Gunther to face El Grande Americano at WWE house show

Former Imperium stablemates Gunther and Ludwig Kaiser are set to share the ring again — this time as opponents.

WWE has announced that Gunther vs. El Grande Americano will take place at the company’s house show in Mannheim, Germany on Tuesday, January 13. The event is taking place on WWE’s Road to Royal Rumble tour, which includes a trip to Europe for a slate of house shows and some TV dates. Germany will be hosting SmackDown on January 9 and Raw on January 12, with those respective shows happening in Berlin and Dusseldorf.

Kaiser has been portraying the El Grande Americano character ever since Chad Gable was forced out of action with an injury over the summer. Since then, two more Americanos have been added with Pete Dunne playing Rayo Americano and Tyler Bate playing Bravo Americano.

The last time Gunther and Kaiser were involved in the same match was when they were tag team partners on an October 2024 episode of SmackDown.

Gunther is coming off a huge moment where he submitted John Cena in Cena’s retirement match. The Ring General looks to be a player in the World Heavyweight Championship scene heading into the new year.

The trip to Germany will be a homecoming for Kaiser, and Gunther also has considerable history in the country from his indie days.

In total, there are 12 dates set for WWE’s January European tour. Here is the complete list:

  • Thursday, January 8: House show in Leipzig, Germany 
  • Friday, January 9: SmackDown in Berlin, Germany 
  • Saturday, January 10: House show in Glasgow, Scotland
  • Sunday, January 11: House show in Copenhagen, Denmark 
  • Monday, January 12: Raw in Dusseldorf, Germany
  • Tuesday, January 13: House show in Mannheim, Germany 
  • Thursday, January 15: House show in Newcastle, England
  • Friday, January 16: SmackDown in London, England
  • Saturday, January 17: House show in Gdansk, Poland
  • Sunday, January 18: House show in Nottingham, England
  • Monday, January 19: Raw in Belfast, Northern Ireland
  • Tuesday, January 20: House show in Brussels, Belgium
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Joseph Currier
Joseph Currier

Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.

In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.