Aggressive recruiting isn’t just for football in Alabama, although that is the talk that gets the most hype.

Alabama continues to get aggressive in its industrial recruitment, moves that keep the state on the map in economic development.

On the heels of the Labor Day holiday, Gov. Bob Riley is heading to Europe on a business expedition. His targets are in Germany and Spain, which already have ties to the state.

He will meet with the head of Daimler AG and head of Mercedes-Benz to discuss the Mercedes plant in Vance. In Madrid, he will meet with EADS, the aerospace company bidding on a Pentagon project that will build refueling tankers in Mobile for the U.S. Air Force.

While there, he also will meet with BBVA, which bought Compass Bancshares in 2007.

Riley will not return to the state until Sept. 13, making sure that he is at the forefront of business talks for Alabama overseas. “It’s more important than ever to keep working to bring jobs and investment to Alabama,” the governor said.

He’s right. And we are reassured and thankful that the governor is taking this proactive approach to economic development for the good of the state.

It should bode well for Alabama’s future.