49) S.E.X.
50) J.O.B. Squad
What started off as a joke for Al Snow about the number of J.O.B.s he did on the PPV turned into something much larger in late-1998, as Snow joined forces with fellow journeymen Bob Holly, Scorpio, The Blue Meanie and Dwayne "Gillberg" Gill. The faction still jobbed, but at least they had a cool T-shirt.
One of Vince Russo's first roles within TNA was to break with "tradition" and form Sports Entertainment Xtreme, whose members at times included David Flair, B.G. James, Glenn Gilbernetti, Mike Sanders, The Harris Brothers, and most famously, the Triple X trio of Elix Skipper, Christopher Daniels and Low Ki.
The faction started out as a macabre, Plan 9 From Outer Space-meets-professional wrestling stable led by Kevin Sullivan and The Master in the mid-1990's and included The Giant, One Man Gang, Kamala, John "Shark" Tenta, Brutus "Zodiac" Beefcake, Konnan, Hugh Morrus, Meng, The Barbarian and many, many others.
When ECW was fed up with their lack of promotion by TNN, Paul Heyman did more than complain about it. He created a group of pro-network, anti-hardcore wrestlers led by Don "Cyrus" Callis including Steve Corino, Rhino, Yoshihiro Tajiri and Scotty Anton to raise hell against ECW's hardcore babyfaces.
47) The Dungeon of Doom
48) The Network
Originally formed as an entry in TNA's 2004 X Cup, manager Scott D'Amore manage to keep his faction of Canadians around for several years. The group gave us our first looks at future TNA Champions Bobby Roode and Eric Young, not to mention Johnny Devine, Tyson Dux, Petey Williams, Jack Evans, A1 and Teddy Hart.
When Jeff Jarrett reigned as TNA's king of the mountain, he needed backup to defend himself against the likes of Rhino and Christian Cage. The group included, at times, Abyss, Monty Brown, America's Most Wanted, Scott Steiner, Gail Kim, Jackie Gayda and even included a pact with Team Canada. Speaking of which.....
43) Team Canada (TNA)
44) Planet Jarrett
46) The West Texas Rednecks
A few years earlier in WCW, Lance Storm launched his own stable of Canadians which include Elix Skipper, Carl Ouelette and Jacques Rougeau, as well as decidedly non-Canadians Hacksaw Jim Duggan, Mike Awesome and Major Gunns. Bret Hart accompanied the group for one night in August 2000.
Prince Nana's faction has been one of wrestling's longest-running stables and certainly the pre-eminent group in Ring of Honor. Beginning in 2002, its members have included at various times Abyss, Alex Shelley, Jimmy Rave, Claudio "Cesaro" Castagnoli, Joey Ryan, Rhino and Tomassa Ciampo.
As Edge became SmackDown's top heel in late-2007, he needed a group that would have his back. Along with General Manager Vickie Guerrero, Edge convinced former Major Brothers Zack Ryder and Curt Hawkins to join his cause, as well as Chavo Guerrero and bodyguard Bam Neely.
Robert Fuller's army began in the continental United States in the early 1980's and has traveled to the CWF, Smoky Mountain and WCW. Members included Fuller (a/k/a Colonel Rob Parker), Cactus Jack, Dutch "Zeb Colter" Mantel, Jimmy "Bunkhouse Buck" Golden, Terry Funk, Arn Anderson and some guy named Steve Austin.
42) Team Canada (WCW)
41) The Embassy
40) La Familia
39) The Stud Stable
A more colorful group than the new World order, the bWo turned a one-night parody into one of ECW's hottest and most enduring acts (not to mention a top merchandise seller for several years). The members include Da Blue Guy, Big Stevie Cool, Hollywood Nova, Thomas "The Inchworm" Rodman, Chastity and 7-11.
Along the lines of the bWo and J.O.B. Squad, MIA was WCW's answer for its mid-carders. Hugh Morrus became General Hugh G. Rection, Chavo Guerrero was Lt. Loco, Van Hammer was Private Stash, Lash LeRoux was Corporal Cajun and Booker T was G.I. Bro. Yes, I'm groaning after I type each of these names.
Fortune was Ric Flair's TNA answer to The Four Horsemen in 2010 -- a group of the company's elite workers. The group include AJ Styles, Robert Roode, James Storm and Kazarian (Doug Williams and Matt Morgan were also briefly members) and the faction briefly merged with Hulk Hogan's Immortal group.
