The Match Up:

RAW versus SmackDown Live will battle for brand supremacy in three elimination style tag matches this Sunday at WWE Survivor Series, this Sunday, November 20, 2016 at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Canada. Both brands have put their top singles men competitors in this match. Who will survive and lay claim as the better main eventers?

The Road to Survivor Series:

See, what had happened was . . . SmackDown Live’s commissioner, Shane McMahon, and general manager, Daniel Bryan, challenged RAW to three elimination style matches for brand supremacy; one for the men’s division, one for the women’s division, and one for the tag division. RAW’s commissioner, Stephanie McMahon, and general manager, Mick Foley, accepted this challenge. Then the teams were formed. Then the SDL men appeared this past week on RAW. A brawl ensues and RAW stood tall to end the show.

. . . And that’s pretty much it. The WWE Universal Champion, Kevin Owens, and his best friend, Chris Jericho are the co-captains for their team. WWE World Champion, AJ Styles is the captain of his team. James Ellsworth is the mascot for the blue brand, which makes a bit of sense when you boil it down since SDL is the "brand of opportunity" and no one has been afforded one more than Mr. Two Hands. Baron Corbin was on the team but he was "injured" and replaced by Shane McMahon. Also, the Shield is in this match. All three of them. And the two who are on the same team, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns, have shown no issues of working together so far.

The Stakes:

It may surprise some people but this match actually does have stakes other than brand supremacy. Stephanie has warned her guys that their jobs depend on whether they win or not. As for the blue brand, The Undertaker returned this past Tuesday and pretty much threatened to bury anyone who is responsible for a team loss. So there you have it. Stakes, people. But, real talk, this match promises to be pretty damn good considering the amount of talk involved. And that is what Survivor Series is all about.

WWE Survivor Series will air Sunday, November 20, live on the WWE Network at 7 pm central time. Join us here at Cageside Seats in the live blog.