron Sheik and many more.
Mark HenryMark Jerrold Henry is an American professional wrestler signed with WWE, where he performs on its SmackDown brand as the reigning World Heavyweight Champion. He is a 1992 Olympian, and winner of the 2002 Arnold Strongman Classic...
briefly returned to his "Sexual Chocolate" gimmick in honor of Raw going "Old School".
Since August 29, 2011, the SmackDown brand roster has been part of the Raw television program along with the Raw brand in what is now referred to as the Raw SuperShow.
Production
Currently, the theme song for the Raw brand is "
Burn It to the Ground"Burn It to the Ground" is the fourth U.S. single released off of Canadian rock band Nickelback's sixth studio album Dark Horse.- Promotional use :...
" by
NickelbackNickelback is a Canadian rock band from Hanna, Alberta. Since 1995 the band has included guitarist and lead vocalist Chad Kroeger, guitarist and back-up vocalist Ryan Peake and bassist Mike Kroeger.. The band's current drummer and percussionist is Daniel Adair who has been with the band since 2005....
, which has been used for the brand since November 16, 2009. Prior to this, the theme song for the Raw brand was "
...To Be Loved"...To Be Loved" is the first single from Californian rock band Papa Roach's fifth album, The Paramour Sessions, and eighth released single in total. The song hit American radio stations on August 7, 2006...
" by
Papa RoachPapa Roach is an American rock band from Vacaville, California. Their first major-label release was the triple-platinum album Infest . The group's success continued with their gold album Lovehatetragedy , their platinum album Getting Away with Murder , The Paramour Sessions , and Metamorphosis...
, which had been used since October 9, 2006 and "Across The Nation" by
The Union UndergroundThe Union Underground was a nu metal/industrial rock band based out of San Antonio, Texas, USA. Original band members included Bryan Scott, Patrick Kennison, Josh Memolo, and John Moyer. They released one major label album, An Education in Rebellion, in July 2000 which featured the hit single "Turn...
which was used from April 1, 2002 to October 2, 2006. The rap outro of "Thorn In Your Eye" featuring
Scott IanScott Ian Rosenfeld , better known by the stage name Scott Ian, is an American musician, best known as the rhythm & lead guitarist for the heavy metal band Anthrax. Ian is also the guitarist and a founding member of the crossover thrash band Stormtroopers of Death...
of
AnthraxAnthrax is an American heavy metal band from New York City, formed in 1981. Founded by guitarists Scott Ian and Danny Lilker, the band has since released ten studio albums and 20 singles, and an EP featuring Public Enemy. The band was one of the most popular of the 1980s thrash metal scene...
was the theme song from 1998 to March 25, 2002.
Since March 10, 1997, broadcasts of Raw were split into two hours and given hourly names for
television ratings purposesNielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
, with the first hour being referred to as Raw is War and the second as War Zone by the show's on-screen graphics. However, as of October 1, 2001, the first hour has been referred to as Raw and the second as Raw Zone by the show's on-screen graphics. However, both hours are known as just "Raw" on-air.
On January 7, 2008, WWE announced that all brands (Raw, SmackDown and formerly, ECW) would be broadcast in
HDHigh-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
,
codenamedA code name or cryptonym is a word or name used clandestinely to refer to another name or word. Code names are often used for military purposes, or in espionage...
"WWE HD" starting with Raw on January 21. WWE invested an estimated $20 million on new recording and broadcasting equipment to prepare for the move, as well as new pyrotechnics and lighting. The move replaced the Raw, SmackDown and ECW sets with a new
state of the artThe state of the art is the highest level of development, as of a device, technique, or scientific field, achieved at a particular time. It also refers to the level of development reached at any particular time as a result of the latest methodologies employed.- Origin :The earliest use of the term...
set shared by all brands. The stage has been altered since 2008, but most of the stage stays the same.
Since April 2010, WWE changed the ring ropes for RAW. The ropes which were changed every ten years, the RAW red ropes were retired and replaced with white ring ropes, where as Smackdown switched to a darker blue ring ropes for the Smackdown set used between August 2001- January 2008.
Special episodes
| Episode |
Date |
Rating |
Notes |
| Raw |
January 11, 1993 |
2.5 |
|
| Raw Bowl |
January 1, 1996 |
2.6 |
|
| Raw Championship Friday |
September 6, 1996 |
3.4 |
|
Royal RumbleRoyal Rumble was the tenth annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on January 19, 1997 from the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas....
