Octopus Pal II, successor to the tentacled tipster that wowed the world with his uncanny knack of correctly predicting World Cup football games, was unveiled Wednesday in Germany.

The new cephalopod, also named Paul in honor of his world-famous predecessor who passed away last week, was lowered gently into his tank in a ceremony carried live on national television.

Paul the younger initially appeared more publicity-shy than his media-hungry forerunner, sticking closely to the side walls of the tank as the TV cameras rolled

“We got him from near Montpillier” in southern France, an aquarium employee said. “No one yet knows whether Paul II will be able to follow in his predecessor’s footsteps,” aquarium spokeswoman Tanja Munzig said, Paul I shot to fame by correctly predicting eight successive games during the recent World Cup in South Africa.

It is unlikely, however, that around five-month-old Paul II will live to give predictions for the next World Cup in 2014 om Brazil, given that the life expectancy of octopuses in captivity is around three years.