The is the top-level American football league of France. The league was founded in 1982.

History American football was introduced to France in the early 20th century, but for decades it remained an infrequent activity, practised only by American touring teams and wartime servicemen. The formation of NATO in 1949 allowed for U.S. military settlements in France, and in turn the establishment of senior and high school teams representing these bases. They mainly competed in cross-border leagues sanctioned by the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Army, although some seasons featured a conference consisting solely of France-based armed forces teams.

While some French citizens attended the games, actual participation by locals remained negligible and the sport quickly declined when French president Charles de Gaulle withdrew France from NATO's military command, evicting American troops from the country in 1967. Nonetheless, a few modern era French teams claim the lineage of those military organizations: the Châteauroux Sabres are named after an eponymous team from the now decommissioned Châteauroux-Déols Air Base.

It was not until 1980 that a physical education teacher, Laurent Plegelatte, created the first "born and bred" French team, the Spartacus de Paris. The same year, he founded and chaired the National Committee for the Development of American Football. The Ligue Élite de Football Américain was created in 1982 under the leadership of Laurent Plegelatte with four participants. The Spartacus de Paris were the first ever champions of the Ligue Élite de Football Américain, but are now a defunct team as of 1993. 1983 saw a change of leadership from Laurent Plegelatte to Michel Gofman.

The club Ours de Toulouse claims a French American football attendance record of over 11,000 for a 1990 game against the Moscow Bears played at Toulouse Stadium.

League set-up The league is partitioned into two conferences, each with six teams. The top three teams of each conference enter the playoffs. Until 1994, the final was called . Since 1995, the championship game has been called .

Trophy Although the championship game is called the Diamond Helmet, the winners' trophy does not have the shape of a helmet. It is a shield similar to those awarded to the French champions of other rugby football codes, such as the Bouclier de Brennus and the Trophée Max-Rousié.

Teams

Active teams

Team City/Departement Stadium Founded North Conference La Courneuve Flash La Courneuve, Seine-Saint-Denis Stade Marville 1984 Diables Rouges de Villepinte Villepinte, Seine-Saint-Denis Stade Laurent Lacans 2006 Météores de Fontenay Fontenay-sous-Bois, Val-de-Marne Stade André Laurent 1981 Molosses d'Asnières Asnières-sur-Seine, Hauts-de-Seine Jacques Anquetil Stadium and Léo Lagrange Stadium 1992 Thonon Black Panthers Thonon-les-Bains, Haute-Savoie Stade Joseph-Moynat 1987 Leopards of Rouen Rouen, Indre-et-Loire Stade France 98 1996 South Conference Aix-en-Provence Argonautes Aix-en-Provence, Bouches-du-Rhône Stade Georges-Carcassonne 1986 Blue Stars de Marseille Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône Pierre-Delort Stadium 1994 Cannes Iron Mask Cannes, Alpes-Maritimes Stade Pierre de Coubertin 1991 Centaures de Grenoble Grenoble, Isère Stade Lesdiguières 1985 Grizzlys Catalans Perpignan, Pyrénées-Orientales Parc des Sports de Perpignan 2012 Ours de Toulouse Toulouse, Haute-Garonne Stades des Argoulets 1986

