The 31st World Pizza Championship returns to Parma from 9 to 11 April 2024. The most important event dedicated to professionals is organized at the Palaverdi, located inside the Parma Exhibition Center.
All professional pizza chefs – understood as owners of a pizzeria or people who work in a pizzeria – who are at least 16 years of age can compete for the title of world champion. For all cooking competitions, an Early Bird offer is active: in the first phase, from 1 December to 15 January, the registration cost is 200 euros. It will rise to 230 euros in the second phase, from 16 January to 29 February. From March 1st it will be possible to register at the full price of 250 euros. In the case of the Heinz Beck Trophy and the Skills Competitions, the registration cost will not change and will always be 200 euros, and for those who register for more than one competition there is a 10% discount.
The organizers aim to replicate the success of the 2023 edition of the World Pizza Championship, which saw over 700 pizza chefs from 52 countries compete.
În 2024, the pizza chefs registered for the World Pizza Championship will be asked to compete in cooking competitions (such as, for example, Classic Pizza, Gluten-free Pizza, Neapolitan Pizza STG, Pizza in the pan, Pizza on the shovel, Triathlon, i.e. three individual challenges chosen from the previous categories). These are accompanied by skill competitions, such as Freestyle (a spectacular acrobatic display to the rhythm of music), Largest Pizza (competitors are asked to widen a ball of 500 grams of dough as much as possible), Pizza a due (chef and pizza chef work in combination to create a single dish), Fastest Pizza Chef (whoever spreads five discs of dough fastest wins). Also, the Heinz Beck Trophy returns – First courses in pizzerias: a unique and innovative competition, under the attentive eye of the three-Michelin-starred chef Heinz Beck, in Parma as an exceptional juror.