The Los Angeles version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship was the main tag team professional wrestling championship of the North American Wrestling Alliance, a member of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), which promoted shows in and around Los Angeles. The championship was the first of at least 17 championships to use that name between 1949 and 1992, as the NWA Board of Directors allowed each territory to create its own version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship if it so desired. In 1957 there were at least 13 different versions of the NWA World Tag Team Championship recognized in the United States. Since it was a professional wrestling championship, it was not won through legitimate competitive matches, but instead determined by the decisions of the booker(s) of a wrestling promotion.
The first version of the Los Angeles NWA World Tag Team Championship was created in 1949, less than a year after the NWA itself was founded. At the time, tag team wrestling was popular on the West Coast, leading to the local NWA promoters Hugh Nichols and Johnny Doyle creating the first-ever NWA World Tag Team Championship when they announced The Dusek Family (Ernie and Emil Dusek) as the first champions on July 14, 1949. The NWA Board of Directors dictated that all NWA territories recognize only one NWA World Heavyweight Champion, but allowed each territory to crown its own world tag team champion, making each championship a regional championship despite the name. The Los Angeles territory promoted its NWA World Tag Team Championship for eleven years, with Ben and Mike Sharpe being the last champions of the era. The Duseks were the only team to hold the championship twice in that period of time. The longest reign of the first era belonged to Guy Brunetti and Joe Tangero, who held the championship for at least 277 days. After the Los Angeles version was abandoned, the local promoters recognized the San Francisco version in subsequent years.
By the 1970s the San Francisco territory had been taken over by Mike and Gene Lebell's NWA Hollywood Wrestling. In June 1970 the Twin Devils (two masked wrestlers identified only as Twin Devil #1 and Twin Devil #2) were billed as the NWA World Tag Team Champions. Records are not clear on how the Twin Devils became champions; since no records of a tournament have been found, it is possible they were simply awarded the championship when the Lebells decided to reintroduce the NWA World Tag Team Championship. Los Brazos (Spanish for "The Arms"; Brazo de Plata and Brazo de Oro) were the last holders of the championship as NWA Hollywood Wrestling closed in December 1982. From that point on, the NWA Mid-Atlantic version was the only active NWA Word Tag Team Championship left.
Title history Key No.The overall championship reignReignThe reign number for the specific wrestler listed.EventThe event promoted by the respective promotion in which the title changed handsN/AThe specific information is not known —Used for vacated reigns in order to not count it as an official reign Indicates that there was a period where the lineage is undocumented due to the lack of written documentation in that time period. No.ChampionsReignDateDays heldLocationEventNotes1(Emil Dusek and Ernie Dusek)1 Longbeach, CaliforniaLive eventThe Duseks held "a" world tag team championship in Phoenix, Arizona as early as May 22, 1949. The duo was recognized as champions in California on this date21 Live eventStill billed as champions on November 20, 195031 Live event4(Emil Dusek and Ernie Dusek)2 Live event5Great Togo and Tosh Togo1 Live eventDanny McShain and Great Scott were billed as champions during this time period.Wrestle to a draw against the Togo Brothers on August 6, 1955/08/06 The Togo brothers are still champions on September 18, 19556 and Joe Tangero1 Live eventStill billed as champions on September 4, 19577 and Hans Schmidt1Los Angeles, CaliforniaLive event8 and Tosh Togo (2)1Los Angeles, CaliforniaLive event9 and Sándor Szabó1Live eventLos Angeles, California or 1959Championship was abandoned10(Twin Devil 1 and Twin Devil 2)1Los Angeles, CaliforniaLive eventThe Twins Devils were awarded the championship when the promotion brought the championship back.11 and Terry Funk1Los Angeles, CaliforniaLive event12 and Ron Starr1Los Angeles, CaliforniaLive event13 and Alberto Madril1Los Angeles, CaliforniaLive event14 and Enforcer Lusciano1Los Angeles, CaliforniaLive event151Los Angeles, CaliforniaLive event16 and Victor Rivera1Los Angeles, CaliforniaLive event17(Twin Devil 1 and Twin Devil 2)2Los Angeles, CaliforniaLive event181 Los Angeles, CaliforniaLive eventStill billed as champions on August 22, 198119 and Kiss1Los Angeles, CaliforniaLive eventChampionship vacated for undocumented reasons20 and Kamalamala1Bakersfield, CaliforniaLive eventDefeated Alex Perez and Ron Starr to win the championship21(Brazo de Oro and Brazo de Plata)1Los Angeles, CaliforniaLive eventPromotion closes and the championship is abandoned
Team reigns by combined length Key SymbolMeaning¤The exact length of at least one title reign is uncertain, so the shortest possible length is used. RankTeamNo. of reignsCombined days1Los Brazos (Brazo de Oro and Brazo de Plata) 1 2 and Kamalamala 1 3 and Enforcer Lusciano 1 1 and Sándor Szabó 1 (Emil Dusek and Ernie Dusek) 2 and Terry Funk 1 1 Great Togo and Tosh Togo 1 and Hans Schmidt 1 and Ron Starr 1 and Battleship Johnson 1 and Alberto Madril 1 and Victor Rivera 1 and Kiss 1 and Tosh Togo 1 (Twin Devil 1 and Twin Devil 2) 2 1
Individual reigns by combined length Key SymbolMeaning¤The exact length of at least one title reign is uncertain, so the shortest possible length is used. RankWrestlerNo. of reignsCombined days1Brazo de Oro 1 Brazo de Plata 1 3 1 Kamalamala 1 5 1 1 1 1 2 2 1 1 1 1 Great Togo 1 1 1 1 2 Kiss 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Twin Devil 1 2 Twin Devil 2 2 1 1
See also National Wrestling Alliance NWA World Tag Team Championship
Concurrent championships Sources for 13 simultaneous NWA World Tag Team Championships NWA World Tag Team Championship (Los Angeles version) NWA World Tag Team Championship (San Francisco version) NWA World Tag Team Championship (Central States version) NWA World Tag Team Championship (Chicago version) NWA World Tag Team Championship (Buffalo Athletic Club version) NWA World Tag Team Championship (Georgia version) NWA World Tag Team Championship (Iowa/Nebraska version) NWA World Tag Team Championship (Indianapolis version) NWA World Tag Team Championship (Salt Lake Wrestling Club version) NWA World Tag Team Championship (Amarillo version) NWA World Tag Team Championship (Minneapolis version) NWA World Tag Team Championship (Texas version) NWA World Tag Team Championship (Mid-America version)
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