
WWE has officially discontinued the Universal Championship, marking the end of an era for one of the company’s premier titles. The championship’s status changed on WWE’s official website, now listed as “retired” rather than active.
The final chapter for the Universal Championship was written at WrestleMania 41, where John Cena defeated Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Championship. This development completes the title’s transformation that began at WrestleMania 38, when Roman Reigns unified the WWE Championship and Universal Championship by defeating Brock Lesnar.
While Reigns initially carried both physical belts as the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion, only a single championship has represented the top prize since June 2023. The “Universal” designation was dropped after Rhodes captured the gold at WrestleMania 40.
Rhodes now enters the record books as the final Universal Champion with a 378-day reign. The title’s legacy began at SummerSlam 2016 when Finn Bálor became the inaugural champion by defeating Seth Rollins, establishing a championship lineage that would last nearly eight years.