Championship Game + Results of the championship. Season Edition Date Stadium Winner Score Loser Casque d'Or (Golden helmet) 1982 I 1982 Vélodrome de Vincennes Spartacus de Paris 44–0 Météores de Nogent 1983 II May 21, 1983 Stade Jean-Bouin Spartacus de Paris (2) 34–14 Anges Bleus de Joinville 1984 III 1984 Stade Jean-Bouin Anges Bleus de Joinville 20–0 Spartacus de Paris 1985 IV 1985 Stade Jean-Bouin Paris Jets 6–0 Challengers de Paris 1986 V 1986 Stade Jean-Bouin Anges Bleus de Joinville (2) 20–2 Spartacus de Paris 1987 VI June 21, 1987 Stade Jean-Bouin Castors de Paris 75–0 Paris Jets 1988 VII June 26, 1988 Stade Jean-Bouin Castors de Paris (2) 7–0 Anges Bleus de Joinville 1989 VIII June 18, 1989 Stade Jean-Bouin Castors de Paris (3) 14–13 Aix-en-Provence Argonautes 1990 June 24, 1990 Stade Jean-Bouin Aix-en-Provence Argonautes 34–7 Castors de Paris 1991 X June 16, 1991 Stade Jean-Bouin Aix-en-Provence Argonautes (2) 29–7 Castors de Paris 1992 XI June 13, 1992 Stade Jean-Bouin Aix-en-Provence Argonautes (3) 33–20 Sphinx du Plessis Robinson 1993 XII June 12, 1993 Stade Robert Bobin Castors de Paris (4) 27–19 Aix-en-Provence Argonautes 1994 XIII June 26, 1994 Stade Robert Bobin Mousquetaires de Paris 28–22 Aix-en-Provence Argonautes Casque de Diamant (Diamond helmet) 1995 I June 25, 1995 Stade Charléty Aix-en-Provence Argonautes (4) 36–16 Mousquetaires de Paris 1996 II June 16, 1996 Stade Charléty Mousquetaires de Paris (2) 23–19 Aix-en-Provence Argonautes 1997 III June 14, 1997 Stade Charléty La Courneuve Flash 45–28 Aix-en-Provence Argonautes 1998 IV June 14, 1998 Stade Charléty Aix-en-Provence Argonautes (5) 28–14 La Courneuve Flash 1999 June 20, 1999 Georges-Carcassonne Stadium Aix-en-Provence Argonautes (6) 27–20 Molosses d'Asnières 2000 June 17, 2000 Stade René-Gaillard La Courneuve Flash (2) 68–35 Aix-en-Provence Argonautes 2001 VII June 23, 2001 Stade Marville Aix-en-Provence Argonautes (7) 30–23 La Courneuve Flash 2002 VIII June 23, 2002 Georges-Carcassonne Stadium Aix-en-Provence Argonautes (8) 23–21 La Courneuve Flash 2003 IX June 1, 2003 Georges-Carcassonne Stadium La Courneuve Flash (3) 28–24 Aix-en-Provence Argonautes 2004 X June 19, 2004 Stade Marville Amiens Spartiates 41–31 Aix-en-Provence Argonautes 2005 XI June 18, 2005 Stade Marville La Courneuve Flash (4) 33–27 Amiens Spartiates 2006 XII June 17, 2006 Stade Marville La Courneuve Flash (5) 48–24 Aix-en-Provence Argonautes 2007 XIII June 16, 2007 Stade Sébastien Charléty La Courneuve Flash (6) 21–6 Thonon Black Panthers 2008 XIV June 28, 2008 Stade Sébastien Charléty La Courneuve Flash (7) 28–22 Elancourt Templiers 2009 XV June 20, 2009 Parc des Sports Michel Hidalgo La Courneuve Flash (8) 41–27 Thonon Black Panthers 2010 June 27, 2010 Parc des Sports Michel Hidalgo Amiens Spartiates (2) 24–21 La Courneuve Flash 2011 XVII June 18, 2011 Stade Sébastien Charléty La Courneuve Flash (9) 45–27 Centaures de Grenoble 2012 XVIII June 23, 2012 Stade Sébastien Charléty Amiens Spartiates (3) 10–7 Thonon Black Panthers 2013 XIX June 22, 2013 Stade Sébastien Charléty Thonon Black Panthers 14–0 La Courneuve Flash 2014 XX June 28, 2014 Stade Sébastien Charléty Thonon Black Panthers (2) 35–34 Molosses d'Asnières 2015 XXI June 20, 2015 Stade Sébastien Charléty Cougars de Saint-Ouen-l'Aumône 28–7 Thonon Black Panthers 2016 XXII June 25, 2016 Stade Guy Boniface Cougars de Saint-Ouen-l'Aumône (2) 28–17 Dauphins de Nice 2017 XXIII June 24, 2017 Stade Parsemain La Courneuve Flash (10) 44–40 Thonon Black Panthers 2018 XXIV June 30, 2018 Stade Parsemain La Courneuve Flash (11) 20–14 Thonon Black Panthers 2019 XXV June 29, 2019 Stadium Lille Métropole Thonon Black Panthers (3) 24–7 Cougars de Saint-Ouen-l'Aumône 2020 July 4, 2020 Stadium Lille Métropole Season cancelled after week three due to COVID-19 2021 Season not played due to COVID-19 2022 XXVI July 9, 2022 Stade Joseph-Moynat La Courneuve Flash (12) 16–10 Thonon Black Panthers 2023 XXVII July 1, 2023 Stade Joseph-Moynat Thonon Black Panthers (4) 35–18 Blue Stars de Marseille 2024 XXVIII June 29, 2024 Stade Gilbert Brutus Thonon Black Panthers (5) 37–33 La Courneuve Flash 2025 June 28, 2025 Chambéry Savoie Stadium Thonon Black Panthers (6) 44–12 Cannes Iron Mask 2026 June 20, 2026 Stade Auguste-Delaune, Saint-Denis Thonon Black Panthers (7) 49–46 Cannes Iron Mask

Media In 2022, the league is set to receive its first regularly scheduled television coverage on Sport en France.

Notes

External links

Official French American Football Federation web site EliteFoot