German Football League North returns to 8 teams for 2024 season

The German Football League kicks off the 2024 season this weekend and this year the GFL North will consist of eight teams again.

After 11 years without regular season games between the North and South, last year the GFL had each team play an opponent from the opposing conference twice. The experiment was a success and continues this year with the highlight being a 2023 German Bowl rematch between the Potsdam Royals and Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns who square off on July 13.

Potsdam Royals: 2023 record – 14-1 German Bowl Champions

The Royals captured their first ever GFL title in 2023 with a dominating performance defeating the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns 34-7 in the German Bowl.

Dresden Monarchs: 2023 record – 11-3 – GFL Semifinalists

The Monarchs rebounded from a dismal 2022 season by reaching the GFL semifinals finishing with a record of 11-3. They were edged by the Unicorns 36-30 in that final game.

Braunschweig New Yorker Lions: 2023 record – 11-3 – GFL Semifinalists

Braunschweig reached the GFL semifinals but were knocked out by eventual champions, the Potsdam Royals. The return of defensive coordinator Dave Likins, may help the Lions return to the title game for the first time since 2019.

Kiel Baltic Hurricanes: 2023 record – 1-11

The only reason that the Hurricanes were not relegated to GFL2 was that there were only seven teams in the GFL North. The addition of the Hildesheim Invaders may put Kiel in jeopardy unless they can find a way to improve on last year’s performance.

Berlin Rebels: 2023 record – 6-7 – GFL Quarterfinalists

After winning six of their first nine games, the Rebels suffered a late season collapse losing their final three regular season games. They still reached the playoffs thanks to a similar collapse by the Berlin Adler. They were eliminated in a tight contest by the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns and could be a threat in 2024.

Berlin Adler: 2023 record – 5-7

The Adler performed inconsistently in 2023 falling out of playoff contention late in the season. With a new coaching staff for 2024, it remains to be seen whether they can find their way back to the post season.

Paderborn Dolphins – 2023 record – 3-9

In their second season in Germany’s top league, expect improvement from the Dolphins. They won three of their first six games in 2023 but then collapsed completely and could not find the win column again.

Hildesheim Invaders – 2023 record – 10-0 GFL2 – Promoted to GFL

 

 

 

 

 

The Invaders return to the GFL after a four year hiatus. In 2019, Hildesheim finished third in the GFL North but following the COVID non-playing season, did not return. They dropped down to the 3rd division but had a meteoric rise through the GFL2 and in 2023 did not lose a game to qualify for promotion. This could be an interesting year for the Invaders.