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69-882: The club reached the German Bowl for the first time in 2013, where it lost to the Braunschweig Lions by a single point. The 2021 season saw their first division title in the first tier German Football League when they placed first in the North Division with a record of nine victories, one defeat in the regular season. In German Bowl XLII the Monarchs defeated the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns 28–19 to claim their first ever title. The Dresden Monarchs were formed in January 1992 and entered in

138-568: A Point after Touchdown kick, which Hilgenfeld himself pointed out in a post game interview to take the blame off Deed. In 2014, the club took part in a new European competition, the BIG6 European Football League , which consisted of three teams from Germany, two from Austria and one from Switzerland, the clubs being Berlin Adler , New Yorker Lions , Dresden Monarchs, Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna , Swarco Raiders Tirol and

207-465: A "rump team" almost entirely devoid of European or American "imports" and had had much less opportunity to train (let alone play against other teams) than the Polish champion of 2016, 2017, 2019 and ultimately also 2020, they were overmatched and fell 48–14. The match was held in front of a sold out crowd as capacity was capped at 1,500 due to Covid. The German Football League finally returned for play for

276-539: A German Bowl, while a further four clubs have reached the German Bowl once but lost their sole appearance ( Stuttgart Scorpions , Badener Greifs , Marburg Mercenaries and Frankfurt Universe ). The most-played match up in the history of the game is the Braunschweig Lions versus the Hamburg Blue Devils , having been played six times, last in 2005. The matchup between the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns and

345-546: A different story and in the 2010s the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns proved to be the end of the line for Dresden's championship hopes five times. Dresden finally reversed their fortunes in German Bowl XLII when they beat Schwäbisch Hall for the first time since 2010. Including German Bowl XLII the overall playoff head to head between the two teams is three victories for Dresden (2004, 2010 & 2021) and six for Schwäbisch Hall (2005, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018 & 2019). With

414-411: A former velodrome (the former cycling track is still visible but hasn't been used for that purpose in decades) in the Äußere Neustadt borough of Dresden. The field is still their training grounds and used for virtually all youth games and as a "diversion grounds" for the senior team if Heinz Steyer Stadion is unavailable (for example during the 2013 European floods ). The administrative headquarters of

483-571: A franchise of the newly established European League of Football ELF which sees itself as a continuation of World League of American Football WLAF and NFL Europe. A 2/3 majority of the member base rejected the offer, but management and coaching staff decided to join the Stuttgart ELF franchise. Since the Scorpions rejected an ELF cooperation, the WLAF "Sacracmento Surge" (1992 World Bowl champion)

552-517: A strong fan base and usually place in the top three of attendance figures in the league together with the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns and the Braunschweig Lions . In part as a result of that and due to home field advantage in the playoffs being determined by the better seed, the Monarchs have never lost a playoffs home game. After the 2021 season their playoff home record stands at 9–0 while they've gone 3–14 in playoff road games (not counting

621-612: A wild-card round was introduced as well, taking the number of teams in the play-offs to twelve. The 1987 German Bowl saw two completely new teams compete against each other, the Badener Greifs making their only appearance in the championship game to date, while the Berlin Adler won their first of what would be six national championships by 2010. In 1988, Red Barons Cologne defeated the Düsseldorf Panther in

690-480: Is contested by the two best teams of the German Football League . The New Yorker Lions , from Braunschweig , are the record winners of the German Bowl, with 12 successful participations out of 18 overall. The Düsseldorf Panther and the Berlin Adler both have six titles to their name, but Berlin has the best win–loss record of all clubs, 75 percent. Altogether, as of 2021, twelve clubs have won

759-470: Is unheard of and even during heated matchups with fierce rivals that have playoff implications there are often joint tailgate parties organized by supporters of Dresden and their opponent. Some enduring rivalries even date to the era when Dresden played in the second tier GFL2 (1999–2002). For example the Berlin Adler were relegated to the second tier after the 1997 season and managed to return to

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828-614: The 2018 edition when another Frankfurt based team - Frankfurt Universe - did what had only been achieved before by the long since defunct Frankfurter Löwen - reaching a German Bowl against another GFL South representative - The Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns . Between the end of the golden era of the Ansbach Grizzlies in 1986 and the rise of the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns (who first reached the German Bowl in 2011), southern clubs have only made five appearances in

