History of Kofi Kingston in Timeline

Kofi Nahaje Sarkodie-Mensah, known as Kofi Kingston, is a Ghanaian-American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE. He performs on the Raw brand as Kofi Kingston and is a member of the popular tag team, The New Day. Kingston is known for his high-flying wrestling style and charismatic personality. He has achieved considerable success in WWE, winning multiple championships, including the WWE Championship, Intercontinental Championship, United States Championship, and multiple Tag Team Championships.

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Full Timeline Early Life & Education Career & Achievements

August 14, 1981: Kofi Kingston Born

On August 14, 1981, Kofi Nahaje Sarkodie-Mensah, later known as Kofi Kingston, was born in Ghana.

Others born on this day/year

2005: Starts Wrestling Training

In late 2005, Sarkodie-Mensah started training in professional wrestling.

September 2006: Signs WWE Developmental Contract

In September 2006, Kofi Kingston signed a developmental contract with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and was assigned to Deep South Wrestling (DSW). He debuted in DSW as Kofi Nahaje Kingston, losing a dark match to Montel Vontavious Porter on September 21.

2006: Signs with WWE

In 2006, Kofi Kingston signed a developmental deal with WWE after wrestling on the New England independent circuit.

2006: Official Wrestling Debut

In 2006, Sarkodie-Mensah made his official wrestling debut for Chaotic Wrestling, facing Evan Siks for the PWF Mayhem Heavyweight Championship on June 4 in a losing effort.

December 6, 2007: Vignettes for Television Debut Begin Airing

On December 6, 2007, a series of vignettes for Kofi Kingston's television debut began airing on the weekly ECW on Syfy television show.

2007: Main Roster Exposure and Relocation to FCW

In 2007, Kofi Kingston had his first exposure to the main WWE roster, working dark matches on March 5 and 26 before episodes of Raw. He then relocated to Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) in June, appearing at their inaugural show on June 26.

2007: Appears in DSW and OVW

Throughout 2007, Kofi Kingston appeared in Deep South Wrestling (DSW) and Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), forming a tag team called the Commonwealth Connection with Harry Smith.

January 22, 2008: ECW Debut

On January 22, 2008, Kofi Kingston debuted on ECW as a face, defeating David Owen.

April 2008: WrestleMania XXIV Battle Royal

In April 2008, Kofi Kingston participated in a 24-man battle royal during the WrestleMania XXIV pre-show, but was eliminated by Mark Henry.

June 25, 2008: Drafted to Raw and Wins Intercontinental Championship

On June 25, 2008, Kofi Kingston was drafted to the Raw brand and defeated Chris Jericho for the Intercontinental Championship at Night of Champions.

2008: Intercontinental Champion, United States Champion, World Tag Team Champion, WWE Tag Team Champion

From 2008, Kingston became a four-time Intercontinental Champion, a three-time United States Champion, a one-time World Tag Team Champion with CM Punk, and a two-time WWE Tag Team Champion with Evan Bourne and R-Truth.

2008: WWE Debut

In 2008, Kofi Kingston debuted in WWE's brand ECW (Extreme Championship Wrestling) using the same Jamaican character as he did on the independent circuit.

February 15, 2009: Ambushed at No Way Out

On February 15, 2009, at No Way Out, Kofi Kingston was scheduled for the World Heavyweight Championship Elimination Chamber match but was ambushed by Edge, who took his place and won.

October 19, 2009: Drops Jamaican Character

On October 19, 2009, Kofi Kingston dropped his Jamaican character on Raw and began being billed from Ghana.

2009: Drops Jamaican Character

In late 2009, Kofi Kingston stopped being billed from Jamaica, dropped the accent, and began being billed from Ghana.

January 4, 2010: Botched Finish with Randy Orton

On January 4, 2010, Kofi Kingston botched the finish of a match with Randy Orton on Raw, leading to a stiff RKO and reportedly halting a potential push.

September 11, 2010: Marriage to Kori Campfield

On September 11, 2010, Kofi Sarkodie-Mensah married Kori Campfield.

January 7, 2011: Wins Intercontinental Championship

On January 7, 2011, Kofi Kingston defeated Dolph Ziggler on SmackDown to become the Intercontinental Champion for a third time and retained it in an immediate rematch.

August 22, 2011: Wins WWE Tag Team Championship with Evan Bourne

On August 22, 2011, Kofi Kingston won the WWE Tag Team Championship with Evan Bourne, defeating David Otunga and Michael McGillicutty.

2011: Wins United States Championship

In 2011, Kofi Kingston defeated Sheamus at Extreme Rules in a Tables match to win his second United States Championship.

January 15, 2012: Loses Tag Team Titles to Primo and Epico

On January 15, 2012, Air Boom (Kofi Kingston and Evan Bourne) lost the Tag Team titles to Primo and Epico at a house show.

October 17, 2012: WWE Intercontinental Championship win

On October 17, 2012, Kofi Kingston defeated The Miz on Main Event to win the WWE Intercontinental Championship for the fourth time in his career.

2012: Guest Starred in Kickin' It

In 2012, Kofi Kingston guest-starred in an episode of Disney XD's karate sitcom Kickin' It.