Raw |
February 3, 1997 |
2.6 |
|
| Thursday Raw Thursday |
February 13, 1997 |
3.3 |
|
| Raw is Owen |
May 24, 1999 |
7.2 |
|
| 'Raw is War' |
March 26, 2001 |
4.7 |
|
| The Brand Extension Draft |
March 25, 2002 |
5.4 |
|
| 2002 Raw Roulette |
October 7, 2002 |
3.8 |
|
| Raw X Anniversary |
January 13, 2003 |
5.0 |
|
| 2003 Raw Roulette |
November 24, 2003 |
3.6 |
|
| The 2004 WWE Draft Lottery The 2004 World Wrestling Entertainment Draft Lottery took place at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan on March 22, 2004. The draft took place live for two hours on WWE's flagship television program, Raw on Spike TV. Post-draft trades were announced on WWE's official website, WWE.com, until...
|
March 22, 2004 |
4.5 |
|
| Raw Homecoming |
October 3, 2005 |
5.3 |
|
| Eddie Guerrero Tribute Show |
November 14, 2005 |
4.9 |
|
| Tribute to the Troops |
December 19, 2005 |
4.2 |
|
| Raw Family Reunion |
October 9, 2006 |
5.0 |
|
| Tribute to the Troops |
December 25, 2006 |
4.1 |
|
| 2007 WWE Draft The 2007 World Wrestling Entertainment Draft Lottery took place at the Wachovia Arena in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania on June 11, 2007. The first half of the draft was televised live for three hours on WWE's flagship program, Raw on USA Network...
|
June 11, 2007 |
4.3 |
|
Chris BenoitChristopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
Memorial |
June 25, 2007 |
3.8 |
|
| Raw 15th Anniversary |
December 10, 2007 |
4.4 |
|
| Tribute to the Troops |
December 24, 2007 |
4.0 |
|
| 2008 Raw Roulette |
January 7, 2008 |
3.2 |
|
| King of the Ring (2008) King of the Ring was a special edition of World Wrestling Entertainment's television program, Raw. The episode was held on April 21, 2008 at BI-LO Center in Greenville, South Carolina. The episode featured the eighteenth King of the Ring tournament, which was won by William Regal...
|
April 21, 2008 |
3.0 |
|
| 2008 WWE Draft The 2008 World Wrestling Entertainment Draft Lottery took place at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas on June 23, 2008. The Draft took place live for three hours on WWE's flagship program, Raw on USA Network. For the second consecutive year, the Draft took place among WWE's three brands: Raw,...
|
June 23, 2008 |
3.4 |
|
| Raw's 800th Episode |
November 3, 2008 |
3.0 |
|
| 2008 Slammy Awards |
December 8, 2008 |
3.2 |
|
| 2009 WWE Draft The 2009 World Wrestling Entertainment Draft was the seventh Draft produced by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE. The Draft took place over two days: the first day was televised live for three hours on April 13; the second part, the "Supplemental Draft", was held on April 15...
|
April 13, 2009 |
3.7 |
|
| The 3-For-All |
June 15, 2009 |
3.6 |
|
TrumpDonald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have...
Raw |
June 22, 2009 |
4.5 |
|
| A Raw Thanksgiving Thanksgiving Day is a holiday celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada. Thanksgiving is celebrated each year on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. In Canada, Thanksgiving falls on the same day as Columbus Day in the...
|
November 23, 2009 |
3.3 |
|
| 2009 Slammy Awards |
December 14, 2009 |
3.3 |
|
Raw's WrestleManiaWrestleMania is a professional wrestling pay-per-view event, produced annually in late March or early April by WWE, a professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut...
Rewind |
March 15, 2010 |
3.7 |
|
| Monday Night SmackDown |
April 19, 2010 |
3.1 |
|
| 2010 WWE Draft The 2010 World Wrestling Entertainment Draft was the eighth Draft produced by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE. The Draft took place over two days: the first day was televised live for three hours on April 26, and the second part, the "Supplemental Draft", was held on April 27...
|
April 26, 2010 |
3.1 |
|
| Commercial-Free Raw |
May 17, 2010 |
3.4 |
|
| 3-Hour Viewer's Choice Raw |
June 7, 2010 |
3.1 |
|
| Raw's 900th Episode Celebration |
August 30, 2010 |
3.5 |
|
| 2010 Raw Roulette |
September 13, 2010 |
3.0 |
|
| WWE Old School |
November 15, 2010 |
3.3 |
|
| King of the Ring (2010) King of the Ring was a special edition of World Wrestling Entertainment's television program, Raw. The episode was held on November 29, 2010 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
|
November 29, 2010 |
3.1 |
|
| 2010 Slammy Awards |
December 13, 2010 |
3.1 |
|
| 2011 WWE Draft The 2011 WWE Draft was the eighth annual draft held by WWE, which took place on April 25. With a core business of professional wrestling, the corporation held a draft to exchange personnel assigned to one of its two television programs that are independent brands that represent WWE...
|
April 25, 2011 |
3.7 |
|
| The Rock's Birthday Bash |
May 2, 2011 |
3.5 |
|
| WWE All Star Night |
June 13, 2011 |
3.5 |
|
| Power to the People |
June 20, 2011 |
3.6 |
|
| 2011 Raw Roulette |
June 27, 2011 |
3.1 |
|
| Raw gets Rocked |
November 14, 2011 |
3.2 |
|
| 2011 Slammy Awards |
December 12, 2011 |
|
|
Champions
| Championship |
Current champion(s) |
Date won |
Date Aired |
Event |
Previous champion(s) |
WWE ChampionshipThe WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
|
CM PunkPhillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion....