897-636: The Aufbauliga Ost the following year, the lowest possible league in the region. The Monarchs , in the following years, gradually worked their way up through the league system, winning the league they played in every season from 1996 to 1999. In 1999, a second title in the tier-three Regionalliga Nordost allowed the club promotion to the northern division of the 2nd Bundesliga , now the GFL2 . After three seasons at this level, Dresden won its division in 2002, winning all ten games, and went on to defeat

966-658: The Calanda Broncos . The two best teams of this competition advanced to the Eurobowl XXVIII, with Dresden knocked out in the group stage. In the GFL the club finished once more in second place in the North Division in 2014 and defeated the Marburg Mercenaries 42–22 at home in the quarter-finals of the play-offs but lost in the semi-finals on the road to the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns who would in turn lose

1035-565: The Kiel Baltic Hurricanes in two games in the promotion round by a combined score of 100–0. Ironically enough, one of the players on the field for Kiel during their humiliating defeat was Alexander Graf von Perponcher-Sedlnitzky who would go on to become the stadium announcer for the Dresden Monarchs later on. Promoted to the German Football League , the GFL, the club became an instant play-off contender, reaching

1104-534: The "cow incident" ahead of the 2013 semifinal which was mocked by Dresden supporters making mooing noises during the game and a similar cow to the one involved in the incident being placed next to the field by the club. Some Dresden supporters also take to mocking the Berlin mascot ("Adler" is the German word for "eagle") by displaying rubber chicken affixed to their outfits with a hangman's knot during games between

1173-680: The 1986 and 1987 season in the central division of the American Football Bundesliga , now the German Football League , but was only able to win one game in two years and found itself relegated back to the second tier for 1988. At this league, the team once more was a top performer and won two division titles in 1990 and 1991, with the later also earning promotion to the Bundesliga once more. The Scorpions once more struggled at top level and were immediately relegated again. After coming second in 1993 and winning its division

1242-570: The 2013 title went to a resurgent and renamed Braunschweig, now playing as the New Yorker Lions in a close 35–34 victory against the Dresden Monarchs in their first German Bowl appearance. Dresden missed an extra-point attempt after their first touchdown and went on to lose on a late fumble, the only turnover of the game, while driving towards good field position for a field goal. The Lions won their ninth German Bowl in 2014 with

1311-639: The 2016 season many players left the team or announced their retirement from Football and the first game of the Dresden Monarchs 2016 season was a 21–21 draw against the Berlin Rebels in Berlin. However, the team led by Quarterback Brandon Connette ultimately recovered and proved one of the most statistically efficient passing offenses in the league, losing only two games (on the road in Kiel and Braunschweig) and tying their home game against Braunschweig before defeating an overmatched Saarland Hurricanes squad in

1380-619: The 2020 season ultimately never materialized as a microscopic virus, called SARS-CoV-2 , which causes the deadly respiratory disease Covid-19 , forced the AFVD to delay and ultimately cancel the 2020 season. As case numbers decreased in the summer of 2020 and to give the long suffering fans at least one home game in the year, Dresden held an exhibition match against the Wroclaw Panthers (who, unlike Dresden, were able to play in their domestic league ). However, as Dresden played with only

1449-468: The 2021 season and it should prove an even more successful one for Dresden than 2013 had been. While the lingering effects of Covid-19 - several teams were unable to start full contact team training as early in the preseason as they would've liked - made for a few upsets, the founding of the European League of Football , which included many players who had played in the GFL as recently as 2019 threw

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1518-487: The 42nd German champion in American football in German Bowl XLII . In a game in which Dresden struggled to turn its offensive dominance into points during the first half, Dresden ultimately had the stronger finish and beat Schwäbisch Hall 28–19 after having trailed 12–7 at half time, to win the first Championship of any American football team from former East Germany. The Monarchs started out playing at Bärnsdorfer Straße,

1587-482: The Ansbach Grizzlies continued to be an outstanding team, playing in all of the first eight German Bowls. Unlike the first season, play-off semi-finals were played in 1980 and 1981 to determine the two German Bowl contestants. From 1982, the play-offs were enlarged to include a quarter-final round as well. The 1982 season saw Ansbach repeat its title, this time against the Cologne Crocodiles . After that,

