The European Football League (EFL) established in 1986, was a tournament for the best European

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

teams affiliated to

IFAF The International Federation of American Football (IFAF) is the international governing body of gridiron associations. The IFAF oversees the IFAF World Championship of American Football, which is held every four years. The IFAF became a pro ...

(International Federation of American Football - Europe), which replaced the

European Federation of American Football IFAF Europe is the governing body of American football in Europe. It is a member of the International Federation of American Football. IFAF Europe replaced the European Federation of American Football (EFAF) which had began in 1976 as the American ...

(EFAF) in 2014. Until 2013, the final game of the EFL was the

Eurobowl The Eurobowl was the championship final game of a tournament style playoff to determine the champion of all of the American football leagues in Europe. The tournament featured the top or champion clubs from each countries top league that was cal ...

, which has been held annually since 1986. In 2014, the EFL was replaced as Europe's top-tier club competition by the new BIG6 European Football League and the EFL Bowl was introduced as the new final game of the EFL. The 2018 EFL season was the last edition of the tournament.

EFL

Under the governance of EFAF, the best American Football teams in Europe participate in annual competitions. Until 2013, the EFL was the first-tier competition for American football clubs in Europe. EFAF determined the relative strength of each of its 17 affiliate leagues and allocated teams to the 4 divisions accordingly, thus not all nations took part. National league champions, runners-up or teams with international success were eligible for the EFL. Teams from 'weaker' leagues could take part in the

EFAF Cup The EFAF Cup was an international competition for European American Football clubs. It was the second highest level of club competition in the European Federation of American Football (EFAF), behind the European Football League (EFL),. EFAF Cup ...

. The final game of the EFL was the

, which has been held annually since 1986. In 2014, the BIG6 European Football League was introduced as the new top-tier competition of American football in Europe. The EFL continued to be played as a second-tier competition, with its teams playing for the newly created EFL Bowl trophy. The inaugural EFL Bowl was won by the

Kiel Baltic Hurricanes The Kiel Baltic Hurricanes are an American football team based in Kiel, Germany. The club has been, of recent, a strong force in the sport in Germany, playing in five consecutive German Bowls from 2008 to 2012, losing the first two, winning the t ...

of Germany against Spain's

Badalona Dracs The Badalona Dracs (, "Badalona Dragons") are a gridiron football team based in Badalona, Catalonia. History Three American football enthusiasts got together in Badalona on a December 1987's evening to found the team. They were Pere Moliner, first ...

on 20 July 2014. From 2017 on, the EFL Bowl winners may play a relegation game against the last placed team of the BIG6, and be promoted to the BIG6 if they win.Regulations for Club-Team Competitions
eurobowl.efaf.info, published: 15 October 2016, accessed: 2 November 2016 This relegation game never happened.

Format

Until 2013, Teams were split into 4 divisions of 3 or 2 teams. In a division of 3, teams played 2 matches; once at home to one opponent and the other away to the other opponent. In a division of 2 teams, each team played each other home and away. The division winners then advanced to the play-offs. The play-off format was changed for the 2008 season. The tournament was expanded to an eight-team competition. The two finalists from the 2007 season, Vienna Vikings and Marburg Mercenaries, earned automatic berths for the next season and the two semi-finalists, Eidsvoll 1814's from Norway and Tirol Raiders from Austria, earned a spot for the national champions of their respective countries. In quarterfinals these teams faced the four winners of the divisional round. In semi-finals teams were paired by the Eurobowl seeding system, with the best-seeded team facing the worst and the second-best facing the second-worst. Winners then advanced to the Eurobowl. With the start of the Big6 in 2014, the format of the EFL changed again. Six teams played in two divisions of three teams. The winners of the groups advanced to the EFL Bowl.

EFL Bowls

For a list of champions by year before 2014, see

Records and statistics

By club

* ^† Listed are Eurobowls from 1986 to 2013 and EFL Bowls from 2014 on.

By country

References

External links

European Football League
{{European Football Leagues 1986 establishments in Europe Sports leagues established in 1986 American football leagues in Europe

EFL