|
November 20, 2011 |
November 20, 2011 |
Survivor Series Survivor Series was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by WWE that took place on November 20, 2011 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. It was the 25th annual Survivor Series event and the first one to take place in Madison Square Garden since the 2002 event...
|
Alberto Del Rio |
WWE United States ChampionshipThe WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
|
Dolph Ziggler |
June 19, 2011 |
June 19, 2011 |
Capitol Punishment Capitol Punishment was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by WWE, which took place on June 19, 2011 at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C....
|
Kofi KingstonKofi Nahaje Sarkodie-Mensah , is a Ghanaian American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Kofi Kingston. He is currently signed to WWE and works on its Raw brand where he is one half of the WWE Tag Team Champions with Evan Bourne as Air Boom...
|
| WWE Tag Team Championship The WWE Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship in WWE. It was established as a second title for tag teams in WWE in 2002 to complement the original World Tag Team Championship...
|
Air Boom Air Boom is a WWE professional wrestling tag team consisting of Evan Bourne and Kofi Kingston, both of whom compete on WWE's Raw brand where they are the current reigning WWE Tag Team Champions. Their team name "Air Boom" was voted upon by fans on WWE's website...
|
August 22, 2011 |
August 22, 2011 |
Raw |
David Otunga David Daniel Otunga is a professional wrestler and former reality television actor. He is signed to WWE, appearing on the Raw brand under his real name. He's a two-time WWE Tag Team Champion, having one reign each with Michael McGillicutty and John Cena. He was the runner-up on the first season...
and Michael McGillicutty |
WWE Divas ChampionshipThe WWE Diva's Championship is a unified professional wrestling championship in WWE. It is competed for by WWE Divas. The championship was created by WWE in 2008, and was introduced in storyline by then-SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero as an alternative to Raw's Women's Championship...
|
Beth PhoenixElizabeth Kocianski is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE where she wrestles on the Raw brand under the ring name Beth Phoenix, where she is the reigning WWE Divas Champion....
|
October 2, 2011 |
October 2, 2011 |
Hell in a Cell Hell in a Cell was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by WWE that took place on October 2, 2011 at the New Orleans Arena in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was the third annual Hell in a Cell event. Like the 2009 and 2010 events, this event also featured the Hell in a Cell match...
|
Kelly Kelly |
- Note: The Tag Team and Divas Championships can be defended on both Raw and SmackDown.
Authority figures
| Authority |
Position |
Date started |
Date finished |
Notes |
Ric FlairRichard Morgan Fliehr is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Ric Flair. Also known as "The Nature Boy", Flair is one of the most well-known professional wrestlers in the world....
|
Owner |
November 9, 2001 |
June 10, 2002 |
|
Vince McMahonVincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
|
Owner |
June 10, 2002 |
June 15, 2009 |
|
Eric BischoffEric Aaron Bischoff is an American entrepreneur, and professional wrestling booker and on-screen personality currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
|
General Manager |
July 15, 2002 |
December 5, 2005 |
|
| Jonathan Coachman Jonathan William Coachman , also known as "The Coach", is a former professional wrestling color commentator and authority figure. He is also a former college basketball player, and football play-by-play announcer...
|
General Manager |
June 11, 2007 |
August 6, 2007 |
|
| William Regal |
General Manager |
August 6, 2007 |
May 19, 2008 |
|
Mike AdamleMichael David "Mike" Adamle is a sports personality and former National Football League player. He is best known as the co-host of American Gladiators series for seven years....
|
General Manager |
July 28, 2008 |
November 3, 2008 |
|
Shane McMahonShane Brandon McMahon is an American executive, currently serving as the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of YOU On Demand. A former executive and professional wrestler for World Wrestling Entertainment , he is the son of WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon and former US Senate candidate Linda...
Stephanie McMahon |
General Manager |
November 3, 2008 |
November 24, 2008 |
|
| Stephanie McMahon |
General Manager |
November 24, 2008 |
April 6, 2009 |
|
Vickie GuerreroVickie Lynn Guerrero is an American professional wrestling personality, manager, shifting authority figure and occasional wrestler. She is the widow of professional wrestler Eddie Guerrero, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand...
|
General Manager |
April 6, 2009 |
June 8, 2009 |
|
Donald TrumpDonald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have...
|
Owner |
June 15, 2009 |
June 22, 2009 |
|
Vince McMahonVincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
|
Owner, CEO and Chairman |
June 22, 2009 |
Present |
|
| Various guest hosts |
Guest host |
June 29, 2009 |
May 10, 2010 |
|
Vickie GuerreroVickie Lynn Guerrero is an American professional wrestling personality, manager, shifting authority figure and occasional wrestler. She is the widow of professional wrestler Eddie Guerrero, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand...
|
General Manager |
May 10, 2010 |
May 10, 2010 |
|
Bret HartBret Hart is a Canadian on-screen personality, writer, actor and Semi-retired professional wrestler. Like others in the Hart wrestling family, Hart has an amateur wrestling background, including wrestling at Ernest Manning High School and Mount Royal College...