1656-549: The Bowl. Instead, the Cologne Crocodiles finally reversed their fortunes and won a championship in their sixth attempt. In between, in 1999, the Bundesliga was renamed to German Football League. Braunschweig lost a fifth final in a row in 2004, when the Berlin Adler won their first title in 13 years. After that, the Braunschweig Lions set a new record, winning four German Bowls in a row, beating four different teams in

1725-745: The Dresden squad soon shook whatever had ailed them in that season opener and took revenge on Cologne the following week, by beating them at home with a convincing 54–34. Two weeks later, the Monarchs traveled to Braunschweig and delivered the first defeat (35–27) for the Lions since the 2018 season and Dresden's first victory in Braunschweig since 2015. The rest of the regular season saw Dresden defeat all challengers, including Braunschweig once more (this time in Dresden) ultimately resulting in Dresden clinching

1794-621: The Düsseldorf Panther once more won the German Bowl, with the second title won against a new force in the game in Germany, the Hamburg Blue Devils . In 1996, the Blue Devils then reversed their previous misfortune and defeated the Panthers in the final. The most dominant era of any team in the sport in Germany begun in 1997, when the Braunschweig Lions reached and won the German Bowl for the first time. The Lions would play in every one of

1863-420: The German Bowl differs hugely between the clubs from the northern and the southern division, with the south only winning ten German Bowls and the north the remaining 32 (through XLII). Similarly (through XLII), southern clubs have only made 26 appearances in the Bowl, while northern clubs have appeared 58 times. After the first three German Bowls, the final was only contested by two southern clubs one other time; in

1932-491: The German Bowl to Braunschweig. The team finished second in the northern division of the GFL in 2015 and defeated the Stuttgart Scorpions at home in the quarter-finals of the play-offs but again lost in the road to the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns in the semi-finals of the play-offs. Schwäbisch Hall would go on to lose the German Bowl against the New Yorker Lions as they had already done the previous year. Prior to

2001-553: The German Bowl were: Stuttgart Scorpions The Stuttgart Scorpions are an American football team from Stuttgart , Germany . The club's greatest success came in 2007, when it reached the German Bowl but lost to the Braunschweig Lions . The Stuttgart Scorpions were formed in December 1982. The new club spent its first couple of seasons in the 2nd Bundesliga , now the German Football League 2 , where it played until 1985. The club, after having earned promotion, spent

2070-465: The German Football landscape into disarray as both leagues competed for media and fan attention as well as sponsorship money and player talent. The GFL North ultimately only had six teams that year (instead of the usual eight) and Dresden lost their opening game on the road 48–41 to the Cologne Crocodiles despite that team having lost quite a few players to the crosstown Centurions . However,

2139-505: The Lions. The two teams met in the postseason twice with Braunschweig knocking them out 34–20 in the 2004 semifinal and the aforementioned German Bowl XXXV loss of Dresden to Braunschweig in 2013. Due to "Interconference Games" last being held in 2011 GFL South teams can only meet GFL North teams in the playoffs and due to the North South disparity Dresden has not lost a playoff game at home in its entire history. However, road games are

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2208-419: The New Yorker Lions has occurred five times - all in the span from 2014 to 2019. German Bowl XIX to German Bowl XXX (inclusive) all had appearances by the Braunschweig Lions (later to be renamed for sponsorship reasons to "New Yorker Lions") for twelve consecutive appearances over the space of over a decade. Apart from the German Bowl, a Junior Bowl has also been contested in Germany since 1982. A Ladies Bowl

2277-553: The North with a 10–4 record behind the Kiel Baltic Hurricanes who had posted the same record but had beaten Dresden twice. Having to go on the road in the playoffs, Dresden fell to the Frankfurt Universe 26–16 in their first "one and done" playoff appearance since 2009 (barring the 2011 season in which they failed to make the playoffs altogether). In 2018 the Monarchs returned to the pattern of previous years, even posting

2346-400: The Scorpions would finally be able to deliver constant top-level performances. From 1998 onwards, the team was to reach the play-offs every season. The Stuttgart Scorpions won the southern division of the Bundesliga in 1998 and were able to reach the semi-finals of the German championship for the first time. In 2001, 2002 and 2006, this play-off performance was repeated, in between, the club

2415-540: The backups play in a lopsided 63–7 road loss in Dresden to close out the regular season. Dresden thus placed ahead of Braunschweig in the regular season standings for the first time since 2012. In the quarter-final, the Allgäu Comets were sent packing back to Bavaria with a score of 50–13 while the Saarland Hurricanes didn't even manage to get on the scoreboard in the 37–0 defeat they experienced in

