The 2015 Money in the Bank was the sixth annual Money in the Bank

professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...

pay-per-view Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast. Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program guid ...

and

livestreaming Livestreaming is streaming media simultaneously recorded and broadcast in real-time over the internet. It is often referred to simply as streaming. Non-live media such as video-on-demand, vlogs, and YouTube videos are technically streamed, but no ...

event Event may refer to: Gatherings of people * Ceremony, an event of ritual significance, performed on a special occasion * Convention (meeting), a gathering of individuals engaged in some common interest * Event management, the organization of e ...

produced by

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

. It took place on June 14, 2015, at the

Nationwide Arena Nationwide Arena is a multi-purpose arena in Columbus, Ohio, United States. Since completion in 2000, the arena has served as the home of the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). It is one of two facilities in Columbus, alon ...

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

. It was the first WWE pay-per-view event that was held in Columbus since 2004's Bad Blood. Money in the Bank was available for free to new subscribers as part of a free-trial to WWE's streaming service, the

WWE Network WWE Network is a subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and digital television network owned by the American entertainment company WWE. It primarily distributes original professional wrestling events, films, television and ...

, in over 140 countries. Seven matches were contested at the event, including one match on the Kickoff pre-show. The titular ladder match for the Money in the Bank contract was won by

Sheamus Stephen Farrelly (born 28 January 1978) is an Irish professional wrestler and actor. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Sheamus. Prior to joining WWE, he wrestled on the European i ...

. In the main event,

Seth Rollins Colby Daniel Lopez (born May 28, 1986) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Seth Rollins (often referred to as Seth "Freakin" Rollins). Prior to signing ...

retained the

WWE World Heavyweight Championship The WWE Championship is a world heavyweight championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE, representing the Raw brand division. It is one of two world titles on WWE's main roster, alongside SmackDown ...

in a ladder match against

Dean Ambrose Jonathan David Good (born December 7, 1985) is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he performs under the ring name Jon Moxley. He also makes appearances for New Japan Pro-Wres ...

. In other prominent matches,

WWE United States Champion The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship promoted by the American promotion WWE, currently defended on the Raw brand division. It is one of two secondary championships for WWE's main roster, along with the WW ...

John Cena John Felix Anthony Cena ( ; born April 23, 1977) is an American part-time professional wrestler, actor, and former rapper. He is currently signed to WWE. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he is tied ...

defeated

NXT Champion The NXT Championship is a professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE. It is defended as the top championship of the NXT brand division, the promotion's developmental territory. I ...

Kevin Owens Kevin Steen (born May 7, 1984) is a Canadian professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Kevin Owens. Steen began his career in 2000, at the age of 16. Prior to joining WWE in lat ...

in a non-title match and

The Prime Time Players The Prime Time Players were an American professional wrestling tag team performing in the WWE, composed of Darren Young and Titus O'Neil. The two initially competed on ''WWE NXT'', debuting as a team in January 2012 and were later promoted to t ...

(

Darren Young Frederick Douglas Rosser III (born November 2, 1983) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he is the current Strong Openweight Champion in his first reign. He is best known for his ...

and

Titus O'Neil Thaddeus Michael Bullard Sr. (born April 29, 1977) is an American professional wrestler and former arena football player. He is the Global Ambassador of WWE and also performs for the promotion as a wrestler under the ring name Titus O'Neil. D ...

) defeated The New Day ( Big E and

Xavier Woods Austin Watson (born September 4, 1986) is an American professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT (WWE brand), NXT WWE brand extension, brand under the ring name Xavier Woods. He app ...

) to win the

WWE Tag Team Championship WWE (formerly the WWF, the WWWF, and Capitol Wrestling) has maintained at least one primary tag team championship for its male performers since 1958 (except for a two year interim between 1967 and 1969). During periods of brand division, separat ...

. The event had 57,000 buys (excluding WWE Network views), down from the previous year's 122,000 buys.

Production

Background

Money in the Bank is an annual gimmick

(PPV) and

event produced by

since 2010, generally held between June and July. The concept of the show comes from WWE's established

Money in the Bank ladder match The Money in the Bank ladder match is a multi-person ladder match held by the professional wrestling promotion WWE. First contested at WWE's annual WrestleMania event beginning in 2005, a separate Money in the Bank pay-per-view was established ...

, in which multiple wrestlers use

ladders A ladder is a vertical or inclined set of rungs or steps used for climbing or descending. There are two types: rigid ladders that are self-supporting or that may be leaned against a vertical surface such as a wall, and rollable ladders, such ...

to retrieve a briefcase hanging above the ring. The briefcase contains a contract that guarantees the winner a match for a world championship at any time within the next year. For 2015, the winner received a contract for a

match. The 2015 event was the sixth event in the Money in the Bank chronology and it took place on June 14, 2015, at the

. It was also the first WWE pay-per-view event that was held in Columbus since 2004's Bad Blood. To promote the WWE Network, Money in the Bank was available for free to new subscribers in over 140 countries.