Another Ric Flair-formed group, this one was created in the very last days of WCW and included most of their top heels. In addition to Flair, the group included Scott Steiner, Rick Steiner, Lex Luger, Jeff Jarrett and Road Warrior Animal. If not for WCW's untimely demise in 2001, the group could have been much higher on the list.
38) Blue World Order
37) Misfits in Action
36) Fortune
35) The Magnificent Seven
Although these were technically two separate groups, both had similarities and certainly warrant inclusion. Raven's Nest was formed in ECW in 1995 and included Stevie Richards, The Pitbulls and Cactus Jack. The Flock in WCW included Raven, Richards, Kanyon, Billy Kidman, Lodi, Horace Hogan and Perry Saturn.
While the group of male cheerleaders -- Ken "Kenny" Doane, Johnny "Johnny" Jeter, Nick "Mitch" Mitchell, Mike "Mikey" Mondo and Dolph "Nicky" Ziggler -- weren't exactly top of the card, the group collectively held the World Tag Team Titles for 216 days in 2006 and managed to feud with D-Generation X and Ric Flair.
Vince McMahon's potshot at lobby group The Parents' Television Council, Steven Richards became the WWF's moral compass in 2000 and recruited Val Venis, The Godfather as "The Goodfather", Bull Buchanan and Ivory. The latter three held WWF gold during the RTC run.
34) Raven's Nest / The Flock
33) The Spirit Squad
32) The Disciples of the Apocalypse
31) The Right to Censor
Upset by the way TNA management was allegedly treating Latino wrestlers, Konnan formed the L.A.X. at the end of 2005. In addition to original members Apolo and Homicide, the group also included Hernandez, Machete, Salinas, Hector Guerrero and, during a reunion in ROH last year, Chavo Guerrero Jr.
When The Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase returned to the WWF in 1994, he began proving that he could buy his own stable of wrestlers, which included Nikolai Volkoff, Bam Bam Bigelow, Tatanka, Irwin R. Shyster, Kama and King Kong Bundy. Later, the group featured Sid, The 1-2-3 Kid and some guy named Steve Austin.
30) The Corporate Ministry
29) Latino World Order
28) Latin American Xchange
27) The Million Dollar Corporation
In an attempt to gain power in the NWA during the late 1980's, Kevin Sullivan assembled a group of collegiate wrestlers including Rick Steiner (Michigan), Mike Rotunda (Syracuse), "Dr. Death" Steve Williams (Oklahoma) and Dan Spivey (Georgia). They reunited in WCW a decade later, with Sullivan, Rotunda and Steiner in the corner of "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan.
Jimmy Hart first assembled his family in the late-1970's as members as diverse as Eddie Gilbert, Andy Kaufman, Kamala and King Kong Bundy attempted to dethrone Jerry "The King" Lawler. Hart reformed the group in WCW after The Dungeon of Doom disappeared, featuring Meng, The Barbarian, Hugh Morrus and Jerry Flynn.
WCW's answer to D-Generation X was The Filthy Animals, a group that began in 1999 with Konnan, Rey Mysterio Jr., Eddie Guerrero, Billy Kidman and Torrie Wilson. Over the next couple of years, additional members were Juventud Guerrera and Disco Inferno.
At the time of WWE's brand split, Lance Storm began insinuating that the company discrimated against Canadians. He teamed with fellow Canucks Christian and Test to protest, and eventually William Regal was added to the anti-American stable.
After John Bradshaw Layfield won the World Title in 2004, he realized he would need backup to hang on to the championship. His cabinet members Orlando Jordan and Doug and Danny Basham ending up holding championships on SmackDown as well.
Think a corporate version of D-Generation X and you've essentially got The McMahon-Helmsley Era. After Triple H and Stephanie McMahon removed Vince McMahon from power in late-1999, they recruited X-Pac, Road Dogg, Billy Gunn and Tori to rule the WWF.
The date was 10/10/10 and TNA had promised something big would happen. By the end of Bound For Glory, a new heel faction had formed including Hulk Hogan, Jeff Hardy, Eric Bischoff, Abyss and Jeff Jarrett. Fortune, Ric Flair, Scott Steiner, Matt Hardy and others would later join the short-lived stable.
In mid-1999, Shane Douglas, Chris Benoit, Perry Saturn and Dean Malenko promised to shake things up as The Revolution, a new heel faction in WCW. By early 2000, they joined forces with Eddie Guerrero (and left Douglas behind) as The Radicalz, a group of outsiders that invaded the WWF en masse.
