WWE is undoubtedly the biggest wrestling promotion of all time, so, in theory, only the best wrestlers work there. It’s an American company, so the vast majority of wrestlers who have worked for WWE were American as well.
Making it to WWE is not easy, much less for a foreign wrestler, who has to work twice as hard and make twice as many sacrifices. Even so, over the years there have been several wrestlers who came to WWE and had a huge success, becoming superstars, and even legends. So, without further ado, let’s take a look at 10 foreign wrestlers who conquered WWE.
10 Bret Hart
Bret Hart was born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. He began his professional wrestling career in Stampede Wrestling and spent five years there. Hart worked hard, excelled, and in 1984 got a WWE deal. It took quite some time, but The Hitman became a megastar and conquered WWE.
He was a five-time World Heavyweight Champion, two-time Intercontinental Champion, and two-time World Tag Team Champion. Hart made a huge impact with his fantastic in-ring skills and, as a matter of fact, he is still considered one of the best wrestlers of all time.
9 Andre The Giant
Andre The Giant was born in Coulommiers, Seine-et-Marne, France. He began his wrestling career in Paris and quickly became popular because of his massive size. In the 1970s, Andre became one of the most popular wrestlers in the world, wrestling in WWE, NJPW, and NWA, among other promotions, and conquering each of them, although he never had a memorable title reign.
In WWE, Andre was the top heel for several years, being Hulk Hogan’s rival. Unfortunately, “The 8th Wonder Of The World” did not have a proper World Title reign in WWE, but he conquered the company and earned the eternal respect of the fans.
8 Drew McIntyre
Drew McIntyre’s story is an amazing one, worthy of a documentary at least. He was born in Scotland, United Kingdom, and grew up with the dream of wrestling in WWE. He started his professional wrestling career in 2002 and five years later he was already wrestling in WWE. So, he fulfilled his dream quickly.
However, McIntyre was not as good as expected and was released from his contract in 2014. It was a low blow, but he did not give up, worked harder, and returned to WWE and this time he was a conqueror and managed to win the WWE Championship twice.
7 Kofi Kingston
Did anyone ever imagine that a Ghanaian-born wrestler would win the WWE Championship at WrestleMania, of course not. But Kofi Kingston dreamed it and made his dream come true at WrestleMania 35 when he defeated Daniel Bryan and conquered WWE.
Kingston has won 22 titles in WWE in total, not to mention he also earned the love and respect of millions of fans.
6 Becky Lynch
Becky Lynch is arguably the best female wrestler in WWE history. She climbed the mountain and stayed up there for several years, dominating the women’s division.
But no one gave Becky anything, as she was born in Ireland and had to work harder than anyone else, making a lot of sacrifices, to get to the WWE. And once in WWE, Becky had to work even harder to become the great superstar she is today.
5 Trish Stratus
If Becky Lynch isn’t the best female wrestler in WWE history, then it has to be Trish Stratus. We’re talking about a true pioneer, a game-changer.
Stratus was a true superstar and paved the way for future generations of wrestling. The Canadian was a seven-time WWE Women’s Champion and won the Hardcore Championship as well. Stratus conquered WWE and also conquered the hearts of countless fans.
4 Asuka
Asuka was born in Osaka, Japan, and started her professional wrestling career in Major Girl’s Fighting AtoZ in 2004. Over the years she worked for several promotions in Japan and became very popular thanks to her amazing in-ring skills. Asuka came to WWE in 2015 and made a huge impact from day one, and had an impressive undefeated streak.
Asuka is now a three-time Raw Women’s Champion, SmackDown Women’s Champion, Women’s Tag Team Champion, and also won the NXT Women’s Championship.
3 Rhea Ripley
Rhea Ripley was born in Adelaide, Australia. She started her wrestling career 10 years ago in Riot City Wrestling. She worked very hard and showed her potential wherever she went, so, she made it to the WWE in 2017.
She conquered NXT UK, NXT, and she is now conquering the main roster. “The Eradicator” is untouchable right now, as she is having one of the best heel runs in recent years. Ripley is a natural conqueror, and she will prevail wherever she goes.
2 Edge
Edge is one of the best foreign wrestlers in WWE history. He has had a brilliant career, and had it not been for injuries, his career would have been even greater. Edge conquered the tag team division and also conquered the main event picture.
He managed to win 30 titles in WWE, including 11 World Titles. But little is said about how hard Edge had to work to get to WWE, as he was born in Ontario, Canada, and came a long way to become a legend.
1 Bruno Sammartino
Bruno Sammartino holds an unbreakable WWE record, as he holds the longest title reign of all time. Sammartino held the World Championship for 2,803 days, almost eight years. No one will ever break that record.
If that’s not conquering WWE, then nothing is. Sammartino was born in Italy, a country where wrestling is not so common, but that didn’t stop him from becoming the greatest wrestler of his generation.