|
General Manager |
May 24, 2010 |
June 21, 2010 |
|
| Anonymous |
General Manager |
June 21, 2010 |
July 18, 2011 |
|
Triple HPaul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
|
Chief Operating Officer |
July 18, 2011 |
Present |
|
Theodore LongTheodore R. "Teddy" Long is an American professional wrestling manager and former referee who currently works for WWE on its SmackDown brand as its General Manager.-National Wrestling Alliance / World Championship Wrestling:...
|
Assistant to the COO |
September 5, 2011 |
October 10, 2011 |
|
John LaurinaitisJohn Joseph Laurinaitis is the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations for WWE and appears on WWE's Raw Brand as interim General Manager. He was previously a professional wrestler under the ring name Johnny Ace, and wrestled for such promotions as the National Wrestling Alliance and All...
|
Interim General Manager |
October 10, 2011 |
Present |
|
Commentators
| Commentators |
Dates |
Vince McMahonVincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
, Randy SavageRandall Mario Poffo , better known by his ring name "Macho Man" Randy Savage, was an American professional wrestler, best known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling .Savage held twenty championships during his professional wrestling career and was a...
and Rob BartlettRobert Bartlett is a comedian, actor and writer who gained widespread fame as a comedian on the radio and television show Imus in the Morning. His most famous characters include: The Godfather, Dr...
|
January 11, 1993–April 19, 1993 |
| Vince McMahon, Bobby Heenan Raymond Louis "Ray" Heenan , better known as Bobby "The Brain" Heenan , is a former American professional wrestling manager and color commentator, best known for his time with the American Wrestling Association , World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation...
and Randy Savage |
April 26, 1993–October 18, 1993 |
| Vince McMahon and Bobby Heenan |
October 25, 1993–December 6, 1993 |
| Vince McMahon and Various Guest Commentators |
December 13, 1993–February 28, 1994
November 7, 1994–November 28, 1994 |
Gorilla MonsoonRobert James "Gino" Marella , better known by his ring name of Gorilla Monsoon, was an American professional wrestler, play-by-play announcer, and booker...
and Randy Savage |
June 20, 1994–July 4, 1994 |
Jim RossJames William "Jim" Ross is a professional wrestling commentator, former professional wrestling referee, restaurateur, occasional wrestler, and former company executive of WWE, where he currently works as a commentator on the WWE Raw brand...
and Randy Savage |
July 11, 1994–July 25, 1994 |
| Vince McMahon and Randy Savage |
March 7, 1994–June 13, 1994
August 1, 1994–October 31, 1994 |
Vince McMahon and Shawn MichaelsMichael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
|
December 5, 1994–February 6, 1995 |
Vince McMahon and Jim CornetteJames Mark "Jim" Cornette is an American professional wrestling manager, commentator, promoter, and booker. As a manager, he has worked for Jim Crockett Promotions, World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Federation and from 1991 to 1995, was the owner of Smoky Mountain Wrestling...
|
February 20, 1995–April 3, 1995 |
Vince McMahon and Jerry LawlerJerry O'Neil Lawler is an American professional wrestler, wrestling commentator, musician, businessman, commercial artist and film actor, known throughout the wrestling world as Jerry "The King" Lawler. He is currently signed to WWE, working on its Raw brand as the color commentator and occasional...
|
April 10, 1995–July 29, 1996 |
Kevin KellyKevin Foote is an American professional wrestling manager, pundit, sportscaster and ring announcer, better known by his ring name, Kevin Kelly...
, Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler |
August 5, 1996–October 14, 1996 |
| Vince McMahon, Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler |
October 21, 1996–November 1997 |
| Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler |
November 1997–November 1998
April 1999–February 2001
November 2001–June 2005
May 8, 2006–June 23, 2008 |
Jim Ross, Michael ColeMichael Sean Coulthard , better known by his ring name Michael Cole, is an American professional wrestling commentator, currently signed to WWE on both its Rawand SmackDown brands. Coulthard is a former news journalist....
and Kevin Kelly** |
December 1997–February 1998 |
| Jim Ross and Michael Cole** |
March 1998–June 1998 |
| Jim Ross and Paul Heyman Paul Heyman is an American entertainment producer, best known for his career in professional wrestling as a promoter, manager, commentator and journalist. He is also an occasional actor in film....
|
February 2001–November 2001 |
| Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler and Jonathan Coachman Jonathan William Coachman , also known as "The Coach", is a former professional wrestling color commentator and authority figure. He is also a former college basketball player, and football play-by-play announcer...
|
June 26, 2005–October 10, 2005 |
| Jonathan Coachman and Jerry Lawler |
October 17, 2005–October 31, 2005 |
Joey StylesJoseph Carmine Bonsignore better known by his ring name Joey Styles, is an American professional wrestling play-by-play commentator and former professional in the field of advertising sales...