2484-477: The championship game of which only one was successful (the Munich Cowboys in 1993). After first reaching the German Bowl in 2011, the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns made all (as of 2021) subsequent German Bowls except the 2013 edition where they were upset by the Berlin Adler in the quarterfinal of the playoffs. As the 2018 German Bowl was an all Southern affair, balancing out the all Northern German Bowl 2013,

2553-481: The championship themselves, against Cologne Crocodiles, who suffered their fourth defeat in their fourth German Bowl. Munich's title in 1993 was to be the last occasion for the next twelve years that a team from the South would reach the final, and the last time until 2011 that a team from the South would win the championship. The Bundesliga and the German Bowl were from then on dominated by the North. In 1994 and 1995,

2622-407: The club as well as facilities for team meetings or events is also located at those grounds. The field is an artificial turf playing surface with permanent American football markings and Field Goals - a rarity in Germany where most teams have to train and play on fields otherwise used for association football (soccer). Heinz Steyer Stadion (sometimes referred to as " Heinz Field " by fans) has been

2691-468: The club came only sixth in 2013 and missed the finals for the first time since 1997. In 2014, the club finished second in the southern division of the GFL but lost 28–33 to the Cologne Falcons in the quarter-finals of the play-offs. After a third-place finish in 2015 the club lost to the Dresden Monarchs in the quarter-finals of the play-offs. In 2021, the Scorpions received an offer to become

2760-520: The club came third in the northern division of the GFL and qualified for the play-offs where they were knocked out by the Kiel Baltic Hurricanes in the semi-finals. The 2013 season became the club's best up to that point, finishing second in its division and reaching the German Bowl after play-off victories at home over the Munich Cowboys and Berlin Adler . Ultimately the Braunschweig Lions who had already bested them twice during

2829-529: The division title and home field advantage throughout the playoffs with a record of 9–1. The division lead was theoretically still up for grabs in the last home game of the regular season against the Potsdam Royals (who placed second) who could've equalized winning percentages at 8–2 and pulled ahead on the head-to-head tiebreaker if they'd won by more than 16 points, but Potsdam's decision makers apparently had no intention of even trying as they mostly let

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2898-433: The divisions have achieved parity in representation at the final for the period beginning in 2011. However, in terms of wins the North still has the edge even for the 2011-2019 period as Schwäbisch Hall won it all four times in that decade whereas Braunschweig's New Yorker Lions won the Bowl five times in the same period. The German Bowls since 1979: Champions in bold * indicates overtime wins The host cities of

2967-461: The era of the Düsseldorf Panther versus Ansbach Grizzlies rivalry began, with the two teams meeting in the next four finals. Of those, the team from Düsseldorf won the 1983, 1984 and 1986 editions, while the Grizzlies earned their third championship in 1985. With the 1986 final, the golden age of the Ansbach Grizzlies ended and the club disappeared from the top level altogether by 1991. From 1986,

3036-519: The exception of the neutral site game German Bowl XLII, the Unicorns enjoyed home field advantage in each of those matchups. The Monarchs also played the Unicorns twice in the regular season in 2007 under the "Interconference Games" rule then in place. Schwäbisch Hall won both games and Dresden only narrowly avoided relegation that year after placing last in the GFL North with a record of 1-11. Despite

3105-552: The final and Schwäbisch Hall won it all that year was only small consolation for the once again foiled championship dreams of the Dresden squad. In 2019 Dresden, posting a 10–4 record (three of their regular season defeats coming on the road - the lone home loss was to Braunschweig) finishing second in the North once again ended their title hopes with a semifinal defeat on the road in Schwäbisch Hall as had become almost tradition by now. Whatever plans Dresden may have had for

3174-463: The final, while, from 1989 onwards, the Berlin Adler became the first team to win three championships in a row, all against teams from Cologne . After the 1990 season, the play-offs were reduced to eight teams again, dropping the wild-card round, a system still in place as of 2010. The Panther earned their fourth title in 1992, defeating the Munich Cowboys, which, in the following year, won

