The 2022 ELF season was the second season of the European League of Football, a semi professional American football league based in Europe. Twelve teams from five countries participated. The 2022 season started on June 4, 2022, and concluded with the ELF Championship Game on September 25, 2022, at the Wörthersee Stadion, Klagenfurt. In their first year in the league, Vienna Vikings won the title, beating 2021 runners-up Hamburg Sea Devils 27–15.
Format The league is divided into three conferences, North, Central and South. Each team plays 12 games during the regular season: twice against their conference rivals, and twice against three of the teams from the other conferences. The top team in each conference, as well as the best second-place team, qualify for the playoffs.
Teams
On top of the eight inaugural season teams, the league expanded with four new franchises. On September 25, 2021, the Vienna Vikings, Raiders Tirol as well as Rhein Fire were officially introduced as new teams. On October 15, 2021, the addition of the Istanbul Rams was announced. First, the Rams home field was the Yusuf Ziya Öniş Stadium but was later changed.
TeamCityConferenceStadiumCapacityHead coachBarcelona Dragons Barcelona/ReusSouthernEstadi Municipal de Reus4,700 Andrew WeidingerBerlin Thunder BerlinNorthernFriedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark19,708 Johnny SchmuckCologne Centurions CologneSouthernSüdstadion11,748 Frank RoserFrankfurt Galaxy Frankfurt am MainCentralPSD Bank Arena12,542 Thomas KöslingHamburg Sea Devils HamburgNorthernStadion Hoheluft8,000 Charles "Yogi" JonesIstanbul Rams IstanbulSouthernMaltepe Hasan Polat Stadium5,000 Matt Lawson Leipzig Kings Dessau-Roßlau NorthernPaul Greifzu Stadium20,000 Fred Armstrong Halle (Saale)Leuna Chemie Stadion15,057 LeipzigBruno-Plache-Stadion12,321Panthers Wrocław WrocławNorthernStadion Olimpijski11,000 Jakub SamelRaiders Tirol InnsbruckCentralTivoli Stadion Tirol16,008 Kevin HerronRhein Fire Düsseldorf/DuisburgSouthernSchauinsland-Reisen-Arena31,514 Jim TomsulaStuttgart Surge StuttgartCentralGazi-Stadion auf der Waldau11,408 Martin HanselmannVienna Vikings ViennaCentralGenerali Arena17,500 Chris Calaycay
Rosters Like last season, there is a limit of 4 US American, Canadian, Mexican or Japanese players per roster, and two on the field at the same time, but people who are dual citizens of the U.S. and an EU-member country are not counted towards that limit in keeping with the Bosman ruling. There is also a limit of 8 non-American foreigners per roster. Brazilian players do not count towards the import quota. The overall roster limit is 55 active Players and 5 spots on the practice squad.
Roster moves In the 2022 preseason, several ELF players were picked up by other professional leagues, including 2021 season MVP Madre London. ELF contracts allow for premature termination in case professional North American leagues want to sign these players.
NFL IPP Program: Marcel Dabo (Stuttgart Surge), Adedayo Odeleye (Berlin Thunder) Canadian Football League: Keanu Ebanks (Panthers Wrocław), Seantavius Jones (Berlin Thunder), Anthony Mahoungou (Frankfurt Galaxy) United States Football League: Madre London (Cologne Centurions), Kolin Hill (Berlin Thunder), Dartez Jacobs (Raiders Tirol), Diondre Overton (Vienna Vikings), KaVontae Turpin (Panthers Wrocław), Dale Warren (Stuttgart Surge)
Player representation After players complained of subpar housing conditions for "import" players of the Frankfurt Galaxy franchise, an unofficial union, based in Switzerland was formed under the name of European League of Football Players Association (ELFPA). Representatives of this union are not public and concrete measures haven't been taken so far.
In order to represent active players of the ELF, the league announced the Players Committee for the 2022 season. It consists of two players of each franchise and can hold regular meetings. Out of this committee two spokespersons are elected which are in contact with the commissioner and the Competition Committee of the league.
Rule changes After the inaugural season, in which the ELF mostly used modified NFL rules (with the exception of the overtime rule, which was based on that of college football – but never used during the entire season as no overtime needed to be played), the league announced its first rule change for the second season. The kick-off rule has been modified to increase player safety, and has been taken from the second iteration of the XFL. According to the new rule, teams will now face each other 5 yards apart, and can only start moving after the returner catches the kickoff, or 3 seconds after the ball hits the ground.