One of the very first attempts to counter Ric Flair and The Four Horsemen was assembled by Sting in early 1990. His fellow dudes included Lex Luger, El Gigante, Rick and Scott Steiner, Mr. Wonderful Paul Orndorff, The Junkyard Dog and, for some reason, preliminary wrestler Rocky King.
When Vince Russo and Eric Bischoff joined forces in WCW, they assembled a group of heels that soon captured all of the company's gold. Members included Jeff Jarrett, Scott Steiner, Booker T, Billy Kidman, Vampiro, Mike Awesome, The Natural Born Thrillers, Buff Bagwell and Shane Douglas.
Formed in 2008, TNA's heel faction had a solid premise - a group of main eventers gone heel and looking for respect. The original members with Kevin Nash, Kurt Angle, Booker T and Sting, although Samoa Joe, Traci Brooks and Taz would join. The group briefly reformed to battle Aces & Eights in 2013.
After months of setting the stage for their takeover in TNA, Aces & Eights became a major force to reckon with in the company. Members included Bully Ray, Brother Devon, Mr. Anderson, D-Lo Brown, Wes Brisco, Garrett Bischoff, D.O.C., Knux, Taz and Brooke Tessmacher.
Upon turning heel in 1998, The Undertaker adopted a new look and threatened to poison the WWF from within. He reunited with Paul Bearer and assembled a fearsome faction whose members included Bradshaw, Faarooq, Mideon, Viscera, Edge, Christian and Gangrel.
No faction in WWE history has had as immediate an impact as The Nexus. After destroying John Cena and the set of Monday Night Raw, former NXT members Wade Barrett, David Otunga, Skip "Ryback" Sheffield, Justin Gabriel, Heath Slater, Michael Tarver and (briefly) Daniel Bryan wreaked havoc for months. CM Punk and others joined the group during its second wave.
Call it a reboot of The Corporation or the sequel to the McMahon-Helmsley Era, but Triple H and Stephanie McMahon control everything in WWE at the moment. In addition to the group's founders, Randy Orton, Corporate Kane and Seth Rollins have ensured that Daniel Bryan, John Cena and others have done what is best for business.
Formed in 1996 by Ron "Faarooq" Simmons, The Nation underwent several changes while establishing dominance. Besides Faarooq, members have included PG-13 (Wolfie D and JC Ice), Clarence Mason, Savio Vega, Crush, D'Lo Brown, Mark Henry, Kama, Owen Hart and the great one himself, The Rock.
Long before his client Brock Lesnar ended The Undertaker's undefeated streak at WrestleMania, Paul "E. Dangerously" Heyman assembled an all-star cast of heels in WCW to topple Sting and other babyfaces - Ravishing Rick Rude, Larry Zbyszko, Arn Anderson, Bobby Eaton and some guy named Steve Austin.
Attempting to create his own version of The Four Horsemen in WWE, Triple H recruited Ric Flair into his camp in 2003. Flair was soon joined by Randy Orton and Dave Batista, whom HHH (correctly) called future World Champions. The group, sans Flair, reunited in WWE earlier this year to battle The Shield.
While the WCW/ECW invasion of 2001 isn't most people's favorite storyline, there's no denying the faction was one of the most impressive in WWF history. Led by Shane and Stephanie McMahon, members included Booker T, Rob Van Dam, The Dudley Boyz, Rhyno, Diamond Dallas Page and some guy named Steve Austin.
For many years during the WWF's 1980's peak, Bobby "The Brain" Heenan terrorized Hulk Hogan, Ultimate Warrior and other babyfaces with a group that included Andre The Giant, Hercules, Harley Race, Big John Studd, King Kong Bundy, Rick Rude, Paul Orndorff, The Brain Busters and King Haku.
In 1997, long before pro-Canada groups became popular in WCW and TNA (and even modern-day WWE), the WWF assembled a faction to support Bret "Hit Man" Hart. The group included Bret's brother Owen Hart, his brothers-in-law Davey Boy Smith and Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart and family friend Brian Pillman.
Shortly after Vince McMahon (officially) became a heel in 1998, he created a group tasked with the destruction of Stone Cold Steve Austin. Corporation members (executives?) included The Rock, Triple H, Kane, Ken Shamrock, Shane McMahon, Big Boss Man and "stooges" Pat Patterson and Gerald Brisco.
