Due to the nature of the booking in pro wrestling, superstars are constantly coming together to form tag teams, groups or stables. Sometimes, those teams go unnamed, like former WWE Tag Team Champions Tyson Kidd and Cesaro.
Other times, the creative team comes up with a full-on gimmick or name for these groups. Some, like D-Generation X or The Ministry of Darkness, become iconic. Others, like The Bloodline consisting of Roman Reigns and the Usos, make sense even if they aren’t used extensively. Then there are some names that really never seem like a good idea at all.
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Here are the 10 worst examples of team names.
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#1 X-Factor
Like many of the entries on this list, the name of this group makes total sense, given the circumstances. X-Pac was the leader of the stable, which also included Albert and Justin Credible, so playing off the X in his name made some sense.
But aside from the fact that X-Pac was never really strong enough of a performer to have a stable named after him, there were other issues. Both the name and the group’s signature hand gesture, forming an X with their arms up in the air, were too close of an imitation of the much more popular D-Generation X.
#2 Two Dudes with Attitudes
No one can deny the roles that Shawn Michaels and Kevin Nash played in the revolutionary period of wrestling known as the Monday Night War, with Michaels spearheading D-Generation X in WWE and Nash helping start the NWO in WCW.
But while they found success together in the WWE, then the WWF, their collective name as a tag team needed a great deal of work. Perhaps more of a sign of the 1990s times, “Two Dudes with Attitudes” does not sound like a duo destined for greatness.
#3 Air Raid
Given the gimmick at hand, the name Air Raid made perfect sense for the team of Air Paris and AJ Styles. The two men came out in flight suits and certainly had a thrilling style, which made the name a completely logical one.
But that’s where the credit ends for a truly embarrassing early gimmick in the career of a great performer like Styles. When you consider that decisions like this were still going on in WCW as late as 2001 is a pretty clear indication of the sources of the company’s demise.
Fast forward to 2017 and Styles is a former WWE Champion and the face that runs the place. As for Air Paris, he’s retired and occasionally appears at wrestling shows with his family.
#4 3-Minute Warning
The Anoa’i wrestling family has had a part in some of the best-named teams in WWE history, even if some were a bit culturally insensitive looking back. They’ve helped form teams like the Wild Samoans, the Headshrinkers, the Shield, the Usos and the loose formation known as the Bloodline.
But 3-Minute Warning, made up of Rosey and Umaga, was not one of those legendary groups. Sure, the duo was intimidating based on size and aggression, but the whole gimmick was just too contrived and forced to have any staying power.
#5 Spirit Squad
If you’re going to have a team made up of several male cheerleader characters on your wrestling roster, the name Spirit Squad isn’t a terrible one. It makes sense for the gimmick and rolls off the tongue for announcers and fans alike.
The problem is, why would you want a team of male cheerleaders on your pro wrestling roster? Whoever came up with that had to know that whatever success the group has will be short-liked, and sure enough, Dolph Ziggler was the only long-term survivor of the Spirit Squad.
#6 Breezeango
This is the newest entry on the list, and it isn’t here because of the team itself. The characters of Tyler Breeze and Fandango really mesh well together, as narcissistic heels with as many moves in the ring as they have glamor poses.
The issue here is that the team name the WWE seems to be going with is just a smashed together conglomeration of the two men’s names, much like a celebrity couple. On top of that, it’s not even the best version of such a name, as FaBreeze would be much less awkward to say.
#7 The Club
To be fair, the WWE likely didn’t get its first choice for this group of AJ Styles, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson. Apparently unable to secure legal rights, this group couldn’t be known as the Bullet Club, as the trio – plus several other members – was known in Japan.
But to just shorten that name to “The Club” was fairly lazy. It just reminds everyone that the WWE hasn’t been able to get the name everyone wants to call the team, and it feels really bland as a result. Maybe they’re just waiting on Finn Balor to come up to complete the name, but don’t hold your breath.
#8 Los Matadores
The WWE definitely had a time when highly specific, sometimes occupation-based gimmicks were prevalent for both individuals and teams. That time, however, ended well before 2013, when Los Matadores made their appearance on the main roster.
Los Matadores were exactly what you would expect them to be – Hispanic bullfighters wearing the exact costumes you’d expect them to be wearing, complete with brightly-colored masks and an accompanying little person dressed like a bull. It’s no small wonder the gimmick never really took off.
#9 Team BAD
When the WWE Divas division got an infusion of talent from the NXT ranks, the main players split up into three trios vying for power – Team Bella, Team PCB and Team BAD. While the other two groups were based on members’ names, Team BAD was an acronym, supposedly Best At Dominating.
That is, in a word, awful. Team Best At Dominating makes very little sense, and it makes one wonder if there was another, perhaps less PG-friendly, meaning we were supposed to pick up on.
#10 Cryme Tyme
There are culturally insensitive team names that seem to be a reflection of the time period, and then there’s Cryme Tyme. Performing in the WWE from 2006 to 2007, the duo of Shad Gaspard and JTG, both African-American, often stole things as part of their gimmick.
The WWE attempted to explain this schtick as an attempt at parody for humor, but looking back on it, the concept was beyond cringe-worthy for as recent as it happened. It’s just really hard to determine what was supposed to be funny about a really hurtful racial stereotype.