, Jerry Lawler and Jonathan Coachman |
November 7, 2005–April 16, 2006 |
| Joey Styles and Jerry Lawler |
April 23, 2006–May 1, 2006 |
Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler and CM PunkPhillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion....
|
November 22, 2010–December 20, 2010 |
| Michael Cole, Josh Mathews, Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler* |
April 4, 2011 – May 2, 2011 |
| Michael Cole, Josh Mathews, and Jerry Lawler* |
December 27, 2010–March 28, 2011
May 9, 2011 – May 23, 2011 |
| Michael Cole, Jim Ross and Booker T*** |
September 26, 2011 – October 3, 2011 |
| Michael Cole, Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler |
July 25, 2011 – October 10, 2011 |
| Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler and Booker T |
November 21, 2011 |
| Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler |
November 1998–April 1999
June 30, 2008–November 15, 2010
May 30, 2011 – July 18, 2011
October 10, 2011- Present |
(*)–Mathews became the alternate color commentator on Raw beginning December 27, 2010 due to Lawler's increased in-ring schedule (Lawler would continue as commentator when he was not wrestling). On March 14, 2011, Raw began using a full time three man team with Cole announcing from his own separate table ("The Cole Mine"). Ross has also returned to the broadcast table since making his broadcast return at
WrestleMania XXVIIWrestleMania XXVII was the twenty-seventh annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , held on April 3, 2011 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia...
and the four announcers worked in rotating three man shifts. This ended on the May 23, 2011 edition of Raw when Michael Cole returned to the normal announce table. However, Mathews still serves as an alternate commentator for Raw if any member of the announce team is unable to continue with their duties.
(**)–From November 1997 until July 1998 Jim Ross served as play by play commentator for both hours of Raw, with the Michael Cole/Kevin Kelly tandem (later just Cole) as color commentator for the first hour (Raw is War), with Jerry Lawler taking over for the second hour (The War Zone).
(***)-Filled in for Jerry "The King" Lawler, who was recovering from injury.
Ring announcers
| Ring Announcer |
Dates |
Notes |
| Howard Finkel Howard Finkel is a professional wrestling ring announcer currently working with WWE in a variety of roles. Hired in 1975 by Vincent J. McMahon's World Wide Wrestling Federation, "The Fink" was the first person brought in to Vincent K...
|
January 11, 1993–August 22, 2002 |
Occasionally appears on Raw as a guest ring announcer |
Tony ChimelAnthony "Tony" Chimel is an American professional wrestling ring announcer, currently employed by WWE working as the ring announcer for SmackDown brand.-WWE :...
|
April 1997–August 16, 1999 |
Made a one night return on May 30, 2011 |
Lilian GarciaLilian Annette García , is a Spanish-American singer. She is best known as the former ring announcer for WWE's Raw brand. During her time in WWE, she became the first Diva to remain with the promotion for ten years.-Early life and career:...
|
August 23, 1999–September 21, 2009 |
Made a one night return on April 19, 2010, filling in for Justin Roberts when the Raw roster was stuck in Europe after the Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption The 2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull were volcanic events at Eyjafjöll in Iceland which, although relatively small for volcanic eruptions, caused enormous disruption to air travel across western and northern Europe over an initial period of six days in April 2010. Additional localised disruption...
|
Justin RobertsJustin Jason Roberts is an American professional wrestling ring announcer, currently working for WWE appearing on its Raw brand.-Career:...
|
March 2007–June 2007
September 27, 2009 – present |
|
Recurring segments
| Segment |
Host |
Years |
Notes |
| The King's Court |
Jerry LawlerJerry O'Neil Lawler is an American professional wrestler, wrestling commentator, musician, businessman, commercial artist and film actor, known throughout the wrestling world as Jerry "The King" Lawler. He is currently signed to WWE, working on its Raw brand as the color commentator and occasional...
|
1993–1995 |
|
| The Heartbreak Hotel |
Shawn MichaelsMichael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
|
1994 |
|
| The Brother Love Show |
Brother Love Bruce Prichard is a professional wrestling personality, best known as a manager and producer for World Wrestling Entertainment , where he portrayed Brother Love, the original manager of The Undertaker...
|
1995–1996 |
|
| The Pillman XXX Files |
Brian PillmanBrian William Pillman was an American football player and professional wrestler best known for his appearances in the World Wrestling Federation, Extreme Championship Wrestling, and World Championship Wrestling....
|
1997 |
|
| The Love Shack |
Dude LoveMichael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he...
|
1998 |
|
| Highlight Reel |
Chris JerichoChristopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer...
|
2003–2005
2008,
2010 |
|
| White Boy Challenge |
Rodney Mack Rodney Begnaud is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his stint in World Wrestling Entertainment and for his work on its Raw brand under the ring name Rodney Mack.-Debut :...
