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IFL - Wild Card Round Recap
The Italian Football League kicked off its season finale with the playoffs, the final step toward the Italian Bowl in early July.
Six teams are taking to the field this hot June on the Road to Ferrara, which will determine the Italian American Football champion for the 2026 season.
Four of these teams — Giaguari Torino, Dolphins Ancona, Frogs Legnano, and Aquile Ferrara — with Guelfi Firenze and Panthers Parma also looking ahead to next week's semifinals, took to the field
Jun 17


Europe Starts to Split Apart: Clear Favorites, Bruised Contenders and Early Warning Signs
After three or four weeks of competition, both the EFA and the AFLE are beginning to leave a similar impression: there is still plenty of football to be played, of course, but perhaps not quite as much mystery as we would like. The top contenders have started to separate themselves, several hopefuls have taken heavy blows, and a few projects are still searching for a competitive identity before the season slips away from them.
EFA: Munich Ravens and Nordic Storm Take Command
Jun 12


THE MOST COMPETITIVE LEAGUE IN EUROPE IS STILL KEEPING US AT THE EDGE OF OUR SEATS
I don’t have a lot to say except that I know you guys missed my articles. I’m glad to be back and lets get right into it.
8. RAIDERS TYROL (0-8)
It’s extremely disappointing to see such a historically good team be so bad this season. Their players are consistently putting up amazing numbers that get them on leaderboards, but that’s just not enough if the whole team is bad.
7. FEHERVAR ENTHRONERS (2-6)
After two wins in a row, the Enthroners got their ass beaten by the Gr
Jun 11


SUPERSERIEN POWER RANKING Week 10
1) Carlstad Crusaders (6-0)
The Crusaders took care of business last week beating the Göteborg Giants 49-21 at home.
With their two remaining regular season games being Örebro and Tyresö, we will see if the reigning champions can protect their flawless record against stiffer competition.
2) Tyresö Royal Crowns (5-1)
Tyresö might currently have the most explosive group of Receivers in the entire league.
The addition of Alpha Jalloh has done wonders to this Royal Crowns t
Jun 5


AFLE and EFA Hit Cruising Speed as Early Contenders Begin to Emerge
The 2026 European football season is no longer warming up. Both the AFLE and the EFA are already moving at full speed, and after another packed weekend of football, the early shape of both competitions is becoming clearer. Some teams are confirming their status as contenders, others are still searching for rhythm, and several teams that looked beaten have shown enough fight to suggest that this season will not be short on drama.
AFLE Week 2: Vikings Stay Perfect as Thunder,
Jun 5


2026 GFL Power Rankings — Week 4 Update
Biggest Takeaway
Outside of Pforzheim’s head-to-head win over Ravensburg, there wasn’t much reason for major movement this week. The top five remain relatively stable, and many teams simply reinforced what we already believed about them. As GFL conference play continues and schedules become more difficult, expect larger swings in the coming weeks.
1. Potsdam Royals (=)
A dominant 48-3 victory over the Kiel Baltic Hurricanes keeps the Potsdam Royals firmly at the top. Until
Jun 5
OTHER NEWS


FLORIAN BIERBAUMER INTERVIEW
“Seikovits and I played rock-paper-scissors to decide…”
Florian Bierbaumer is one of the star players of the Vienna Vikings. The Graz native, who carries the nickname “Cheat Code”, recently had to take an enforced break due to an ankle injury but used the time to try out new things alongside his recovery.
The former NFL hopeful looked back on his AFLE season so far exclusively with First Down Magazine, spoke about his experience as a co-commentator, his collaboration with f
a few seconds ago


IFL Teams Get Their Grades!
With the IFL having wrapped up its 2026 season about a month ago — featuring the Guelfi Firenze victory over the Panthers Parma in Ferrara—the final bell has rung, and it is time to grade the teams in the top league.
This article reviews the season for the nine teams competing in the First Division of Italian Football.
Which teams made the grade, which ones have work to do before the new term, and which ones failed?
Guelfi Firenze: A
The Italian Football League’s model te
Aug 6


SUPERSERIEN TAKEAWAYS 2026
Tyresö gets it’s championship
After a lot of years of being the dark horse to win the prestigious SM-Guld, the Tyresö Royal Crowns can finally call themselves Champions of Sweden upsetting #1 seed Carlstad and #3 seed Stockholm in the semis and final respectively.
This team had arguably no weakness and only finished in the #4 seed by having a game overturned and losing to both SMM and Calrstad with only one score each during the regular season.
While the semi against the C
Jul 16


Perfect From Start to Finish: Budapest Cowbells Capture the HFL Championship
The HFL Championship Game had everything fans could ask for. Hard hits, defensive stands, momentum swings, and late-game drama. After an unbeaten regular season, the Budapest Cowbells completed the job, defeating the Győr Sharks to finish the year with a perfect record and lift the HFL trophy.
It wasn't an offensive shootout. Instead, it was a defensive battle for most of the afternoon, with both teams refusing to give an inch.
The game opened with an early fumble by the Co
Jul 14


DAFL History Made: Wild Boars Complete a Perfect Season to Become the First DAFL Champions
The inaugural DAFL Championship delivered an exciting battle between the Wild Boars and the Bucharest Titans. Both teams entered the final determined to make history, but in the end, it was the Wild Boars who proved why they had been the league's most dominant team all season.
From the opening kickoff, both offenses showed they were ready for the big stage.
The Wild Boars struck first as RB Bogdan Djordjevic powered into the endzone to give his team an early lead. The Titan
Jul 14


IFL - Italian Bowl Weekend Recap
The Italian Bowl Weekend took place in Ferrara on July 4–5, 2026, with all three FIDAF senior football finals held at the same venue: the Paolo Mazza Stadium.
Saturday saw action from the IFL2 and the IFL, while Sunday’s stage belonged to the Nine Football League - the third division of Italian football.
Who won the three titles? Who were the standout players? What tone will the sport set for the coming year?
2026 Italian Bowl – Guelfi Firenze vs. Panthers Parma: Guelfi’s
Jul 9


First Down Magazine's IFL 2026 Season Awards!
With the Italian Bowl 2026—the 45th edition in Italian football history—just a week away, it is time to present awards to the top players of the season that is now drawing to a close.
Ahead of the grand finale, the Italian editorial team at First Down Magazine is announcing its picks for the season's top players in Italian Football’s Top tier.
The categories are:
MVP (Most Valuable Player)
OPOY (Offensive Player of the Year)
DPOY (Defensive Player of the Year)
MIP (Most Imp
Jul 3


XLeague Breakdown!
With well known names from European football such as AJ Wentland and Reece Horn moving to the XLeague in 2026, many on the old continent have been asking for information about football in Japan.
So, here are some facts about Japanese gridiron - including several to show how it differs from the game in Europe.
Football started at the university level in Japan in 1934, and within a year USC came to the Land of the Rising Sun to play games against Japanese colleges - starting
Jun 30


AFLE and EFA Hit Cruising Speed as Early Contenders Begin to Emerge
The 2026 European football season is no longer warming up. Both the AFLE and the EFA are already moving at full speed, and after another packed weekend of football, the early shape of both competitions is becoming clearer. Some teams are confirming their status as contenders, others are still searching for rhythm, and several teams that looked beaten have shown enough fight to suggest that this season will not be short on drama.
AFLE Week 2: Vikings Stay Perfect as Thunder,
Jun 5
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