NWA World Television Championship

Years Active 1985 — 1991

Promotion NWA

Brand N/A

Total Reigns 14

Total Champions 9

Last Champion Tom Zenk

Longest Reign

Arn Anderson

336 days as the NWA World Television Champion

Won at Power Hour against The Great Muta on January 2, 1990 and held title until December 4, 1990.

Most Reigns

Longest Reigns

Arn Anderson (336 days)
Mike Rotunda (335 days)
Tully Blanchard (263 days)

About This Championship

The NWA World Television Championship was a title used by Jim Crockett Promotions and later World Championship Wrestling (WCW) from 1985 to 1991. The championship originated as the NWA Mid-Atlantic Television Championship in 1974 and became the NWA Television Championship in 1978 before receiving its world title designation during Dusty Rhodes’ reign in 1985.

Rhodes defeated Tully Blanchard for the championship on March 16, 1985, in Greensboro, North Carolina, and the title was elevated to the NWA World Television Championship during the following weeks. The championship continued to be featured on Jim Crockett Promotions’ television programming and live events, with Rhodes and Blanchard competing over the title throughout the year.

Rhodes was stripped of the championship on October 19, 1985, after suffering an injury during an attack by Ric Flair, Ole Anderson, and Arn Anderson. An eight-man tournament followed, with Arn Anderson defeating Wahoo McDaniel in the final on January 4, 1986, to become the new champion.

After Jim Crockett Promotions acquired the Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF) in 1987, the championship was involved in a unification with the UWF Television Championship.

The match took place at Starrcade on November 26, 1987, in Chicago, Illinois, where reigning NWA World Television Champion Nikita Koloff defeated UWF Television Champion Terry Taylor. The UWF title was retired following the match, while Koloff continued as NWA World Television Champion.

Turner Broadcasting purchased Jim Crockett Promotions in 1988 and renamed the company World Championship Wrestling. The championship retained its NWA name under the new ownership, with Sting winning the title in March 1989.

A disputed finish in Sting’s match against The Great Muta at The Great American Bash on July 23 led to the championship being held up. Muta defeated Sting in a rematch that September to become the new champion.

The title continued under its NWA name through 1990, with Arn Anderson and Tom Zenk among its final champions during that period. In January 1991, WCW adopted its own company name for the championship, changing it to the WCW World Television Championship while continuing the existing title history.

Championship Name History

NWA Mid-Atlantic Television Championship1974 – 1978

→

NWA Television Championship1978 – 1985

→

NWA World Television Championship1985 – 1991

→

WCW World Television Championship1991 – 2000

Complete List of Champions and Reign History for the NWA World Television Championship