Storylines

The card consisted of seven matches, including one on the Kickoff pre-show, that resulted from scripted storylines, where wrestlers portrayed

villains A villain (also known as a "black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character a ...

heroes Heroes or Héroes may refer to: * Hero, one who displays courage and self-sacrifice for the greater good Film * ''Heroes'' (1977 film), an American drama * ''Heroes'' (2008 film), an Indian Hindi film Gaming * ''Heroes of Might and Magic'' ...

, or less distinguishable characters in scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches, with results predetermined by WWE's writers. Storylines were produced on WWE's weekly television shows, ''

Raw Raw is an adjective usually describing: * Raw materials, basic materials from which products are manufactured or made * Raw food, uncooked food Raw or RAW may also refer to: Computing and electronics * .RAW, a proprietary mass spectrometry dat ...

'' and ''

SmackDown ''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that as of currently airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. Fox Deportes sim ...

''. After

defeated

Elimination Chamber The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE. The match was founded by Chris Jericho , created and introduced by Eric Bischoff in November 2002. It features a large chain-linked circular steel ...

, a rematch was scheduled for Money in the Bank. At Elimination Chamber,

Dolph Ziggler Nicholas Theodore Nemeth (born July 27, 1980) is an American professional wrestler and stand-up comedian. He is currently signed to WWE under the ring name Dolph Ziggler, where he performs on the Raw brand. After a prolific career in amateur ...

, Neville,

Roman Reigns Leati Joseph "Joe" Anoa'i (born May 25, 1985) is an American professional wrestler and former football player. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Roman Reigns. He is the leader of The B ...

, Randy Orton,

Kofi Kingston Kofi Nahaje Sarkodie-Mensah (born August 14, 1981) is a Ghanaian-born American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Kofi Kingston. He appeared on WWE's NXT brand as one-hal ...

and

were revealed at the contestants in the

, in which the winner wins a contract for a

match at any time within the next year. On the June 4th episode of ''SmackDown'', Kane was added to the match. Also at Elimination Chamber,

defeated WWE World Heavyweight Champion

by disqualification. Though Rollins remained champion, Ambrose took the title belt with him. On the June 1st episode of ''Raw'',

, speaking on Ambrose's behalf, challenged Rollins to a ladder match for the title at Money in the Bank, which Rollins accepted. On the June 4th episode of ''SmackDown'',

defeated The Ascension and

The Lucha Dragons The Lucha Dragons were a professional wrestling tag team composed of Kalisto and Sin Cara. They previously wrestled in WWE's developmental territory NXT, where they were one-time NXT Tag Team Champions. Their name is a reference to their ''lucha ...

in a triple threat

tag team match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

to become the #1 contenders to face The New Day for the

at the event. At Elimination Chamber,

Ryback Ryback Allen Reeves (né Ryan; born November 10, 1981) is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time in WWE where he performed under the ring name Ryback. One of the eight finalists on WWE's '' Tough Enough 4'', Reeves ...

captured the vacant Intercontinental Championship in an

Elimination Chamber match The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE. The match was founded by Chris Jericho , created and introduced by Eric Bischoff in November 2002. It features a large chain-linked circular steel ...

. On the June 1 episode of ''Raw'', before Ryback was scheduled to defend the title against

The Miz Michael Gregory Mizanin (born October 8, 1980) is an American professional wrestler, actor, and television personality. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name The Miz. Mizanin first gained fa ...

Big Show Paul Donald Wight II (born February 8, 1972) is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as an in-ring performer, and as a commentator for its web television show, '' AEW Dark: Elevation,'' under ...

attacked Miz and confronted Ryback. On June 8, Ryback was scheduled to defend the title against Big Show at the event. On the June 1 episode of ''Raw'',

Nikki Bella Stephanie Nicole Garcia-Colace (born November 21, 1983), known professionally as Nikki Bella, is an American professional wrestler and television personality. She is currently signed to WWE as an ambassador. In 2007, Bella signed with WWE a ...

retained the

Divas Championship The WWE Divas Championship was a women's professional wrestling championship in WWE. The championship was created by WWE in 2008, and was introduced as part of the WWE brand extension via a storyline by then SmackDown General Manager Vickie Gu ...

against Paige after

Brie Bella Brianna Monique Danielson (née Garcia-Colace; born November 21, 1983), known professionally as Brie Bella, is an American professional wrestler and TV personality. She is currently signed to WWE working as an ambassador. She and her twin N ...

