MUNICH, GERMANY and STAMFORD, Conn. – WWE today announced that it will visit Germany in search of the next generation of WWE Superstars by holding the first-ever talent tryout in Cologne this November. The four-day tryout will give up to 40 athletes from Germany and mainland Europe the opportunity to showcase their abilities with the goal of being selected to begin training at the state-of-the-art WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Fla. The talent pool will comprise of elite performers with a diverse background in sports and athletics, including football, rugby, powerlifting, mixed martial arts, strongman and bodybuilding.

“WWE is dedicated to recruiting the most talented athletes and entertainers from around the world and developing them into global Superstars,” said Paul “Triple H” Levesque, WWE Executive Vice President, Talent, Live Events & Creative. “Germany is an important market to grow our business, and Europe is a key region from which to recruit premier athletes who want to pursue the dream of becoming a WWE Superstar.”

The tryout in Germany is the latest example of WWE’s global talent recruiting efforts. In recent years, WWE has scouted rugby and soccer players from Europe, kabaddi and kushti athletes from India, and martial artists and boxers from China. WWE has held similar tryouts in Shanghai, China; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. These tryouts resulted in the signing of eight Chinese recruits, including Tian Bing, the company’s first-ever Chinese Superstar, as well as WWE’s first-ever developmental contract signings of an Arab woman from the Middle East (Shadia Bseiso), a Kuwaiti man (Nasser Alruwayeh) and an Indian woman (Kavita Devi).

Beginning today, the official WWE recruitment website at www.wweperformancecenter.com is now available in German. Tailored to athletes who are interested in pursuing a career in sports-entertainment, the site features information about the WWE recruitment process, and provides a detailed look at what day-to-day life is like for NXT Superstars and members of the WWE Performance Center roster.

The tryout overlaps with WWE Live at the Lanxess Arena in Cologne, on Wednesday, Nov. 7. WWE Live continues the next day on Thursday, Nov. 8, at Festhalle Frankfurt. Tickets for these events are still available at www.eventim.de.