Add as a preferred source on Google Willow Nightingale has finally won a world championship in AEW. At Redemption on July 26, 2026, at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Nightingale defeated Thekla to capture the AEW Women’s World Championship for the first time in her career.
The match ran close to 16 minutes and was tightly contested throughout. Skye Blue even got involved late in the match to help Thekla, but it wasn’t enough.
Thekla tried to put Nightingale away with a stomp down the stretch, but Nightingale escaped and locked in a backslide for the win.
The victory caps a comeback for Nightingale. On May 20, 2026, she announced she was dealing with a shoulder injury, which forced her to relinquish the TBS Championship and withdraw from the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament. Seven weeks later, she returned at Beach Break and won a Casino Gauntlet Match in her first match back, earning the title opportunity against Thekla.
Thekla’s reign ended at 165 days, following seven successful defenses. She had won the title from Kris Statlander in a Strap match on the February 11, 2026, episode of AEW Dynamite.