Roman Reigns

Leati Joseph "Joe" Anoa'i (born May 25, 1985) is an American professional wrestler and former football player. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Roman Reigns. He is the current and longest-reigning WWE Universal Champion in his second reign, as well as the current WWE Champion in his fourth reign, making him WWE's undisputed world champion. He is a member of wrestling's Anoa'i family, which also includes his father Sika Anoa'i; brother Rosey; and cousins Jey Uso, Jimmy Uso, Rikishi, Solo Sikoa, The Tonga Kid, Yokozuna, and Umaga.[4]

Roman Reigns

Roman Reigns Tribute to the Troops 2016.

Reigns in December 2016

Born

Leati Joseph Anoa'i

May 25, 1985 (age 37)

Pensacola, Florida, U.S.

Occupation

Professional wrestleractorfootball player

Spouse

Galina Becker ​(m. 2014)​

Children

5

Parent

Sika Anoa'i (father)

Family

Anoa'i

Professional wrestling career

Ring name(s)

Leakee[1]

Roman Leakee[2]

Roman Reigns[3]

Billed height

6 ft 3 in (191 cm)[3]

Billed weight

265 lb (120 kg)[3]

Billed from

Pensacola, Florida[3]

Trained by

Afa Anoa'i[4]

Sika Anoa'i[4]

Steve Keirn[2]

Debut

August 19, 2010[2]

Football career

No. 99

Career information

CFL status

American

Position(s)

Defensive tackle[5]

Height

6 ft 3[5] in (191 cm)

Weight

280[5] lb (130 kg)

College

Georgia Tech[5]

Career history

As player

2007

Minnesota Vikings*[6]

2007

Jacksonville Jaguars*[6]

2008

Edmonton Eskimos[7]

* Offseason and/or practice squad member only

Career stats

Tackles

9[7]

Knockdowns

0[7]

Sacks

0[7]

Forced fumbles

1[7]

* CFL statistics only

After playing college football for Georgia Tech, Anoa'i started his professional football career with brief off-season stints with the Minnesota Vikings and Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL) in 2007. He then played a full season for the Canadian Football League's (CFL) Edmonton Eskimos in 2008 before his release and retirement from football. He then pursued a career in professional wrestling and was signed by WWE in 2010, reporting to their developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW). Under the ring name Roman Reigns, he made his main roster debut in November 2012 alongside Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins as The Shield. The trio teamed together until June 2014, after which Reigns entered singles competition.

Reigns is a six-time world champion in WWE, having held the WWE Championship four times and the WWE Universal Championship twice. In 2022, he became the longest reigning Universal Champion at 770+ days, which is recognized as the sixth-longest world championship reign in the promotion's history. He is also a one-time WWE United States Champion, a one-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, a one-time WWE Tag Team Champion (with Rollins), the 2015 Royal Rumble winner, and the 2014 Superstar of the Year. He tied the WWE record for most eliminations in a Survivor Series match with four in the 2013 event and also previously held the record for most eliminations in a Royal Rumble match with 12 in the 2014 event. Upon winning the Intercontinental Championship, he became the twenty-eighth Triple Crown Champion and the seventeenth Grand Slam Champion. Reigns has headlined numerous pay-per-view events, including WWE's flagship event WrestleMania six times (31, 32, 33, 34, 37, and 38).[8][9] Additionally, Reigns was ranked number one in Pro Wrestling Illustrated's annual PWI 500 list of the top 500 singles wrestlers in 2016 and 2022.[10]

From 2014 onwards, WWE attempted to establish Reigns as their next "face of the company", positioning him as a heroic character, which was met with intense disapproval by audiences and critics.[11] However, following his return in August 2020, Reigns was repackaged as a new villainous character, "The Tribal Chief", which was generally met with acclaim;[12][13][14][15] this revamped persona was named Best Gimmick by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter in 2021.[16] By the end of that year, however, complaints of overexposure and staleness began to resurface in the wrestling media.[17][18][19]