3243-489: The finals. In 2005, the Blue Devils were once more the opposition, followed by two southern teams, the Marburg Mercenaries in 2006 and the Stuttgart Scorpions in 2007. The seventh title for the Lions came in 2008, against the new force of the Kiel Baltic Hurricanes . Kiel also played in the 2009 final, losing to the Berlin Adler, before finally being successful in 2010 and securing their first title against

3312-464: The following year, the Scorpions were able to defeat the Franken Knights 47–0 in the promotion round and moved up for a third time in their history. The club was now much improved at the top level and reached the quarter-finals in its first two seasons back, 1995 and 1996. After a difficult 1997 season, when survival was only assured in the relegation round against the Saarland Hurricanes ,

3381-438: The highest-ever winning margin, defeating the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns 47–9. Schwäbisch Hall scored no points in this game after a field goal on their first possession until the fourth quarter when most of the Braunschweig starters, including MVP quarterback Casey Therriault, were already off the field. The Lions repeated their 2014 success against the Unicorns in 2015, winning 41–31. Success in American football in Germany and at

3450-426: The home ground for most games in their GFL era. After the 2021 season ongoing renovations will necessitate the Monarchs using a different stadium until probably 2023. Usually one game per season is also played at Rudolf Harbig Stadion , the most modern and highest capacity stadium in Dresden. Due to the prestige of the larger stadium, this is often the best attended Monarchs home game of the season. The Monarchs have

3519-611: The last Monarchs game at Heinz Steyer Stadion prior to its renovation which is scheduled to take until 2023. The Monarchs will hold their home games for the upcoming 2022 season at their training facilities at Bärnsdorfer Straße, potentially also (one or two games) at Rudolf Harbig Stadion . The Monarchs thus reached the German Bowl for the second time after 2013 and played the GFL South Division Champion Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns on October 9 2021 at Frankfurt's Waldstadion to crown

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3588-536: The lopsided win–loss record the overall score is comparatively close at 376-304 in favor of Schwäbisch Hall. The current Head Coach of the Dresden Monarchs, Ulrich "Ulz" Däuber is a former player for the Unicorns and was also part of their youth coaching system before an extended stint in the US. German Bowl The German Bowl is the annual national championship game in the sport of American football in Germany . It

3657-421: The neutral site German Bowl in which they are 1–1). Their regular season record also tilts in favor of home field advantage but far less drastically so. The club appeared in the German Bowl twice: Recent seasons of the club: Having played uninterrupted at the highest tier of German Football since the 2003 season a few matchups have heated up to fierce rivalries on and off the field. However, fan violence

3726-450: The next twelve German Bowls until 2008, and win seven of those. Their first title, in 1997, was won against the Cologne Crocodiles, who now had the unenviable record of five losses in five German Bowl appearances. The following six seasons, the final was contested by the Lions and the Blue Devils on five occasions, with the Lions winning in 1998 and 1999, while the Blue Devils won in 2001, 2002 and 2003. Only in 2000 did neither of those two win

3795-408: The play-offs once more every year. A second semifinal qualification, in 2010, ended in defeat to eventual German Bowl winners Kiel Baltic Hurricanes. In 2011, the club narrowly missed out on play-off qualification, finishing fifth in the league. The first (and as of 2021 only) time they did not have a postseason (including promotion/relegation games) since their 2002 entry into the top tier. In 2012,

3864-477: The playoffs from them by placing just ahead of them on the head-to-head tiebreaker. 2021 was the first year since 2012 that Dresden placed ahead of Braunschweig and also the first time Dresden won the GFL North Division. As of 2021 the head-to-head record between Braunschweig and Dresden is 11 victories Dresden, 23 victories Braunschweig and 2 draws overall with a combined score of 1243-806 in favor of

3933-455: The proximity of Berlin to Dresden (roughly 200 kilometers via Bundesautobahn 13 or roughly two hours via the Berlin–Dresden railway ) games between the two teams are usually well attended by fans of the other. While Berlin had been dominant early in the rivalry, Dresden became stronger as Berlin entered a slump culminating with their relegation in 2017 . The rivalry includes stories such as

4002-504: The quarter-finals of the championship in 2008, 2009 and 2010. In 2011, the side finished third in its division, qualifying for the play-offs once more, where they lost to the Mönchengladbach Mavericks . In 2012, the club came fourth in the southern division of the GFL and qualified for the play-off where it was knocked out by Kiel Baltic Hurricanes in the quarter-finals. After 15 consecutive play-off qualifications