After making its ELF debut in the 2021 championship game, Instant Replay will be used for the entirety of the 2022 season. Like in the NFL, every coach has two challenges per game, with the possibility of a third if both of the challenges are successful.
All teams are not allowed to start organised team activities before May 1, 2022, with import players and padded training. The league set this rule to ensure competitive balance, in which teams with more funds can pay their import players earlier. Strength and conditioning sessions and individual training are not affected by this rule.
Regular season Schedule The schedule for the 2022 season was released on February 14, 2022. For international matches of the IFAF the league has agreed to plan for a break.
Week 1 Week 1 Date/Time (CEST) Conf. Away team Result Home team Venue Attendance Free TV Ref Sat, 4. June17:00 Southern Istanbul Rams 38 – 40 Cologne Centurions Südstadion 2,250 ran.de, S Sport, Arena4+, Eleven Sport Sun, 5. June15:00 IC Rhein Fire 29 – 26 Frankfurt Galaxy PSD Bank Arena 7,525 ProSieben MAXX, Arena4+, Eleven Sport 140.000 (3.6% ProSieben MAXX) Barcelona Dragons 38 – 9 Stuttgart Surge Gazi-Stadion auf der Waldau 2,690 Esport3, Eleven Sport Northern Leipzig Kings 27 – 34 Panthers Wrocław Stadion Olimpijski 3,150 Polsat Sport, Eleven Sport Berlin Thunder 18 – 43 Hamburg Sea Devils Stadion Hoheluft 4,936 Eleven Sport Central Vienna Vikings 29 – 23 Raiders Tirol Tivoli Stadion Tirol 3,750 Puls24, Eleven Sport
Week 2 Week 2 Date/Time (CEST) Conf. Away team Result Home team Venue Attendance Free TV Ref Sat, 11. June15:00 IC Raiders Tirol 46 – 49 Cologne Centurions Südstadion 1,537 Eleven Sports Istanbul Rams 7 – 41 Berlin Thunder Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark 3,404 S Sport, MoreThanSportTV, ran.de, Eleven Sports Sun, 12. June15:00 Rhein Fire 28 – 17 Leipzig Kings Paul Greifzu Stadium 2,250 Eleven Sports Panthers Wrocław 28 – 25 Stuttgart Surge Gazi-Stadion auf der Waldau 2,100 Polsat Sport, Eleven Sports Barcelona Dragons 24 – 21 Hamburg Sea Devils Stadion Hoheluft 3,447 Esport3, Eleven Sports, ProSieben MAXX, ran.de 130.000 (3,6% ProSieben MAXX) Central Frankfurt Galaxy 10 – 30 Vienna Vikings Generali Arena Vienna 3,913 Puls24, Zappn.tv, Eleven Sports
Week 3 Week 3 Date/Time (CEST) Conf. Away team Result Home team Venue Attendance Free TV Ref Sat, 18. June18:00 Northern Hamburg Sea Devils 14 – 0 Leipzig Kings Leuna Chemie Stadion 2,400 ran.de,Arena4+ Southern Cologne Centurions 32 – 34 Barcelona Dragons Estadi Municipal de Reus 980 Esport3 Sun, 19. June15:00 Istanbul Rams 12 – 42 Rhein Fire Schauinsland-Reisen-Arena 7,895 ran.de, ProSieben MAXX,S Sport, Arena4+ 400.000 (4,2% ProSieben MAXX) Central Stuttgart Surge 13 – 42 Vienna Vikings Generali Arena Vienna 2,400 Zappn.tv IC Panthers Wrocław 13 – 47 Frankfurt Galaxy PSD Bank Arena 3,025 Polsat Sport Berlin Thunder 16 – 28 Raiders Tirol Tivoli Stadion Tirol 3,032 Zappn.tv, Puls24
Week 4 Week 4 Date/Time (CEST) Conf. Away team Result Home team Venue Attendance Free TV RefSat, 25. June15:00 IC Vienna Vikings 49 – 0 Istanbul Rams Maltepe Hasan Polat Stadium 800 Zappn.tv, S Sport 17:00 Frankfurt Galaxy 48 – 12 Cologne Centurions Südstadion 2,530 ran.de Sun, 26. June15:00 Northern Hamburg Sea Devils 26 – 23 (OT) Panthers Wrocław Stadion Olimpijski 2,450 Polsat Sport Leipzig Kings 19 – 15 Berlin Thunder Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark 3,134 ProSieben MAXX, ran.de Central Raiders Tirol 33 – 0 Stuttgart Surge Gazi-Stadion auf der Waldau 1,400 Puls24, Zappn.tv Southern Barcelona Dragons 17 – 13 Rhein Fire Schauinsland-Reisen-Arena 7,583 Esport3
