a non-title match. On 7 August, WWE confirmed Sheamus had suffered a torn labrum in his shoulder that would require surgery, and was expected to miss between four and six months of ring action. On 26 January 2014, at the Royal Rumble, Sheamus returned as a surprise entrant in the Royal Rumble match; he was eliminated by Roman Reigns in the final three. The following night on Raw, Sheamus, Daniel Bryan, and John Cena qualified for the Elimination Chamber match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship; he was eliminated by Christian in the match. This began a brief feud leading up to WrestleMania, in which Sheamus consistently was victorious. He was part of the final four in the André the Giant Memorial battle royal at WrestleMania XXX on 6 April, before he and Alberto Del Rio eliminated each other. On 14 April, Sheamus participated in the Intercontinental Championship number one contender tournament, which was held on Raw. He advanced to the next round by defeating Jack Swagger, before losing to Bad News Barrett in the semi-finals on 21 April. On 5 May episode of Raw, Sheamus won a 20-man battle royal to win the United States Championship for the second time, last eliminating previous champion Dean Ambrose. Sheamus then began feuding with Cesaro and his manager Paul Heyman, culminating in a match between Sheamus and Cesaro for the title at Payback on 1 June, which Sheamus won. On 9 June, Sheamus defeated Bad News Barrett to qualify for the Money in the Bank ladder match for the vacant WWE World Heavyweight Championship; the match was won by John Cena on 29 June. Sheamus was in the Intercontinental Championship battle royal at Battleground on 20 July; the match was won by The Miz. Sheamus successfully defended the title against Cesaro at Night of Champions on 21 September, and The Miz at Hell in a Cell on 26 October. He lost the title to Rusev on 3 November, in a match which aired exclusively on the WWE Network ending his reign at 182 days. Following this, Sheamus was written off television when he and Big Show were attacked by Rusev and Mark Henry, allowing Sheamus time off for surgery. The League of Nations (2015–2016) On 30 March episode of Raw, Sheamus returned from injury, having drastically changed his look, including a mohawk and braided beard, appearing to save Daniel Bryan and Dolph