switched with Nikki during the match and pinned Paige. On June 8, a rematch was scheduled for Money In The Bank. At Elimination Chamber,

R-Truth Ronnie Aaron Killings (born January 19, 1972) is an American professional wrestler and rapper. He is currently signed to WWE, performing on the Raw brand under the ring name R-Truth. Killings worked for World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now ...

eliminated

King Barrett Stuart Alexander Bennett (born 10 August 1980) is an English-American professional wrestling commentator, actor, and former professional wrestler who holds both British and American citizenship. He is currently signed to WWE, where he is a colo ...

during the

for the Intercontinental Championship. On the June 8 episode of ''Raw'', a match between Truth and Barrett was set for the Money In The Bank preshow.

Event

Pre-show

On the Money in the Bank Kickoff pre-show,

faced

. R-Truth pinned Barrett with a schoolboy to win the match.

Preliminary matches

The actual pay-per-view opened with the roster at the entrance stage for a 10-bell salute to

Dusty Rhodes Virgil Riley Runnels Jr. (October 11, 1945 – June 11, 2015), better known as "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, was an American professional wrestler, booker, and trainer who most notably worked for the National Wrestling Alliance, Jim Crocket ...

, who died before the event. The first match was the

involving

, Randy Orton,

(with

Lana Lana may refer to: *Lana (given name) *Francesco Lana de Terzi (1631–1687), Italian Jesuit priest and scientist *Lana (wrestler), professional wrestler and pro wrestling manager *''Wild Energy. Lana'', a 2006 Ukrainian fantasy novel Sciences *L ...

), Neville,

, and Kane. Near the climax of the match, it seemed that Reigns was going to claim the briefcase until

Bray Wyatt Windham Lawrence Rotunda (born May 23, 1987) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Bray Wyatt. Rotunda is a third-generation professional wrestler, fo ...

emerged and attacked him, preventing him from retrieving the briefcase. The end of the match saw Sheamus throwing Neville off the ladder and retrieving the briefcase thus winning the match. Next,

defended the

WWE Divas Championship The WWE Divas Championship was a women's professional wrestling championship in WWE. The championship was created by WWE in 2008, and was introduced as part of the WWE brand extension via a storyline by then SmackDown General Manager Vickie ...

against Paige. Halfway through the match, Paige executed a "Ram-Paige" for a near-fall. As the referee was focusing on Paige, Nikki then switched places with her sister Brie (who was hiding under the ring). Paige secured a roll-up victory for the win and the championship. A surprised Paige thought that she had won until Brie revealed her face to the referee. The match was continued and Nikki executed a "Rack Attack" on Paige to score a pinfall. In the third match,

defended the

WWE Intercontinental Championship The WWE Intercontinental Championship is a professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE, currently defended on the SmackDown brand division. It is one of two secondary championships for WWE's main roste ...

against

was on commentary for the match. Near the end of the match, Show executed a "Knockout Punch" on Ryback who rolled out the ring. As Show rolled Ryback in for the pin, Miz attacked Show, causing a disqualification. After this,

wrestled

. The match went back and forth with a lot of counters and finishers. Owens mocked Cena with his "you can't see me" gesture, but Cena responded with the same move. Owens executed a pop-up powerbomb for a two count while Cena responded with an "Attitude Adjustment" (AA) for a two count. Cena executed another "AA" for another two count. Cena eventually executed a third AA for the decisive pin. After the match, Owens

powerbomb A powerbomb is a professional wrestling throw in which an opponent is lifted (usually so that they are sitting on the wrestler's shoulders) and then slammed back-first down to the mat. The standard powerbomb sees an opponent first placed in a sta ...

ed Cena on the ring apron and walked off. In the penultimate match, The New Day ( Big E and

) defended the

against

(

and

). O'Neil won the match for his team by pinning Woods after a "Clash of the Titus" to win the titles.

Main event

In the main event,

defended the

against

in a ladder match. Ambrose executed "Dirty Deeds" on Rollins on the Spanish announce table. The climax saw both Ambrose and Rollins jostle atop the ladders for the championship. The championship was accidentally unhooked and as Rollins and Ambrose came crashing down, it was Rollins who held onto the title, thereby winning the match and retaining the title.

Aftermath

After retaining the

celebrated on the following night episode of

by renaming it "Monday Night Rollins", before being interrupted and attacked by

, forcing Rollins to retreat. Ambrose then sat on a steel chair in the ring waiting for Rollins to return, but instead ended up facing

, whom he defeated thanks to a distraction by Randy Orton. Orton attacked Sheamus after the match leading to a feud between the two headed into both Battleground and

SummerSlam SummerSlam is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Dubbed "The Biggest Party of the Summer", it is considered WWE's secon ...

