In recent days WWE announced that Ivan Koloff is joining the Legacy section of the WWE Hall of Fame. What most pro wrestling fans don't realize is that Ivan Koloff appeared on the first-ever Eastern Championship Wrestling show. It took place on February 25, 1992 where he lost to Tony Stetson.
https://crazymax.org/newsite/results/ecw-results-1992/
Koloff's addition marks the 47th person who appeared in ECW to join the WWE Hall of Fame. The full list of all 47 now can be found here:
https://ecwwrestling.com/current-wrestling/april-10-2025-updates-to-ecw-alumni-in-wwe-hall-of-fame
Please note that this doesn't mean 47 people wrestled or actively managed in ECW. The list includes several who only wrestled once, some who only appeared on backstage segments, and those who only appeared in the ring for an interview/promo or entered the ring as a "run in".
Also, it is debated whether or not Bret Hart is an "ECW" alum since he wrestled Terry Funk in Funk's then-retirement match in Amarillo. The show was co-promoted by ECW on September 11, 1997 and called Terry Funk's Wrestlefest. However, it is questionable if Bret is an ECW alum - so he was not included to the list as of yet since he was an active member of the then-WWF roster.
Others who appeared in ECW but didn't have a match nor actively manage any wrestler/tag-team include:
- Junkyard Dog (in-ring segeent with Joey Styles during Wrestlepalooza 1998 in Georgia)
- Killer Kowalski
- Kurt Angle (in-ring segment + did color commentary with Joey Styles during a Taz match at the ECW Arena)
- Madusa (backstage interview segment for a possible match with Sherri Martel)
- Paul Heyman who, surprisingly, never had a formal match in ECW: https://www.cagematch.net/?id=2&nr=664&page=4
Kowalski appeared sporadically on ECW TV, sometimes helping The Eliminators (Saturn & Kronus) such as seen here:
https://x.com/GrappleClips/status/1797999758084362642
Also note that Bob Backlund made an unscheduled appearance in the crowd at an ECW show, but he was not contracted to appear. Therefore, for now, he isn't included as an "ECW alum" on the WWE Hall of Fame list. See that here:
https://x.com/IsThisWrestling/status/1583283386277208064
If you notice any missing names from WWE's Hall of Fame list who worked in ECW then please let me know. I then will add to the list and credit you if you would like.