An Introduction To The ELF - Europe's New Professional American Football League

Recently, a stir was caused by a press release^[1] announcing plans to launch the European League of Football (ELF). From June 2021 onwards, a professional American football league in Europe will commence its first season, with eight teams from Germany, Spain and Poland. Over the long term, the league intends to expand to 24 teams from at least ten European countries.^[2] As such, talks are currently being held with several other potential franchises, including the current British champion, the London Warriors.^[3] One of the league’s ambitions is to serve as a stepping stone for European players who aim to play in the NFL. Could this be a new start for professional American football in Europe?

A professional American football league has in fact already existed in Europe in the form of the NFL Europe, which ran from 1991 to 2007.^[4] As the name suggests, it was organised by the NFL itself. Clubs from cities all over Europe competed in this league, including Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin, Edinburgh and London. In its last season, it had an average of 20,000 spectators attending per match.^[5] However, the league was ultimately dissolved because the NFL changed their international strategy.^[6]

Subsequently, the ELF wants to profit from the growing popularity of American football in Europe, specifically in Germany. They intend to fill this void and ultimately also aim at creating a league in which the best young European players can develop before potentially heading to the NFL.

This article reviews:

• The ELF’s operational structure:
  • Teams and leagues;
  • Player transfer system;
  • Franchise model;
  • Ownership;
  • Broadcasting model; and
• Risks the ELF could face as a new ‘rival’ sports league.