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Money in the Bank has been an annual pay-per-view for WWE now for almost a decade after first being televised at WrestleMania 21 back in 2005. Edge was the winner of the contract ladder match that year and went on to successfully cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase the following year at New Year's Revolution at the most opportune moment when John Cena had just won the Elimination Chamber.
Over the years, Money in the Bank has been seen as a way for heels to be handed an advantage, since a cash-in out of the blue isn't seen as a face tactic, so many faces have been forced to cash-in in advance which is why Damien Sandow, John Cena, and Braun Strowman were all unsuccessful.
Money in the Bank has become one of WWE's most exciting pay-per-views of the year and ahead of this weekend's show, here are some facts that every fan should know.
#5 If Kofi Kingston had competed this year, he would have made history
Kofi Kingston won't be part of the Money in the Bank ladder match this year since he's busy defending the WWE Championship against Kevin Owens, but over the years Kingston has gained himself quite the reputation in Money in the Bank ladder matches.
Kane has appeared in the most Money in the Bank matches in history, with seven and also picked up the win back in 2010, whilst Kingston has already appeared in seven Money in the Bank ladder matches without a victory. If The New Day star had been part of this year's ladder match then he would have competed in more Money in the Bank ladder matches than anyone else, with eight. Dolph Ziggler is the only other person close to this record with 6 appearances and one victory.
#4 A sneak attack is likely
Over the past 14 years, there has been 21 Money in the Bank cash-ins. Whilst there have only been four failed cash-ins in history there has also been a huge percentage of cash-ins where the holder has decided that a sneak attack was the best option on the Champion.
A total of 18 Champions have been attacked after they have already endured a highly physical match and whilst not all of these victims were defeated, it's become common play now for the Money in the Bank contract to come into play when the Champion is weakened.
Three superstars have cashed in on the same night and all been successful in winning the Championship at the Money in the Bank pay-per-view, so it's likely we could see a cash in on Sunday night if one of the victors is feeling particularly lucky.
#3 Could it be a case of Beginner's Luck?
On Sunday night, there are a number of WWE Superstars competing in their first ever Money in the Bank ladder match, including Ricochet, Mandy Rose, Dana Brooke, Ali, Bayley, Andrade and Nikki Cross.
The odds are seemingly in the favor of these newcomers to the match concept since they are more likely to lift the briefcase than any of the stars who have experience in the match type. Over the years, 70 Superstars have competed in the 22 Money in the Bank ladder matches, this has then created 20 different winners, of those winners 13 of them were all making their debuts in the Money in the Bank ladder match, whilst just seven had stepped inside the multi-person ladder match before.
Will one of the debutants come out on top on Sunday night?
#2 Chris Jericho came up with the concept
Some pieces of wrestling trivia just roll off the tongue for the WWE Universe, much like Pat Patterson being the brains behind The Royal Rumble idea, it's relatively well-known that Chris Jericho was the man who penned the idea for Money in the Bank.
Jericho himself spoke about the process of coming up with the match in his second book entitled Undisputed. The former World Champion pointed out that it wasn't entirely his own idea, instead, it was a collaboration between himself and former Raw head writer Brian Gerwitz.
The idea has since lead to 14 years of Money in the Bank ladder matches and cash-ins that have excited the WWE Universe, which shows that Chris Jericho could have a very bright future ahead of him at AEW.
#1 The field beyond The Money in the Bank contract
The Money in the Bank contract is just a stepping stone, it leads to a cash-in so that the male or female WWE Superstar can go on to become World Champion. The odds are definitely in the favor of the Money in the Bank winners since only four unsuccessful cash-ins have taken place, which could be why so many stars are willing to put their bodies on the line for the chance to hold the contract.
There have been a number of differing fortunes following the Money in the Bank cash-ins, the earliest cash in saw Edge win the WWE Championship but only hold the title for 21 days after John Cena was able to win it back on an episode of Raw.
Seth Rollins cashed in his Money in the Bank contract successfully back at WrestleMania 31 and then went on to hold the title for 219 days before he was forced to relinquish due to a knee injury. These are the differing fortunes that could await whoever lifts those contracts this weekend.
