8 Best tag team matches in WWE history

In an industry that has hype and hyperbole at its bedrock, we’ve come accustom to matches/superstars/shows being labeled the best of their genre. This past weekend saw Kenny Omega and Hangman Page defeat The Young Bucks for AEW’s Tag Team Titles in what many fans and journalists are calling the greatest tag bout they’d ever seen.

There’s no disputing the teams put on a monumental display at AEW Revolution, but with every match as subjective as the next, what are the finest tag team outings ever displayed in a squared circle? Giving this a WWE flavour, here are eight of the best tag team matches in the company’s history.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in the article that belongs to the writer and doesn't necessarily represent Sportskeeda's stand.

#8 The Rockers vs. The Orient Express (Royal Rumble 1991)

It’s only fitting we begin this countdown with one the best opening matches in Royal Rumble history. Back in the day when high-octane tag team wrestling was seen as the ideal appetizer for the evening’s events, this gem of a tag team bout pitted The Rockers against long-term foes The Orient Express and manager Mr. Fuji.

Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty were one of the most popular tag teams of their generation and laid the groundwork for the all-action displays we saw through The Hardy Boys and now The Young Bucks. Here, they show-off the high-flying style they made their trademark against the classic ‘foreign heels’ of Kato and Tanaka - and it works a treat.

The Orient Express' mixed ‘martial art’ style – even though they were from Hawaii and Croatia respectively – was the perfect foil for The Rockers and we see some of the early storytelling prowess from the future Heartbreak Kid.

As his clever intervention sees Jannetty’s Sunset Flip give the entertaining pairing a thrilling victory, much to the pleasure of a crowd who red hot for the young tag team specialists.

#7 The Shield vs. The Wyatt Family (Elimination Chamber 2014)

While six-man tag matches are often seen as an ugly hybrid of a traditional tag team bout and a classic Survivor Series outing, it was hard to ignore the anticipation of seeing two of the company’s most popular stables finally locking horns - despite the fact both actually went into the match as heels.

The visual of seeing the six Superstars going face-to-face sent the Minneapolis crowd into a frenzy and the excitement level continued throughout the twenty-two-minute bout that was the highlight of a card that included Randy Orton's Elimination Chamber victory.

Chaos reigned in an out-all faction war, however it was Bray Wyatt’s haunting hold on his followers that saw him lead his trio to victory. Taking Dean Ambrose out during a mealy in the crowd, ordering Luke Harper and Erick Rowan to send Seth Rollins through an announce table, before hitting Roman Reigns with Sister Abigail to cement their dominance on The Hounds of Justice. It may not be the obvious example of perfect tag team wrestling, but it’s certainly an example of the most entertaining variation of the division.

#6 Chris Benoit & Chris Jericho vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin & Triple H (Raw 2001)

You would have seen the image of a limping Triple H and being carried from the ring on numerous vignettes over the years, but what you might have forgotten is the tag team classic that proceeded The Game’s career-threatening quadricep tear.

As the short-lived Two-Man Power Trip, HHH and Stone Cold Steve Austin – in a rare highlight during his heel run - had been running riot over WWE, seemingly under the orders of Vince McMahon. The only Superstars to challenge this elite monopoly were young upstarts Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit, and it all came to a head in this underrated tag team outing.

Playing the role of plucky underdogs, the two put their uneasy alliance aside and showed surprising chemistry in a match where they spent the majority of the bout trying to foil the underhanded tactics of Trips and The Rattlesnake. It’s fourteen minutes of four of WWE’s hottest commodities of the time, made all the more impressive given how injured Triple H was for half of the match.

#5 The New Day vs. The Usos Hell In A Cell Match (Hell In A Cell 2017)

For the two best tag teams of the modern era, look no further than The New Day and The Usos and there’s a considerable argument to say that their own rivalry is one of the best the division has ever seen.

Having already stolen the show at Battleground and on the SummerSlam Kickoff, their feud culminated in the first-ever Tag Team Title match contested inside a Hell In A Cell – and the boys stole the show once again.

Combining their already finely-tuned tag team move sets with a string of unique spots never before seen inside the steel structure and using an array of weapons, the match is the perfect example of how tag team wrestling can enhance a gimmick that’s been somewhat overdone. Who can forget the image of Xavier Woods chained the ring post or The Usos being trapped in the corner of the cage by a wall of kendo sticks? Spots that expertly played into the story of the match and the final arc of the teams’ long rivalry.

