Packed out stadiums. Parades through city streets on the way to wrestling shows. A thriving pro wrestling scene with active promotions in close to every neighborhood. It almost sounds too good to be true for a wrestling fan. But it is true and it’s happening in Africa, in The Congo to be exact.

You may have heard of “voodoo wrestling” or catch fetiche as it’s known in The Congo. This interesting mixture of traditional voodoo and pro wrestling that’s popular in The Congo has received some media coverage in the last few years, most notably a very well done documentary by VICE for their series The Wrestlers.

While the VICE documentary did focus on a few wrestlers, it mostly stuck to wrestlers that compete for Catch Club Zamba in Kinshasa. Today, we’re going to look at some of the most popular and successful wrestlers that compete across the entire Congo. We’ll look at both the legends who helped to create the scene and popular styles that exist today and some of the biggest stars that are currently competing in the country.

Edingwe

Edingwe has sometimes been referred to as the Hulk Hogan of Congolese pro wrestling because of the impact that he’s had on the sport in the country. Edingwe was the first wrestler in the Congo to use the voodoo wrestling style of catch fetiche. Catch fetiche has grown to be arguably the most popular style of wrestling with fans in the Congo. More and more wrestlers have continued to employ catch fetiche tactics of magic and spiritual power, creating almost a split wrestling scene. A scene where half of the wrestlers use a more traditional pro wrestling style in the ring and half employ the catch fetiche style. Just that monumental shift in styles alone is a testimony to Edingwe’s success and huge influence on Congolese pro wrestling. But not only has Edingwe influenced other wrestlers, he’s also packed sold out stadiums. Oh, and eaten his opponents guts in a match. Edingwe’s son is also a pro wrestler and is active in Europe, mostly in Belgium.

Mwimba Texas

Completely on the other end of the style spectrum from Edingwe is Mwimba Texas. The technical legend of the DRC sadly passed away recently in August, 2020. Mwimba Texas both practiced and preached technical and traditional pro wrestling styles, feeling that the catch fetiche style didn’t belong in the ring. He was the promoter of the Catch Club Inter-Africa for a time which featured wrestling without voodoo. Texas was not only a wrestler but also a very active humanitarian, establishing his own foundation and working to defend the rights of people living with albinism in The Congo.

Tchou Tchou Sida

Tchou Tchou Sida is one of the biggest names currently active in the DRC today. Sida (whose name I’ve also seen spelled as Tshu Tshu Cida or Ciu Ciu Sida) can regularly be seen with championship gold around his waist. A frequent champion in the area of Mbuji-Mayi, Sida can usually be seen headlining in outdoor stadiums that are full to or near capacity. He does use fetiche during his matches and appears to be a master at it. He’s a charismatic showman and is absolutely adored by the fans.

Pathy Aniata

Pathy Aniata was in the very first Congolese wrestling match I had ever seen and I was instantly a fan. The audience absolutely loves him, and in the match I just mentioned, he spent half of it dancing with the crowd as they chanted for him. Pathy is also a very capable professional wrestler and has good technique in the ring. His mask and physique gives him a unique and memorable look.

Chakira

The Queen Chakira is a very charismatic master of fetiche. The Vice piece that was mentioned earlier spent a good amount of time covering Chakira and her magic abilities. Chakira could quite possibly be the most popular female wrestler in The Congo and ends up victorious more often than not. She is a solid in ring technical wrestler and a very tough competitor, able to withstand a great deal of punishment on her way to a victory. Searching “la reine chakira” on YouTube should get you some solid results and Chakira is always an entertaining watch, I’ve seen her stab both an interviewer and herself in separate interviews.

Satan Le Diable

Satan Le Diable (which translates in English to Satan The Devil) is currently the leader and number one star of Catch Club Ocean Du Congo. He is also their champion and a frequent champion in the Kinshasa area. While in full ring garb, Satan Le Diable strikes a memorable and intimidating figure. Satan Le Diable practices fetiche in the ring and his powers appear to be very strong, helping to lead him to many victories and championships.

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Keep an eye out for more introductory pieces like this on Congolese pro wrestling, coming soon!