According to Stephan Pront in his blog on American football in Holland, the Dutch 2016 champion Amsterdam Crusaders have announced they have accepted an invitation to play in the Big6 tournament in 2017.
Regarded as the premier club tournament in Europe, the Big6 has featured six of the top teams in Austria, Germany and France since its inception in 2014. The AFI Europe #1 and German champion Braunschweig New Yorker Lions won the tournament in 2016 defeating the Swarco Raiders, Austrian champions in the final.
According to the president of the Crusaders, Paul van der Kolff the invitation came as a surprise:
“The request still came a bit like a bolt from the blue. We were however showered with compliments about the steps we took last season, and that our improvement internationally had not gone unnoticed. But that this would lead to such a great opportunity to be able to compete at the highest level and possibly in the Euro Bowl, was a pleasant surprise. The request fits very well with the ambitions of the club and comes at the right time. This will have a positive effect for our entire association, the men’s team down to the peewees.”
The Big6 tournament is played in two groups of three teams each with the winners of both pools playing each other in the Eurobowl final. In fact, the Crusaders won the Eurobowl final in 1992. The remaining five teams in the 2017 tournament have not been announced yet.