Danish Federation sending 2 players to Canadian Football League National Combine
The Danish American Football Federation, DAFF, has selected Frederik Myrup Nielsen and Mads Marquard Nielsen to send to the National CFL Combine in Toronto March 22-24 to compete for a spot on a Canadian Football League roster.
Frederik Myrup Nielsen, a wide receiver who plays for the Potsdam Royals in the German Football League, was his team’s top receiver and the fifth leading receiver in the GFL, with 62 receptions and 1,111 yards in 11 games (he missed five games due to injury) this past season. The other Nielsen (they are not related) defensive lineman Mads Marquard Nielsen, of the Danish champions, the Copenhagen Towers, was a key member of a team that finished the 2018 season with a 15-1 overall record with the only loss coming at the hands of the Austrian champions, the Swarco Raiders.
The two players will travel to Toronto to find out how they stack up against the other players from Germany, France and Finland as well as top players from Canadian university and junior football ranks.
Lars Carlsen, Athletic Director of the Danish American Football Federation:
“When we sent in stats and game film on these two players we stressed how important it was that CFL officials be honest in their assessment of our players. In other words, that these two players were on the same competitive level and at the right age to actually compete for a roster spot. Obviously they felt they were which makes this exciting.”
This is the first step in a program initiated following meetings between CFL Commissioner Randy Ambrosie and Carlsen as well as officials from the other Nordic countries. Ambrosie had already met with the leaders of federations from Germany, France, Austria , and Italy, in a pioneering effort to raise awareness of the Canadian Football League and expand borders for football players.
In addition to Denmark, Germany announced they would be sending six players to the Combine in Toronto while the French federation has said they have four players selected to attend the event. The Finnish federation will also be sending four players to the Combine.
The National CFL Combine presented by New Era is being held this year at Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport and Varsity Stadium bubble where players will undergo medical examinations, performance, strength and speed tests, on-field football drills and team interviews over the two day combine in front of general managers, coaches and scouts from all teams.
The various meetings between Ambrosie and European federation heads also included discussions on creating better pathways for more young Canadian players to continue playing in Europe once their university or junior football careers have ended and for aspiring European football players to gain an education and opportunities to play football in the Canadian university system.