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2013: Intercontinental Champion, United States Champion, World Tag Team Champion, WWE Tag Team Champion

Until 2013, Kingston became a four-time Intercontinental Champion, a three-time United States Champion, a one-time World Tag Team Champion with CM Punk, and a two-time WWE Tag Team Champion with Evan Bourne and R-Truth.

January 26, 2014: Royal Rumble participation

On January 26, 2014, at the Royal Rumble, Kofi Kingston participated in the Royal Rumble match. He avoided elimination by landing on the crowd barricade and jumped back into the ring, but was later eliminated by Roman Reigns.

2014: Forms The New Day

In 2014, Kofi Kingston formed The New Day with Big E and Xavier Woods.

March 29, 2015: WrestleMania 31 pre-show

On March 29, 2015, at the WrestleMania 31 pre-show, The New Day failed to win the WWE Tag Team Championship in a fatal four-way match and were eliminated by Big Show in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.

August 2015: WWE (Raw) Tag Team Championship Reign Begins

In August 2015, The New Day began their record-breaking WWE (Raw) Tag Team Championship reign, defending the titles under the Freebird rule.

2015: Brief Villainous Turn

In 2015, Kofi Kingston spent a few months as a villain.

December 2016: WWE (Raw) Tag Team Championship Reign Ends

In December 2016, The New Day's WWE (Raw) Tag Team Championship reign ended, concluding their record-breaking run.

2016: Appeared on Let's Make a Deal

In 2016, Kofi Kingston, along with his New Day teammates, appeared on a Christmas Family themed Let's Make a Deal.

2016: Turned Heel

In December 2, 2024 episode of Raw during the 10-year anniversary cerebration of the formation of The New Day, Kofi Kingston turned heel for the first time since 2016, and reconciling with Xavier Woods in the process.

January 29, 2017: Royal Rumble 2017 participation

On January 29, 2017, Kofi Kingston participated in the Royal Rumble match. During the match, he avoided elimination when Baron Corbin tried to eliminate him. The New Day were also revealed to be the hosts of WrestleMania 33.

April 11, 2017: Move to SmackDown brand

On April 11, 2017, The New Day were moved to the SmackDown brand as part of the Superstar Shake-up.

2017: Published The Book of Booty

In 2017, Kofi Kingston published "The Book of Booty: Shake It. Love It. Never Be It" with fellow New Day members Big E and Xavier Woods.

January 28, 2018: Royal Rumble Elimination

On January 28, 2018, at the Royal Rumble, Kofi Kingston entered the match as the 16th entrant, but was eliminated by Andrade "Cien" Almas.

February 12, 2019: Replaces Mustafa Ali in Elimination Chamber match

On February 12, 2019, Kofi Kingston was selected to replace Mustafa Ali in the WWE Championship Elimination Chamber match at the namesake pay–per–view after Ali suffered an injury.

April 2019: Wins WWE Championship at WrestleMania 35

In April 2019, Kofi Kingston defeated Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania 35 to win the WWE Championship, marking his 23rd total championship in WWE.

June 2019: Favorite Opponent

In a June 2019 interview, Kofi Sarkodie-Mensah stated that Dolph Ziggler was one of his favorite opponents of all-time.

October 2019: Return to Tag Team Competition and WWE Tag Team World Cup

In October 2019, Kofi Kingston returned to competing in tag team matches. He and Big E participated in the WWE Tag Team World Cup at Crown Jewel but did not win.

January 26, 2020: Royal Rumble Appearance

On January 26, 2020, at the Royal Rumble, Kofi Kingston participated in the Royal Rumble match, but he was eliminated by Brock Lesnar.

April 2020: Became a Vegan

In an April 2020 interview with Muscle & Fitness, Kofi Sarkodie-Mensah announced that he had become a vegan.

2020: SmackDown Tag Team Championship Win and Brand Draft

In 2020, specifically on the October 9 episode of SmackDown, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods won their seventh SmackDown Tag Team Championship. Later that year, as part of the 2020 Draft, they were drafted to the Raw brand, separating them from Big E.

January 2021: Jaw Injury Sidelining

In January 2021, Kofi Kingston announced he was sidelined due to a jaw injury.

2021: Drafted to SmackDown, King of the Ring Tournament, and NXT Tag Team Championship Win

In 2021, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods were drafted to SmackDown. In October, Kingston participated in the King of the Ring tournament but lost in the first round. Later in December, The New Day won the NXT Tag Team Championship, making Kingston the first wrestler to have won both WWE's traditional Triple Crown and Tag Team Triple Crown.

March 2022: Big E's Injury

In March 2022, Big E encountered a neck injury during a match.

2022: Wins NXT Tag Team Championship

In 2022, Kofi Kingston won the NXT Tag Team Championship, becoming a Tag Team Triple Crown Champion.

2023: Drafted to Raw Brand

As part of the 2023 WWE Draft, Kofi Kingston, along with Xavier Woods, was drafted to the Raw brand.

December 2, 2024: Big E Reunion and Heel Turn

On December 2, 2024, during The New Day's 10-year anniversary on Raw, Big E returned for an in-ring reunion. However, after disagreements, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods lashed out at Big E, kicking him out of the stable and turning heel.