Theodore R. LongTheodore R. "Teddy" Long is an American professional wrestling manager and former referee who currently works for WWE on its SmackDown brand as its General Manager.-National Wrestling Alliance / World Championship Wrestling:...
|
2003 |
|
| WWE Diva Search The WWE Diva Search is a talent competition held by World Wrestling Entertainment. The first winner was Jaime Koeppe, but she did not receive a contract like subsequent winners of the contest. Other winners included Christy Hemme, Ashley Massaro, Layla El, and Eve Torres. In addition to the winners...
|
Jonathan Coachman Jonathan William Coachman , also known as "The Coach", is a former professional wrestling color commentator and authority figure. He is also a former college basketball player, and football play-by-play announcer...
The Miz
Todd GrishamTodd Grisham is an American presenter/announcer who is best known for his time in the WWE as a backstage interviewer, play-by-play commentator and occasional ring announcer...
|
2004–2007 |
|
| Masterlock Challenge |
Chris Masters Christopher Todd Mordetzky is an American professional wrestler best known by his ring name Chris Masters. He is best known for his tenure with WWE.-Early career:...
|
2005–2007
2010
|
|
| Kurt Angle Invitational |
Kurt AngleKurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion...
|
2005 |
|
| Carlito's Cabana |
CarlitoCarlos Edwin "Carly" Colón, Jr. is a Puerto Rican professional wrestler better known internationally by his ring name Carlito. He is best known for his work in the World Wrestling Entertainment , but was released from his contract on May 21, 2010. In his native Puerto Rico, he is known as both...
|
2005
2007–2008 |
|
| Piper's Pit Piper's Pit was an interview segment featuring Roddy Piper which was a mainstay of WWF/WWE television from 1984 to 1987, and then returned briefly in 1989. Also, Piper hosted similar segments while wrestling for other promotions in 2003 - 2011....
|
Roddy PiperRoderick George Toombs , better known by his ring name "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, is a Canadian semi-retired professional wrestler and film actor who is currently signed to WWE. In professional wrestling, he is best known for his work with WWE...
|
2005, 2010–Present |
|
| The Cutting Edge |
Edge |
2005–2007
2010 |
|
| V.I.P. Lounge |
Montel Vontavious Porter |
2009–2010 |
|
| Khali Kiss Cam |
The Great Khali |
2011 |
|
A.M. Raw
WWE A.M. Raw, a Saturday night/Sunday morning show, airs on the
USA NetworkUSA Network is an American cable television channel launched in 1971. Once a minor player in basic cable, the network has steadily gained popularity because of breakout hits like Monk, Psych, Burn Notice, Royal Pains, Covert Affairs, White Collar, Monday Night RAW, Suits, and reruns of the various...
at 2 a.m. ET. It features segments from the latest episode of WWE Raw. A.M. Raw also features news updates from all across the WWE. The show mostly airs the main event matches and promos that aired on Raw (some of which are abridged for timing purposes), and shows the event schedule for the upcoming weeks.
International broadcasters
The show currently airs
liveLive television refers to a television production broadcast in real-time, as events happen, in the present. From the early days of television until about 1958, live television was used heavily, except for filmed shows such as I Love Lucy and Gunsmoke. Video tape did not exist until 1957...
on the USA Network (and on
tape delayIn radio and television, broadcast delay refers to the practice of intentionally delaying broadcast of live material. A short delay is often used to prevent profanity, bloopers, violence, or other undesirable material from making it to air, including more mundane problems such as technical...
Wednesdays on
mun2mun2 is a national cable television broadcast network in the United States owned by NBC Universal and aimed at young Latinos. It is the sister network of Telemundo and was mostly digital television subchannels launched in 2001. The programming of mun2 is primarily music videos and shows designed...
in English, Saturdays on
Universal HDUniversal HD is an HDTV cable television network owned by NBCUniversal. The channel was known as Bravo HD+ until December 1, 2004. The network exclusively broadcasts in high definition 1080i...
, and Sundays on
mun2mun2 is a national cable television broadcast network in the United States owned by NBC Universal and aimed at young Latinos. It is the sister network of Telemundo and was mostly digital television subchannels launched in 2001. The programming of mun2 is primarily music videos and shows designed...
in
SpanishSpanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
(Morning broadcast) and in the original English (5:30pm Eastern broadcast) in the United States). Occasionally, Raw is aired on same-day tape delay when WWE is on an overseas tour. Raw is also shown
liveLive television refers to a television production broadcast in real-time, as events happen, in the present. From the early days of television until about 1958, live television was used heavily, except for filmed shows such as I Love Lucy and Gunsmoke. Video tape did not exist until 1957...
on Sky Sports 3 in the
UKThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and
IrelandIreland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
and on Sky Sport 2 in
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. Sky Deutschland in Germany began airing Raw
liveLive television refers to a television production broadcast in real-time, as events happen, in the present. From the early days of television until about 1958, live television was used heavily, except for filmed shows such as I Love Lucy and Gunsmoke. Video tape did not exist until 1957...
and in HD on February 14, 2011. Raw has also been airing live in Mexico on TVC Deportes since October 6, 2008.
| Country |
Network |
Ref |
Arab WorldThe Arab world refers to Arabic-speaking states, territories and populations in North Africa, Western Asia and elsewhere.The standard definition of the Arab world comprises the 22 states and territories of the Arab League stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Arabian Sea in the...
