Roman Reigns
Leati Joseph “Joe” Anoaʻi (born May 25, 1985), better known by the ring name Roman Reigns, is an American professional wrestler and former American football player. He currently signed to WWE on the SmackDown brand, where he is the current and longest-reigning WWE Universal Champion in his second reign and the current WWE Champion in his fourth reign. Considered one of the best wrestlers in the world, his current championship reigns make him WWE’s undisputed world champion, referred to within the company as the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion. He is the leader of The Bloodline stable and is a member of wrestling’s renowned Anoaʻi family.
Early Life
Leati Joseph Anoaʻi was born in Pensacola, Florida, on May 25, 1985. He has Arbëreshë, English, Italian, and Samoan ancestry. Both his father Sika and his brother Rosey were professional wrestlers. Anoaʻi attended Pensacola Catholic High School and Escambia High School, before going on to major in management at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He later said that he considers Bret Hart his wrestling idol.
Football Career
Anoaʻi played football for three years at Pensacola Catholic High School and one year at Escambia High School; in his senior year, he named Defensive Player of the Year by the Pensacola News Journal. While at the Georgia Institute of Technology, he was a member of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team along with Calvin Johnson, who later became a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL).
After going undrafted in the 2007 NFL draft, Anoaʻi signed with the Minnesota Vikings in May 2007. He was diagnosed with leukemia after his team physical and was released later that month. The Jacksonville Jaguars signed him in August 2007, only to release Anoaʻi less than a week later before the start of the 2007 NFL season. In 2008, he signed with the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League (CFL). Anoaʻi released the Eskimos on November 10 and proceeded to retire from professional football.
Roman Reigns’ Wife
In early 2005, while studying at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Anoaʻi met and began dating Galina Becker. They married in December 2014, and reside in Tampa, Florida. Their first child, a daughter, was born in December 2007 and appeared with Anoaʻi in a PSA in June 2014. They had twin sons in 2016, followed by another set of twins (whose gender they did not disclose) in 2020.
How Long Has Roman Reigns Been Universal Champion?
On January 18, 2023, his Universal Championship reign reached 871 days breaking Gunther’s NXT UK Championship reign of 870 days, giving him the longest reign of any WWE championship since 1988.