= Reign Distinction = Includes Reign Notes

# Click to sort	Wrestler Click to sort	Date Won Click to sort	Opponent(s) Click to sort	Event Click to sort	Match Type Click to sort	Partner(s) Click to sort
56	Tom Zenk	Dec 4, 1990	Arn Anderson	World Championship Wrestling	Singles Match	34
55	Arn Anderson	Jan 2, 1990	The Great Muta	Power Hour	Singles Match	336
54	The Great Muta	Sep 3, 1989	Sting	House Show	Vacant Title Match	121
—	Title Vacated from June 23, 1989 to September 3, 1989 (72 days)
53	Sting	Mar 31, 1989	Mike Rotunda	House Show	Singles Match	84
52	Mike Rotunda	Feb 20, 1989	Rick Steiner	Chi-Town Rumble	Singles Match	39
51	Rick Steiner	Dec 26, 1988	Mike Rotunda	Starrcade 1988	Singles Match	56
50	Mike Rotunda	Jan 26, 1988	Nikita Koloff	House Show	Singles Match	335
49	Nikita Koloff	Aug 17, 1987	Tully Blanchard	House Show	Singles Match	162
48	Tully Blanchard	Nov 27, 1986	Dusty Rhodes	Starrcade '86: The Skywalkers	First Blood Match	263
47	Dusty Rhodes	Sep 9, 1986	Arn Anderson	House Show	Singles Match	79
46	Arn Anderson	Jan 4, 1986	Wahoo McDaniel	House Show	Tournament Final Match	248
—	Title Vacated from October 19, 1985 to January 4, 1986 (77 days)
45	Dusty Rhodes	Jul 6, 1985	Tully Blanchard	The Great American Bash 1985	Singles Match	105
44	Tully Blanchard	Apr 28, 1985	Dusty Rhodes	House Show	Singles Match	69
43	Dusty Rhodes	Mar 16, 1985	Tully Blanchard	House Show	Singles Match	43
Championship renamed to NWA World Television Championship on March 16, 1985
42	Tully Blanchard	Mar 28, 1984	Mark Youngblood	House Show	Singles Match	353
41	Mark Youngblood	Mar 7, 1984	Dick Slater	House Show	Tournament Final Match	21
—	Title Vacated from January 18, 1984 to March 7, 1984 (49 days)
40	Charlie Brown	Nov 24, 1983	The Great Kabuki	Starrcade 1983	Singles Match	55
39	The Great Kabuki	May 23, 1983	Jos LeDuc	House Show	Singles Match	185
38	Jos LeDuc	Apr 30, 1983	Dick Slater	House Show	Singles Match	23
37	Dick Slater	Apr 3, 1983	Roddy Piper	House Show	Singles Match	27
36	Roddy Piper	Mar 27, 1983	Dick Slater	House Show	Singles Match	7
35	Dick Slater	Feb 22, 1983	Mike Rotundo	House Show	Singles Match	33
34	Mike Rotundo	Dec 25, 1982	Bad Leroy Brown	House Show	Singles Match	59
33	Bad Leroy Brown	Nov 25, 1982	Sweet Brown Sugar	House Show	Battle Royal Match	30
—	Title Vacated from October 26, 1982 to November 25, 1982 (30 days)
32	Jos LeDuc	Sep 19, 1982	Jimmy Valiant	House Show	Singles Match	37
31	Jimmy Valiant	Jan 2, 1982	Ivan Koloff	House Show	Singles Match	260
30	Ivan Koloff	Nov 3, 1981	Ron Bass	House Show	Singles Match	60
29	Ron Bass	Sep 6, 1981	Greg Valentine	House Show	Singles Match	58
28	Greg Valentine	Jun 14, 1981	Sweet Ebony Diamond	House Show	Singles Match	84
27	Sweet Ebony Diamond	May 30, 1981	Greg Valentine	House Show	Singles Match	15
26	Greg Valentine	May 6, 1981	Sweet Ebony Diamond	House Show	Singles Match	24
25	Sweet Ebony Diamond	Apr 29, 1981	Greg Valentine	House Show	Tournament Final Match	7
—	Title Vacated from January 27, 1981 to April 29, 1981 (92 days)
24	Roddy Piper	Nov 1, 1980	Paul Jones	House Show	Tournament Final Match	87
—	Title Vacated from October 1, 1980 to November 1, 1980 (31 days)
23	Masked Superstar	Apr 1, 1980	Blackjack Mulligan	House Show	Tournament Final Match	183
—	Title Vacated from October 24, 1979 to April 1, 1980 (160 days)
22	Ricky Steamboat	Jun 10, 1979	Paul Jones	House Show	Singles Match	136
21	Paul Jones	Jun 7, 1978	Baron von Raschke	House Show	Singles Match	368
20	Baron von Raschke	Mar 26, 1978	Johnny Weaver	House Show	Singles Match	73
19	Johnny Weaver	Mar 5, 1978	Baron von Raschke	House Show	Singles Match	21
Championship renamed to NWA Television Championship on March 4, 1978
18	Baron von Raschke	Oct 12, 1977	Ricky Steamboat	House Show	Singles Match	144
17	Ricky Steamboat	Jun 15, 1977	Ric Flair	Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling	Singles Match	119
16	Ric Flair	Apr 4, 1977	Rufus R. Jones	House Show	Singles Match	72
15	Rufus R. Jones	Feb 15, 1977	Greg Valentine	House Show	Singles Match	48
14	Greg Valentine	Jan 19, 1977	Rufus R. Jones	House Show	Singles Match	27
13	Rufus R. Jones	Nov 30, 1976	Greg Valentine	House Show	Singles Match	50
12	Greg Valentine	Nov 8, 1976	Mr. Wrestling	House Show	Singles Match	22
11	Mr. Wrestling	Oct 16, 1976	Angelo Mosca	House Show	Singles Match	23
10	Angelo Mosca	Aug 11, 1976	Paul Jones	Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling	Singles Match	66
9	Paul Jones	Jun 30, 1976	Angelo Mosca	House Show	Singles Match	42
8	Angelo Mosca	Apr 14, 1976	Tim Woods	House Show	Tournament Final Match	77
—	Title Vacated from December 3, 1975 to April 14, 1976 (133 days)
7	Paul Jones	Aug 8, 1975	Ric Flair	House Show	Singles Match	117
6	Ric Flair	Feb 8, 1975	Paul Jones	House Show	Singles Match	181
5	Paul Jones	Dec 26, 1974	Ivan Koloff	House Show	Singles Match	44
4	Ivan Koloff	Oct 24, 1974	Paul Jones	House Show	Singles Match	63
3	Paul Jones	Jul 8, 1974	Ivan Koloff	House Show	Singles Match	108
2	Ivan Koloff	May 10, 1974	Danny Miller	House Show	Singles Match	59
1	Danny Miller	Feb 27, 1974	Ole Anderson	House Show	Tournament Final Match	72

NWA World Television Championship Historical Reign Leaders List

#	Champion	Reigns	Total Days Held	Longest Reign (Days)	Avg. Reign (Days)	% of Career Title Held
1	Dusty Rhodes	3	227	105	76	1.5%
2	Arn Anderson	2	584	336	292	9.4%
2	Mike Rotunda	2	374	335	187	3.8%
2	Tully Blanchard	2	332	263	166	2.8%
5	Nikita Koloff	1	162	162	162	4.9%
5	The Great Muta	1	121	121	121	0.83%
5	Sting	1	84	84	84	0.57%
5	Rick Steiner	1	56	56	56	0.41%
5	Tom Zenk	1	34	34	34	0.72%

Find Other Championships

Browse related championships or use the finder to jump straight to the title you’re looking for.