The History of the 1990's Era WWF Red Logo Intercontinental Championship Belt

When you think back to the 1990s wrestling boom, there are a lot of things that come to mind. Baggy pants, neon colors, and over-the-top character gimmicks all come to mind when we think about the 90s and early 2000s WWF. But one of the most iconic images from this time period is that of their championship belts. The Intercontinental Championship is probably one of the most recognized secondary titles in professional wrestling history. It’s also one of the oldest championship belts still being used today, having first been introduced all the way back in 1978 by the original WWWF (now WWE) organization at that time. There have been many different variations and design changes over almost four decades, but none so much as in the 1990s era WWF version and its iconic red logo. The Phenomenal Design of the Red Logo Championship Belt When the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) purchased the World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in 2001, it also acquired WCW’s trademark rights to several different title belts. The red world championship belt was one of several WCW properties that the WWF kept and repurposed as an Intercontinental Championship. The design of the red Intercontinental belt is almost identical to its predecessor, with a few minor tweaks. It is still made of leather, still has a small plate on either side of the center piece with “Intercontinental Champion” written on it, and it has gold plates with Roman numerals centered above and below the large central plate bearing the “Intercontinental” wordmark. Making Changes to the Intercontinental Championship Along with the WWF World Heavyweight Championship and the WWF Tag Team Championship, the Intercontinental Championship was one of the original championships of the WWWF back in the 70s and 80s. Like the other belts, it went through some design changes and was modified over the years. The original Intercontinental Championship belt was a large ornate belt with a big gold globe in the center. It was very different from the more simplistic design that we’re used to today. The belt was later replaced with a red and gold version, then a red and yellow design that was similar to the current design but with a different center plate. The Intercontinental Championship belt was always recognized as the “little brother” to the WWF World Heavyweight Championship belt. It’s often referred to as the “red” belt to differentiate it from the “Big Gold Belt” and has always been the smallest and least ornate of the three main belts. The Early 1990s WWF Intercontinental Belt The original red and yellow belt was replaced by a red and yellow belt with a silver plate. This was used until the early 90s, when the belt design was once again changed. The WWF Intercontinental title belt was changed to a red and white belt with a silver plate featuring a black WWF logo. The design of the plate, which had remained largely unchanged from the early 80s to the mid 90s, had the wording “Intercontinental Heavyweight Wrestling Champion”. The belt had the word “Champion” in red letters superimposed over a black globe on the front plate, and the back plate featured “Intercontinental” written in blue letters above a red compass arrow. The belt was exactly the same except for the red and white color scheme. The Mid-1990s Red Logo Intercontinental Belt In the mid-90s, the WWF decided to make some drastic changes to their belts and logos. The Intercontinental belt was changed to a red and blue design with a silver WWF logo. This belt remained in place until the blue and red color scheme was brought back in the late 90s. The red and blue belt featured a WWF logo that was in a completely different font than the one that they currently use. The logo used on the Intercontinental belt at this time was also a different font than the one they currently use today. While the older WWF logos used various colors, the new logos were black and red and featured a more “extreme” design to fit with the new more aggressive and violent product. The Late 1990s Dark Blue Splash Logo Belt In the late 90s, the WWF decided to change their logos and belts again. This resulted in the most drastic changes and the most hated belt designs in wrestling history. For the Intercontinental belt, the WWF changed the belt to a dark blue and red color scheme with the logo being a red splashed logo. This was one of the logos that was much maligned by wrestling fans because it looked like a woman’s breast. To this day, wrestling fans often refer to it as the “boob belt”. For the Intercontinental belt, the WWF changed the belt to a dark blue and red color scheme with the logo being a red splashed logo. This was one of the logos that was much maligned by wrestling fans because it looked like a woman’s breast. To this day, wrestling fans often refer to it as the “boob belt”. The Return of the Red Logo and the Modern ERA Belt The belt was finally reverted to the red and blue color scheme with the original logo when the new “Attitude Era” product began in the late 90s. This was when the belt really became as popular as it is today. It’s likely that the popularity of the belt was enhanced even more by the fact that the belt was featured prominently at the end of the first Austin Powers film when Austin defeated Dr. Evil. The belt remained largely unchanged until the early 2000s when the belt was slightly modified to fit with the new “modern era” WWF logo. This was the first time that the belt had undergone a modification since the introduction of the logo in the early 90s. The WWF logo was updated and the belt was updated to reflect that change. The logo on the belt was changed to the modern WWF logo, and the font of the wording on the belt was changed as well. Need a customized version of this belt to gift your son or a colleague, then purchase one from our website, and let’s know if you like it in our comment section!