One of my favourite aspects to wrestling are the championship belts. It's a prop in the story that holds significance. It means the champion is the number one man or woman; they are the best of the best. When the belt is on the line, the match becomes far more significant or so it should. It can elevate a wrestler’s career and establish them as a legitimate star.
Seth Rollins cashing in to win the WWE world heavyweight championship comes to mind as a pivotal moment in Rollins' career and made for a worthy WrestleMania moment.
Kenny Omega's belt collector gimmick was grandiose. I wish it stuck around for longer as it made Omega feel like a powerhouse.
I won’t lie, I did shed tears when Kurt Angle won his first WWF Championship at No Mercy in 2000.
At this present time, Roman Reigns has been Universal Champion for 1138+ days. This adds value to the Tribal Chief, the belt and hopefully to the person who defeats him.
Unfortunately, it's rare that a championship belt means something and adds value. WWE and AEW have so many different belts that the importance becomes diminished. There's also the problem when the belt becomes hot potato; the TNT championship had this issue for a while. I also believe this is why the 24/7 died. It was a prop used for comedy. It had no meaning, and anyone could win the title, even Peter Rosenberg held the strap.
I like the idea of not knowing when a title will change hands. I believe a title should always raise the stakes and add drama to the mix.
At this point in time some belts do mean something; WWE Universal Title and the TNT Championship are great examples of using championships perfectly.