Inprofessional wrestling, afeud is astagedrivalry between multiple wrestlers or groups of wrestlers. They are integrated into ongoing storylines, particularly in events which are televised. Feuds may last for months or even years; conversely, they may be resolved with implausible speed, perhaps during a single match.[1]
Feuds are often the result of the friction that is created betweenfaces (the heroic figures) andheels (the malevolent, "evil" participants). Common causes of feuds are a purported slight or insult, although they can be based on many other things, including conflictingmoral codes or simple professionalone-upmanship such as the pursuit of achampionship. Some of the more popular feuds with audiences involve pitting former allies, particularlytag team partners, against each other. Depending on how popular and entertaining the feud may be, it is usually common practice for a feud to continue on for weeks, usually building toward a match in a supercard.
Due to the complexity of modern wrestling storylines, some feuds lack the traditional ‘face vs. heel’ narrative. Many feuds take place between two faces, while some involve characters that don’t fit either traditional role, often calledtweeners. Feuds between two heels are rare, but may take place, especially if one or more of the wrestlers in the feud are particularly popular with fans.
One of the longest feuds of all time was the feud betweenRic Flair andRicky Steamboat, estimated by Flair to comprise more than 2,000 matches, though he admits that most of those matches were "confined to those in the arena".[2]
Traditionally, mostpromoters wanted to "protect the business" by having wrestlers act in character in public, and thus further convince the live audience that the feuding wrestlersreally did hate each other and were looking to outdo each other. During the days when wrestling territories were more regionally based, some feuds lasted for years, and if the feuding wrestlers were shown to really be friends, or were associating as friends in public, it would break the illusion of their feud, and undo all the work to promote it up to that point.