As professional wrestling seeks to also tell a story, some matches are made solely for the purposes of advancing the plot. This typically involves the loser of a match being penalized in some way.
Last Chance match[]
A Last Chance match, also called a Do or Die match, is a championship match where, if the challenger does not win the title, they are banned from challenging for it again as long as the winner of the same match holds it.
Loser Leaves Town match[]
Loser Leaves Town is a generic term for any match where the loser has to leave the current promtionor brand. These matches were most often held during the "territorial days", when wrestlers frequently jumped from company to company.
Retirement match[]
A Retirement match is any match where, should a wrestler lose, they are forced out of the company. The "retirement" stipulation can be applied to just one wrestler or both wrestlers in a match can be wrestling for their careers. Further still is a more legitimate retirement match, the last match of a (usually "legendary") wrestler's career. In this case it's designed to be a last hurrah, showcasing the wrestler's talent one last time for their fans.
Luchas de Apuestas[]
Luchas de Apuestas (literally translated from Spanish to gambling fights) are matches where both wrestlers wager something specific (the mask or hair) on the outcome. The loser of the match then loses the item, being forced to take off the mask or be shaved bald. It is also possible for a wrestler to put someone else's item on the line, with the same stipulation applying in the event of a loss. These matches have a storied history in Mexico. Upon unmasking it is not unheard of for a wrestler's real name and information to be published. As a form of further humiliation, the loser can be forced to physically hand the mask he just lost to the winner.
The most popular types of wager are the mask of a masked wrestler or the hair of a non-masked wrestler, most commonly put against each other in Mask vs. Mask (in Spanish: Máscara contra Máscara), Mask vs. Hair (Máscara contra Cabellera), or Hair vs. Hair (Cabellera contra Cabellera) matches. Throughout Mexico, when a masked wrestler loses their mask, they are not allowed to compete under a mask with that same gimmick. In addition to masks and hair, championships, or careers—as a form of retirement match—can be put up as the wager in any combination.
Spin the Wheel, Make the Deal[]
Spin the Wheel, Make the Deal, also known as Meltdown Roulette, is not a match type itself, but a way to assign a type to a match that does not yet have one. Before the match either a "wheel of fortune" or roulette wheel featuring a number of match types is spun, with the match landed on being used for the night.