(Live broadcast) |
AD Sport 6 HD Abu Dhabi Al Riadhia is an Arabic television station It broadcasts from Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates and is owned by Abu Dhabi Media Company...
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|
Arab WorldThe Arab world refers to Arabic-speaking states, territories and populations in North Africa, Western Asia and elsewhere.The standard definition of the Arab world comprises the 22 states and territories of the Arab League stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Arabian Sea in the...
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MBC Action MBC Action is a free-to-air satellite TV channel that screens films and television programs from the action genre. Programs are subtitled in Standard Arabic. It is available in the Arab World by satellites BADR4 and Nilesat 102. It launched on March 5, 2007 at 6:00 P.M...
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ArgentinaArgentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
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AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
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Fox8 Fox8 is an Australian cable and satellite channel available on Foxtel, Austar and Optus Television's subscription platforms...
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BangladeshBangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
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TEN Sports TEN SPORTS is a sports channel, widely broadcast in Asia. Its key programming includes Cricket, Football and sports-entertainment shows viz. WWE. Ten Sports was launched on April 1, 2002, and became the world's premier sports channel for South Asians, reaching over 55 million homes across the Arab...
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BelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
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AB3 AB3 is a private commercial television channel of the French Community of Belgium.-History:The company YTV, jointly owned by AB Groupe, TF1 Group and WB holding, in 1995 filed an application for a broadcasting licence in the French Community of Belgium with Laurette Onkelinx, Minister-President of...
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BhutanBhutan , officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked state in South Asia, located at the eastern end of the Himalayas and bordered to the south, east and west by the Republic of India and to the north by the People's Republic of China...
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TEN Sports TEN SPORTS is a sports channel, widely broadcast in Asia. Its key programming includes Cricket, Football and sports-entertainment shows viz. WWE. Ten Sports was launched on April 1, 2002, and became the world's premier sports channel for South Asians, reaching over 55 million homes across the Arab...
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BulgariaBulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
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bTV Comedy bTV Comedy is a Bulgarian family-based television channel,airing mostly comedy series. It is part of bTV Media Group, owned by Central European Media Enterprises...
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BoliviaBolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
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Red PAT |
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Bosnia and HerzegovinaBosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
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OBN Televizija OBN is a local television network broadcasting a TV channel in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Headquarters of this TV is in Sarajevo, Pofalići neighborhood....
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BrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
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Esporte InterativoTV Esporte Interativo , is a Brazilian television channel inaugurated on January 20, 2007 with the live broadcast of a Premier League match between Chelsea and Liverpool....
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CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
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The Score and Global QuebecCKMI-DT-1 is the Global Television Network owned-and-operated station in Quebec.Originally a privately owned CBC Television affiliate in Quebec City, the station moved most of its operations to Montreal in 1997 after launching a rebroadcaster there and becoming a Global affiliate as Global Quebec...
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ChileChile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
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UCV TV Corporación de Televisión de la Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, UCV TV, is the oldest TV channel of Chile. Founded in 1957 , it currently airs in Santiago on channel 5. Its headquarters are in Viña del Mar, Chile where it broadcasts on channel 4 VHF. Also it owns VHF stations in La...
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ChinaChina , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
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VBS VBS may refer to:*Brescia Airport's IATA airport code*Vacation Bible School, a specialized form of religious education which focuses on children*Valley Beth Shalom, a synagogue in Encino, California*Variable Ballast System...
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Costa RicaCosta Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
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Repretel Canal 11 Repretel or Representaciones Televisivas S.A. is a Costa Rican television company, founded in November 1994, when they acquired Canal 9 which belonged to Multivisión. Months later, by May 1995, Repretel acquires Canal 6, which belonged to Telecentro for several years.In 1996, they acquired Canal...
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Czech RepublicThe Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
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Nova Sport |
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EcuadorEcuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
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Teleamazonas Teleamazonas is a television channel in Ecuador. Since the start of their transmissions, on February 22 of 1974, the channel is one of the major television networks of Ecuador.It broadcasts on channel 4 to Quito and channel 5 to Guayaquil...
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El SalvadorEl Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
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Canal VTV |
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FranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
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NT1 NT1 is a French television network. It is available through digital terrestrial television in France. It is a subsidiary of TF1 Group....
and RTL9RTL9 is a Luxembourger television channel shown internationally to viewers in Luxembourg, France, Belgium and francophone Switzerland.- Télé-Luxembourg :...
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FinlandFinland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
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MTV3 MAX MTV3 MAX is a Finnish pay television channel owned and operated by MTV3. The channel started broadcasting in November 2006 and was originally dedicated to F1 coverage.- MTV3+ :...
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GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, AustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, SwitzerlandSwitzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, LuxembourgLuxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
, LiechtensteinThe Principality of Liechtenstein is a doubly landlocked alpine country in Central Europe, bordered by Switzerland to the west and south and by Austria to the east. Its area is just over , and it has an estimated population of 35,000. Its capital is Vaduz. The biggest town is Schaan...
