WWE To Crown First UK Champion: List Of Wrestlers Competing For British Title

World Wrestling Entertainment announced Thursday it would host its first championship tournament in the U.K. in an effort to boost the brand's popularity in the country.

WWE Executive Vice President Paul Levesque, known to fans by his ring name "Triple H," made the announcement during a press conference at the O2 Arena in London, emphasizing the long history between the company and its U.K. audience. The event was scheduled for Jan. 14 and 15 and will take place at the Empress Ballroom in Blackpool. Tickets were made available online at Live Nation U.K. and the tournament will be streamed live online for fans subscribed to the WWE Network.

"Our passionate U.K. fans deserve to have their own champion," Levesque said. "The tournament is the next step in our ongoing strategy to develop another brand that engages our passionate fans and add a new dimension to our on-going storylines."

Levesque hinted that the WWE planned to follow up the event with a weekly program based in the U.K. much like its year-round Monday Night Raw and Smackdown Live shows, which attract over 5 million viewers weekly in the U.S.

Some of the company's top British talent were involved in planning the event. Former WWE and Ring Of Honor wrestler Nigel McGuinness was recruited as ring announcer, while head scout William Regal and trainer Robbie Brookside, both English veterans of the WWE, were in charge of talent. The duo reportedly worked with independent wrestling promotions such as Revolution Pro Wrestling and Progress to choose 16 competitors from the U.K. and Ireland to compete in the historic single-elimination championship tournament.

Professional wrestling news website PWInsider confirmed the names of the selected superstars. The 16 wrestlers vying to be the first ever WWE U.K. champ included Trent Seven, Jack Starz, Pete Dunne, Wolfgang, Roy Johnson, Sam Gradwell, James Drake, Jordan Devlin, Tyler Bate, Joseph Conners, Tyson T. Bone, H.C. Dyer, Dan Moloney, Chris Tyler, Saxon Huxley, Ringo Ryan, Tiger Ali and Tucker. Two of the included talented were listed as alternates.