Are you ready? Shawn Michaels and Triple H (along with Chyna) joined forces in 1997 to usher in The Attitude Era with lewd and crude tactics, and were later joined by X-Pac, Road Dogg and Billy Gunn. Their reformation a decade later (with new member Hornswoggle) wasn't.... quite as impressive as the initial run.
25) The First Family
26) The Varsity Club
23) The Un-Americans
24) The Filthy Animals
21) The McMahon-Helmsley Era
22) The Cabinet
19) The Revolution / The Radicalz
20) Immortal
17) The Dudes with Attitude
18) Devastation Inc.
15) New Blood
16) The Main Event Mafia
13) The Ministry of Darkness
14) Aces & Eights
11) The Authority
12) The Nexus
9) The Dangerous Alliance
10) Nation of Domination
7) The Alliance
8) Evolution
5) The Hart Foundation
6) The Bobby Heenan Family
4) The Corporation
3) D-Generation X
Holding four fingers up in the air has become synonymous with wrestling lore as the Ric Flair-led faction was one of the most successful in history. Members included Flair, Arn Anderson, Ole Anderson, Tully Blanchard, J.J. Dillon, Lex Luger, Barry Windham, Sid Vicious, Woman, Paul Roma, Chris Benoit, Brian Pillman, Dean Malenko, Miss Elizabeth and Steve and Debra McMichael. Wooooooo!
The nWo are almost more than a faction because of the massive impact they had on WCW and all of wrestling. Formed with Hulk Hogan, Scott Hall and Kevin Nash, the group expanded over the years (and in different incarnations) to include The Giant, Ted DiBiase, Syxx, Miss Elizabeth, Randy Savage, Konnan, Eric Bischoff, Big Bubba Rogers, Buff Bagwell, Stevie Ray, Vincent, Curt Hennig, Rick Rude, Brian Adams, Bret Hart, Sting, Scott Steiner and Lex Luger. No other group in wrestling will ever come close to having that kind of star power.
2) The Four Horsemen
1) new World order
No matter whether you call them stables, group, families or factions, they've driven some of the most significant storylines in wrestling over the past 30 years and have added fuel to a lot of top rivalries.
In compiling this week's Top 50 list, we looked at the top factions from WWE, WCW, TNA and elsewhere to see which had the biggest impact on their company, bred future stars and furthered storylines.
To differentiate this from the Top 50 Wrestling Trios list that was compiled a few months back, our criteria is that a faction has to have at least four (4) members that actively wrestled during the period the faction was around. So if you're wondering why The Shield or The Fabulous Freebirds aren't on this particular list... now you know. As well, any faction on this list has to have been together at least a couple of months, disqualifying The Union and other such temporary stables.
Ready? Here we go!
Related Posts: Top 50 Wrestling Trios, Top 50 Second/Third Generation Wrestlers
Any names missing or misplaced? Leave your feedback in the Comments section below...
Another offshoot of the original Nation of Domination, Crush formed a group of badass bikers in June 1997 consisting of Brian "Chainz" Lee and The Harris Brothers as Skull and 8-Ball. The group continued on as a trio when Crush left the WWF later that year.
A merger of Vince McMahon's Corporation and The Undertaker's Ministry of Darkness, the faction had many of the WWF's top heels in 1999, including Triple H, The Big Boss Man, The Acolytes and The Big Show. However, the group didn't last particularly long.
After Eddie Guerrero clashed with Eric Bischoff (on and off screen) and tried to get out of his contract, he formed his own nWo parody group, whose members included Rey Mysterio Jr., Juventud Guerrera, Psychosis, La Parka, Silver King and El Dandy.
45) Los Boricuas
Born out of the ashes of the original Nation of Domination, Savio Vega's group of fighting Puerto Ricans included Miguel Perez, Jesus Castillo and Jose Estrada. While they were never top contenders, they were staples of Raw's "Gang War" era in late-1997 and gave DOA and the new Nation some nervous moments.
Created to counter Master P's No Limit Soliders (which thankfully, didn't make the Top 50), Curt Hennig teamed up with Barry Windham, Kendall Windham and Bobby Duncum Jr. As a faction, they weren't overly successful, but they did manage to record the cult classic country and western-themed song "Rap Is Crap".
General Skandor Akbar managed virtually all of the top heels that passed through World Class Championship Wrestling in the 1980's and 1990's. Members of the revolving-door group over the years included Kamala, Dick Murdoch, King Kong Bundy, Abdullah The Butcher, Cactus Jack and some guy named Steve Austin.