(Live broadcast) |
Sky Deutschland |
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GreeceGreece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
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Nova Sports 3 |
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HondurasHonduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
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Canal 5XHGC-TV is a TV station owned by Televisa, broadcasting from Mexico City, and is the flagship of the Canal 5 network.-History:XHGC signed on May 10, 1952, broadcasting a Mother's Day event organized by the Excélsior newspaper; but the regular programming began at August 18, 1952.The station was...
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IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, PakistanPakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, Sri LankaSri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
, NepalNepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
, IndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
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TEN Sports TEN SPORTS is a sports channel, widely broadcast in Asia. Its key programming includes Cricket, Football and sports-entertainment shows viz. WWE. Ten Sports was launched on April 1, 2002, and became the world's premier sports channel for South Asians, reaching over 55 million homes across the Arab...
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IsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
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Sport 1 Sport 1 is a European sports channel which is currently available in Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Romania broadcasting in different languages...
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ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
(Live broadcast) |
Sky Sport 2 |
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| Malaysia |
Astro Super Sport Astro is the brand name of the Malaysian direct broadcast satellite pay television service. It transmits digital satellite television and radio to households in Malaysia & Brunei...
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MexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
(Live broadcast) |
Canal 5XHGC-TV is a TV station owned by Televisa, broadcasting from Mexico City, and is the flagship of the Canal 5 network.-History:XHGC signed on May 10, 1952, broadcasting a Mother's Day event organized by the Excélsior newspaper; but the regular programming began at August 18, 1952.The station was...
, TVC Deportes & MVS Visión (52MX & MC) |
|
| New Zealand New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
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The Box |
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NorwayNorway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
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TV 2 Zebra |
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PanamaPanama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
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RPC Canal 4 |
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PeruPeru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
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ATVATV or Andina de Radiodifusión y Television shortly known as ATV, is a Peruvian television network founded in 1969, after unsuccessful attempt on early 1970s and after the political turmoil in Peru the station was closed...
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PhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
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Jack TV Jack TV is a Philippine cable TV network owned by Solar Entertainment Corporation, test launched on May 2005, officially debuting on July 12, 2005. It offers Western comedy, animation, sports entertainment, drama series and reality shows, such as Cartoon Network, USA Network, The CW, MyNetworkTV,...
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PolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
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Extreme Sports Channel The Extreme Sports Channel is a Netherlands-based extreme sports television channel available across Europe and the Middle East. Al Gosling had the idea for the channel in 1998.-History:...
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PortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
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Sport TVSportTV is the brand name for a group of seven Portuguese sports-oriented television channels. SportTV is the dominant subscription television sports brand in Portugal. The first channel, then known as only SportTV, was launched on 16 September 1998 and is produced by ZON Multimédia and...
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RomaniaRomania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
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Sport.roSport.ro is a private channel in Romania, launched on July 27, 2003 and dedicated entirely to sports. Sport.ro reaches nearly 64% of the population of 21.5 million inhabitants of Romania and its broadcast schedule contains domestic and international sporting events...
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RussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
(started on February 2011) |
2×2 |
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SerbiaSerbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
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Fox televizija |
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SingaporeSingapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
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SuperSports |
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South AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
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E.tv e.tv is the fifth terrestrial television channel in South Africa, following three channels operated by the state-owned South African Broadcasting Corporation and the privately owned subscription-funded M-Net, operated by Multichoice...
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SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
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MARCA TV |
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SwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
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TV10 TV10 was the first Dutch commercial TV channel to be aired in the Netherlands from October 1989. The TV Station was a cooperation between Peter Jelgersma and Joop van den Ende. The Dutch government was, at the time, against commercial television and prohibited it from broadcasting....
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TurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
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FOX and EurosportEurosport is a pan-European television sport network operated by French broadcaster TF1 Group. The network of channels are available in 59 countries, in 20 different languages providing viewers with European and international sporting events...
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ThailandThailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
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TrueVisionsTrueVisions is Thailand's leading cable satellite television operator, broadcasting largely in English. Now owned by the True Corporation, the company was formerly known as the United Broadcasting Corporation , but it was rebranded in February 2007....
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UkraineUkraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
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QTV |
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United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and IrelandIreland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
(Live broadcast) |
Sky Sports 3 and Sky Sports HD3 |
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See also
- WWE roster (Raw Brand)
- WWE NXT
WWE NXT is a sports entertainment television program produced by WWE that debuted on February 23, 2010. Described as a hybrid between reality television and WWE's scripted live event shows, the premise of the show follows select talent contracted to WWE's developmental territory Florida...
- WWE Superstars
WWE Superstars is a professional wrestling television program produced by World Wrestling Entertainment that originally aired on WGN America in the United States. It debuted on April 16, 2009 and ended its domestic broadcasting on April 7, 2011...
- WWE SmackDown
External links