. Later that night,

Triple H Paul Michael Levesque (born July 27, 1969), better known by the ring name Triple H, is an American business executive, actor, and retired professional wrestler currently serving as the chief content officer for WWE. He is widely regarded as on ...

revealed that Seth Rollins' next challenger for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at Battleground would be

Brock Lesnar Brock Edward Lesnar ( ; born July 12, 1977) is an American-Canadian professional wrestler, former mixed martial artist (MMA), amateur wrestler, and professional American football player who holds both American and Canadian citizenship. He is ...

, who return from his suspension and his rematch clause for the title has been accepted by The Authority doing it on Seth's behalf. At Battleground,

The Undertaker Mark William Calaway (born March 24, 1965), better known by the ring name The Undertaker, is an American retired professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Calaway spent the vast majorit ...

returned and attacked Lesnar, beating Rollins via disqualification, costing Lesnar his chance to win the title back. After feeling humiliated following his loss to

challenged Cena to a match for the

WWE United States Championship The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling Professional wrestling championship#Location-specific championships, championship promoted by the United States, American professional wrestling promotion, promotion WWE, currently de ...

at Battleground, which Cena accepted on the June 22 episode of Raw. At The Beast in the East, Owens lost the

NXT Championship The NXT Championship is a professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE. It is defended as the top championship of the NXT brand division, the promotion's developmental territory. In ...

Finn Bálor Fergal Devitt (born 25 July 1981) is an Irish professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Finn Bálor (), and is a member of The Judgment Day. Devitt is widely known for his t ...

. At Battleground, Cena retained the United States Championship to end their feud. After the

match that has ended on a disqualification, a

triple threat match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

between

and

for the Intercontinental championship was scheduled for Battleground. However, Ryback had suffered a Staph Infection on his right knee, which caused the match to be cancelled. Ryback would later recover and the match was rescheduled for

, where Ryback would retain his title after pinning The Miz. On the July 13 episode of Raw

Stephanie McMahon Stephanie McMahon Levesque (born Stephanie Marie McMahon; ; September 24, 1976) is an American businesswoman and retired professional wrestler. She is the current chairwoman and co-chief executive officer (CEO) of WWE, the world's largest prof ...

confronted

Team Bella The Bella Twins were a professional wrestling tag team who performed on WWE and consisted of identical twin sisters Brie Bella and Nikki Bella (real names Brianna and Nicole). Each of the Bella Twins are a former WWE WWE Divas Championship, Divas ...

with Paige and announced a "Divas revolution" by introducing the NXT wrestlers

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

Becky Lynch Rebecca Quin (born 30 January 1987) is an Irish professional wrestler. She is signed to WWE under the ring name Becky Lynch where she performs on the Raw brand. Lynch is one of WWE's most recognizable and highest-paid wrestlers. Twitter name ...

and NXT Women's champion

Sasha Banks Mercedes Justine Kaestner-Varnado (born January 26, 1992) is an American professional wrestler and actress. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Sasha Banks. Banks previously wrestled on ...

into the roster, where McMahon had Charlotte and Lynch team with Paige to become Team PCB and Sasha Banks team with

Naomi Naomi or Naomie may refer to: People and biblical figures * Naomi (given name), a female given name and a list of people with the name * Naomi (biblical figure), Ruth's mother-in-law in the Old Testament Book of Ruth * Naomi (Romanian singer) (bor ...

and Tamina to become Team B.A.D. The two teams then brawled with Team Bella. At Battleground, Charlotte (who was representing Team PCB) defeated Brie Bella of Team Bella and Sasha Banks of Team B.A.D in a

. Sheamus twice tried to cash-in his Money in the Bank contract on Seth Rollins for a WWE World Heavyweight Championship match but his attempts were denied, first by Randy Orton as payback for costing him a title match by disqualification against Rollins on August 10 episode of Raw and the second by Kane after Rollins retained his title against Sting at

Night of Champions Night (also described as night time, unconventionally spelled as "nite") is the period of ambient darkness from sunset to sunrise during each 24-hour day, when the Sun is below the horizon. The exact time when night begins and ends depends o ...

. However, Rollins vacated the title on November 4, after suffering multiple knee injuries at a live event in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. Sheamus would eventually cash-in his contract on Roman Reigns after the latter won the vacant WWE World Heavyweight Championship at

Survivor Series Survivor Series is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event, produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving, it is the se ...

and pinned him to win the title, joining the Authority in the process.

Results

References

External links

* {{WWEPPV, Money in the Bank

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

Events in Columbus, Ohio 2015 in Ohio 2015 WWE Network events Professional wrestling in Columbus, Ohio 2015 WWE pay-per-view events June 2015 events in the United States