Week 5 Week 5 Date/Time (CEST) Conf. Away team Result Home team Venue Attendance Free TV Ref Sat, 2. July18:00 Southern Istanbul Rams 7 – 41 Barcelona Dragons Estadi Municipal de Reus 957 Esport3, S Sport 15:00IC Berlin Thunder 34 – 7 Cologne Centurions Südstadion 1,580 ran.de Sun, 3. July15:00 Rhein Fire 15 – 42 Hamburg Sea Devils Stadion Hoheluft 4,128 ProSieben MAXX Panthers Wrocław 6 – 30 Vienna Vikings Generali Arena Vienna 3,725 Puls24, Polsat Sport Stuttgart Surge 22 – 28 Leipzig Kings Bruno-Plache-Stadion 2,950 Central Frankfurt Galaxy 17 – 23 Raiders Tirol Tivoli Stadion Tirol 4,686 Puls24
Week 6 Week 6 Date/Time (CEST) Conf. Away team Result Home team Venue Attendance Free TV Ref Sat, 9. July15:00IC Hamburg Sea Devils 70 – 0 Istanbul Rams Maltepe Hasan Polat Stadium 300 S Sport, ran.de 18:00 Vienna Vikings 27 – 20 Barcelona Dragons Estadi Municipal de Reus 1,312 Esport3, Zappn.tv Sun, 10. July15:00 Leipzig Kings 6 – 37 Raiders Tirol Tivoli Stadion Tirol 3,376 Puls 24, Zappn.tv Northern Panthers Wrocław 25 – 31 (OT) Berlin Thunder Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark 3,056 Polsat Sport, ran.de,ProSieben MAXX Central Frankfurt Galaxy 26 – 20 (OT) Stuttgart Surge Gazi-Stadion auf der Waldau 2,514 Southern Cologne Centurions 3 – 17 Rhein Fire Schauinsland-Reisen-Arena 9,496
Week 7 Week 7 Date/Time (CEST) Conf. Away team Result Home team Venue Attendance Free TV RefSun, 17. July15:00Northern Berlin Thunder 33 – 22 Leipzig Kings Bruno-Plache-Stadion 3,000 ran.de IC Cologne Centurions 14 – 46 Frankfurt Galaxy PSD Bank Arena 4,500 ProSieben Maxx, Arena4+ Stuttgart Surge 0 – 34 Panthers Wrocław Stadion Olimpijski 2,050 Polsat Sport Bye Barcelona Dragons, Hamburg Sea Devils, Istanbul Rams, Raiders Tirol, Rhein Fire, Vienna Vikings
Week 8 Week 8 Date/Time (CEST) Conf. Away team Result Home team Venue Attendance Free TV RefSat, 23. July15:00 Southern Barcelona Dragons 19 – 22 Istanbul Rams Maltepe Hasan Polat Stadium 400 S Sport, Esport3 Sun, 24. July15:00 IC Hamburg Sea Devils 40 – 16 Rhein Fire Schauinsland-Reisen-Arena 7,792 ProSieben MAXX, ran.de Central Raiders Tirol 13 – 29 Vienna Vikings Generali Arena Vienna 4,523 Puls24, Zappn.tv Bye Berlin Thunder, Cologne Centurions, Frankfurt Galaxy, Leipzig Kings, Panthers Wrocław, Stuttgart Surge
Week 9 Week 9 Date/Time (CEST) Conf. Away team Result Home team Venue Attendance Free TV Ref Sat, 30. July18:00 Southern Rhein Fire 23 – 33 Barcelona Dragons Estadi Municipal de Reus 1,043 Esport3, ran.de Sun, 31. July15:00 Central Vienna Vikings 41 – 0 Stuttgart Surge Gazi-Stadion auf der Waldau 2,000 Zappn.tv IC Frankfurt Galaxy 30 – 29 Panthers Wrocław Stadion Olimpijski 1,715 Polsat Sport Istanbul Rams 26 – 29 (OT) Hamburg Sea Devils Stadion Hoheluft 3,170 S Sport Raiders Tirol 56 – 14 Leipzig Kings Bruno-Plache-Stadion 2,500 Puls24, Zappn.tv Cologne Centurions 29 – 39 Berlin Thunder Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark 3,364 ProSieben MAXX 60.000 (1,6% ProSieben MAXX)
Week 10 Week 10 6./7. August All teams on bye
Week 11