4071-486: The quarterfinals before once more going on the road to the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns . Like the two previous seasons, the Southern champions proved too tough a nut to crack for the Monarchs and the 35–26 defeat ended the season that ultimately had very similar results to the two previous seasons, all ending as the second placed team in the North falling in the semifinals to Hall. 2017 saw the Monarchs fall to third place in

4140-405: The regular season were too much to overcome in a 35–34 nailbiter decided by the lone turnover late in the game when Running back Trevar Deed (one of the most statistically productive players in that position in GFL history in his most productive GFL season) fumbled the ball. The one point winning margin was also the result of otherwise very "clutch" wide receiver and placekicker Jan Hilgenfeld missing

4209-437: The rivalry and Dresden-Kiel matchups have often been particularly fierce on the field, particularly when held at Kiel's aptly named diversion field " de:Moorteichwiese " (literally bog-pond-meadow) which is often waterlogged in inclement weather. Ironically one of the Kiel players during the 2002 matchups, Alexander Graf von Perpondcher-Sedlnitzky, is now Stadium announcer for Dresden and known for his emotional style. Due to

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4278-461: The same 11–2–1 record as Braunschweig, but while holding Braunschweig to a tie on the road, they failed to win their home game against the Lions thus again placing second in the North due to the head-to-head tiebreaker. In the playoffs Dresden once more took care of business in their quarterfinals at home before being bested on the road by Schwäbisch Hall, again a repeat of the pattern of previous years. The fact that Braunschweig also failed to advance to

4347-533: The same team. German Bowl XXXIII was held on 8 October 2011 at the MDCC-Arena in Magdeburg . The 2011 season saw the end of an 18-year title drought for the south, when the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns defeated Kiel 48–44 to carry off the national championship for the first time. The Unicorns repeated their 2011 title in 2012 in the highest-scoring German Bowl to date winning 56–53 on a late field goal, while

4416-540: The semifinals in 2004, where it lost to the Braunschweig Lions . After four consecutive play-off qualifications, the club had a difficult 2007 season. With only one win and eleven defeats in the regular season, the Monarchs had to enter the relegation round, but were able to overcome the Hamburg Eagles and thereby defended their place in the GFL. The club returned to its better performances after 2007, reaching

4485-406: The top flight a year ahead of Dresden after the 2001 season. Another rivalry began precisely in the promotion/relegation round of the 2002 season when the Kiel Baltic Hurricanes were sent down to the second tier by a combined score of 100–0 in the two game series. Dresden running up the score in front of a record crowd of over 8000 spectators during the second leg of the fixture added bitterness to

4554-473: The top two teams would contest the first ever German Bowl on 10 November 1979. The early years of the league were dominated by two teams, Frankfurt and Ansbach, who met each other in the first three editions of the German Bowl. Of those, Frankfurt won the first two and Ansbach the last. The era of the Frankfurter Löwen came to an end soon afterwards and the club went defunct in the mid-1980s, while

4623-658: The two teams. Dresden also enjoys a fierce but friendly rivalry with the Braunschweig Lions which has heated up since the 2013 season when the end of a 2009-2012 Braunschweig slump coincided with Dresden's strongest season to date. Dresden lost all three matchups against Braunschweig that year, including German Bowl XXXV by 35–34. Every season between then and the Covid-caused interruption except 2017 has seen Dresden and Braunschweig place second and first respectively. In 2017 Dresden's other rival, Kiel Baltic Hurricanes took second place and thereby home field advantage in

4692-657: Was introduced in 1990. Other, related, national championship games in Germany include the German Flag Bowl (est. 2000), German Junior Flag Bowl (1999) and a German Indoor Flag Bowl (2000). In 1979, the American Football Bundesliga , later to be renamed the German Football League, was formed, consisting of six clubs, the Frankfurter Löwen, Ansbach Grizzlies , Düsseldorf Panther , Munich Cowboys , Berlin Bears and Bremerhaven Seahawks . Of those six,

4761-462: Was knocked out in the semi-finals. The 2007 season was to be the club's best-ever, first winning the southern division of the GFL for only the second time and then progressing all the way to the German Bowl . In this game, the Scorpions were defeated 27–6 by the Braunschweig Lions , despite playing at home in Stuttgart. Since then, the team's performances have fallen off, only being able to reach

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