#4 DIY vs. The Revival 2 Out Of 3 Falls (NXT TakeOver: Toronto 2016)

A wonderfully heart-warming chapter in what was, and still is WWE’s best-told rivalry of the modern era. As DIY, Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa went into this match with The Revival with what looked like their final shot at getting their hands on the NXT Tag Team Championships.

Having come through The Cruiserweight Classic and gotten over their early differences to form DIY, Gargano and Ciampa played the role of plucky babyfaces expertly as The Revival controlled the match by living up to their old-school personas and cutting the ring in half.

The crescendo though is why this match was named Match of the Year by WWE. With Dash Wilder and Scott Dawson simultaneously tapping out to submission manoeuvres from Gargano and Ciampa and the new champions sitting side-by-side in the middle of the ring, this time in celebration at finally reaching the top of the NXT Tag Team mountain. Yet, so much more to come in the pair's epic WWE journey.

#3 Edge & Christian vs. The Hardy Boyz vs. The Dudley Boyz TLC Match (WrestleMania 17)

A match that not only created a legacy but also began the formation of a gimmick that has led to a show in its own right. If SummerSlam was the PPV that gave these teams the start to their storied rivalry, then WrestleMania defined it and is still arguably the best TLC bout of all time.

Sixteen minutes of jaw-dropping carnage involving three teams at the very peak of their tag team prowess. From the spectacle of the triple-table spot to Jeff Hardy’s walk of fear, every participant played their part and earned their TLC stripes, including Lita and Spike Dudley on the outside. Then there’s that spear, a moment that will be immortalised forever in highlight reel after highlight reel, in a genre that WWE have failed to get as perfectly right as they did on that night in Houston.

#2 Rey Mysterio and Edge vs. Kurt Angle and Chris Benoit (No Mercy 2002)

Four of the Blue brand’s brightest Superstars of the time, producing a tag team clinic that’s still revered over today

WWE fans often go misty-eyed over the ‘SmackDown six’ from the early 2000s and this tag team classic is the perfect example of why. Four of the Blue brand’s brightest Superstars of the time, producing a tag team clinic that’s still revered over today.

Having just implemented the first WWE Draft, the Tag Team Titles were sent to Raw and thus a tournament was declared to determine new tag champs for Smackdown. Reluctantly paired together, Angle and Benoit had slowly built up a rapport and cohesion that saw them challenge two of WWE’s biggest babyfaces in Rey Mysterio and Edge for the crown.

For four Superstars perhaps better known for their singles accomplishments they put on a grade A tag classic. From Angle and Benoit isolating Mysterio in the early stages, to Edge getting the hot tags and trying to go toe-to-toe with the Olympic Gold Medallist, the match ebbed and flowed and took the crowd with them every step of the way. The flawless layout culminated in Edge’s attempt at an Ankle Lock backfire, and Angle reverse the move, force the Rated-R Superstar to tap out and walk out of Arkansas the victor in an almost perfect tag team display.

#1 Hart Foundation vs. Demolition 2 out 3 Falls Match (SummerSlam 1990)

For all the superlatives we’ve given the previous match, there’s something even more special when two traditional tag teams come together to produce magic inside that squared circle. Something, which The Hart Foundation and Demolition did at SummerSlam thirty years ago.

Contested under two out of three falls, each fall tells a different story in an era where there was clear definition of how to be a babyface and a heel.

The Harts are pitted as the white-meat babyface challengers going against the all-conquering heel trio of Demolition – a team who had already had a record-breaking title reign under the studded belts and face-paint.

Demolition take the first fall after wearing down the primed for stardom Bret Hart, then as Jim ‘The Anvil’ Neidhart hits the hot tag, it forces Crush into preventing a pin-count, causing a DQ and tying the match at one fall a piece.

The final act is then played out like a scene from a Hollywood movie, with the heels seemingly fooling the way to victory thanks to a rotation of members, before the Harts find allies in Legion of Doom, who storm to the ring to even the odds and allow our heroes to taste triumph and take home the gold.

That’s how you tell a story, and that’s how you book a tag team match.

Edited by Alan John