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WWE NXT star Izzi Dame was putting volleyballs in opponents’ faces just a few years ago before her meteoric rise as the North American Women’s Champion.
Dame, whose real name is Franki Strefling, played collegiate volleyball for the Eastern Michigan Eagles and played professionally overseas until 2022, when she officially joined WWE and began her pro wrestling journey.
She spoke with Busted Open Radio earlier this week about how she got her start in WWE, and expanded on her origin story in a recent interview with Pakinomist Digital.
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Izzi Dame makes her NXT debut at the WWE Performance Center on August 13, 2024 in Orlando, Florida. (WWE/WWE via Getty Images)
Dame said she was on a break from playing volleyball in Cyprus when she received a message she thought was fake. But her decision ultimately had ramifications for her career in that sport.
“So I played collegiate volleyball, and after college I went and played professionally on a little island called Cyprus in the Mediterranean. I did a full year over there,” she said. “I re-signed my contract to come back and play another year, but you get three months of a summer vacation. So the week after I got back to the States, I got what I thought was a WWE recruiting scam message that anyone would think, because why would WWE want anything to do with little old me playing in the middle of the Mediterranean? Like, come on.
“It ended up being true. They flew me out to Nashville. I was offered a contract, and then I had to break my contract in Cyprus to be with WWE. So they banned me. Cyprus banned me from playing there for 10 years. A little dramatic, but yeah. Can’t play there! But I don’t think we’re going back to volleyball here anytime soon.”
Dame, like many WWE NXT wrestlers, has come through the company’s recruiting process. Several top stars in the company started out with no professional wrestling experience.
She told Pakinomist Digital that she took a chance because she believed she had more in her than just earning.
“To be completely honest, I’m one of eight,” Dame explained. “I have a big family. So I wasn’t just overseas for myself — at least I was doing what I love — but for some reason there was always something in me that was like, ‘You’re meant for more.’ Volleyball shows your athleticism, but you have so much more to offer.”
Izzi Dame speaks during NXT at the WWE Performance Center on January 13, 2026 in Orlando, Florida. (Kevin Sabitus/WWE via Getty Images)
“So WWE was just the perfect mix of public speaking, performing, entertaining, still being an athlete, and I thought, ‘Why not?’ And I have to be home. My parents, family and siblings can come and fly to me whenever they want. I’m not 24 hours across the world anymore or however long. So it just seemed like the perfect opportunity.”
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Dame captured the North American Women’s Championship at New Year’s Evil to start 2026, but she said she hoped to show more of herself and increase the championship’s prestige over the next six months to a year.
She added that she wanted to break free from the stereotypes of a female professional wrestler with blonde hair.
“I seriously, because I’ve said before how much this title has been bouncing around, I seriously hope that I can take this title and make it mean something, make my name mean something,” Dame said. “I feel like Izzi Dame is just now coming into her own. We’re starting to find out who she is. How much of a manipulator, mastermind she really is. I think people are still a little confused about, ‘Is she just another blonde heel? Like, what does she really bring to the table?’ So in six months I hope it’s clear as day who Izzi Dame is.
Izzi Dame will win the NXT Women’s North American Championship during NXT at the WWE Performance Center on January 6, 2026 in Orlando, Florida. (Craig Melvin/WWE via Getty Images)
“We can all have the same hair color, but I don’t think there’s a lot of us, like all blondes in the business. I think it’s super important that we all differentiate ourselves through our character work. Obviously, in the ring as well. I’m not mooning like Tiffany Stratton—that’s your girl. It’s crazy the more she sticks to it. But as far as character work, I really try to lean into building depth and layers into more of the manipulative, mastermind, calculated way, and I think that will make me a little bit different from everyone else.”
Dame is the face of The Culling – one of the factions that have made a name for themselves on the NXT brand.
Shawn Spears, a veteran in the industry, has been one of the leaders of the group in the months since returning to WWE. Dame said she has been able to lean on Spears as she gets a foothold between the ropes.
“Shawn Spears has been my rock through this whole thing, as a friend, as a mentor, as a coach,” she said. “He’s helped me, not only in the ring, but really put this whole journey into perspective because it’s super hard. You have to have a lot of patience and this is all about timing. Sometimes it doesn’t feel like it. It feels like I’m not doing enough. Maybe I’m disappointed in the way I did something, but he really reels everything in and reminds me that in this business I haven’t made mistakes and I’ve learned for a long time and it wasn’t okay. don’t go the same way again He has really been an ally to me throughout this process.”
Ultimately, Dame said now was her time to shine as champion and keep the title from bouncing around the women’s locker room.
Izzi Dame makes her debut with Tatum Paxley during NXT at the WWE Performance Center on August 26, 2025 in Orlando, Florida. (Michael Marques/WWE via Getty Images)
Since the championship was established in April 2024, Dame is the seventh to hold the belt. Other champions included Kelani Jordan, Fallon Henley, Stephanie Vaquer, Sol Ruca, Blake Monroe and Thea Hail.
Dame told Pakinomist Digital that keeping the belt will help make the title mean something.
“I feel like this title has been bouncing around so much, and I think I mentioned it as well,” she said. “For me, my goal with this title right now is to keep it with me. To not only give me depth, but to give this title depth so that it matters. I’m not going to say I want an Oba Femi government, but I’m not opposed to an Oba Femi government. Give me some!”
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Dame added that she will pick and choose who gets the next shot at her title.
“Unfortunately, not everyone gets a shot, because now I decide who, what, where, when, how somebody gets close to the title. I’m going to be a little more strategic about who I give opportunities to, unlike Tatum (Paxley) who just gave somebody an opportunity and we’ll see how well it worked out for her.”
