Claim: Roman Reigns is a WWE World Heavyweight Champion.

Leati Joseph `` Joe '' Anoaʻi -LRB- born May 25 , 1985 -RRB- is an American professional wrestler , former professional Canadian football player and a member of the Anoaʻi family . He is signed to WWE , where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Roman Reigns .   After playing collegiate football for Georgia Tech , Anoaʻi started his professional football career with brief off-season stints with the Minnesota Vikings and Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League -LRB- NFL -RRB- in 2007 . He then played a full season for the Canadian Football League 's -LRB- CFL -RRB- Edmonton Eskimos in 2008 before his release and retirement from football .   Anoaʻi then pursued a career in professional wrestling and was signed by WWE in 2010 , reporting to their developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling -LRB- FCW -RRB- . As Roman Reigns , he made his main roster debut in November 2012 alongside Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins as The Shield . The trio teamed together until June 2014 , after which Reigns entered singles competition . Reigns is a three-time WWE World Heavyweight Champion , a one-time United States Champion , a one-time WWE Tag Team Champion -LRB- with Rollins -RRB- , the 2015 Royal Rumble winner and the 2014 Superstar of the Year . He also tied the WWE record for most eliminations in a Survivor Series elimination match with four in the 2013 event and set the record for most eliminations in a Royal Rumble match with 12 in the 2014 event .   Since 2014 , WWE has attempted to establish Reigns as their next `` face of the company '' . Reigns has headlined multiple major WWE pay-per-view events , including the last three WrestleManias -LRB- 31 , 32 and 33 -RRB- -- scoring wins over Triple H and The Undertaker . However , Reigns ' ascendancy as a world title-chasing/holding heroic underdog has been marked by critics ' disapproval and overwhelmingly negative crowd reactions . He was consequently named 2016 's `` Most Hated Wrestler of the Year '' by Pro Wrestling Illustrated , becoming the first babyface wrestler to have been recognized as such , as well as the `` Most Overrated '' by Wrestling Observer Newsletter .