On Sunday, August 6, Team Austria will face the defending champions, Team Italy, in the semifinals of the 2023 IFAF Men’s European Championship.
Nine months ago, the Austrian national team steamrolled Hungry 41–0 to earn themselves a place in the IFAF European Championship semifinal. They will now be coming into that semifinal as competition favorites with 41 of the 45 on their roster currently playing the European League of Football.
Offense
Quarterbacking the national team will be veteran Alexander Thury who is fresh off another Austrian Football League title with the Danube Dragons. Thury will undoubtedly have the most talented and deepest receiving corps in Europe with Florian Bierbaumer, Philipp Haun, Yannick Mayr, Adrian Platzgummer and Anton Wegan. Their backfield and offensive line are nothing short of remarkable either.
Defense
On the defensive side of the ball there are a number of standouts in the secondary such as Matthias Rebl and Paul Schachner who have dominated in Austria for years as well as Austrian-American Benjamin Straight. We will of course be seeing the hard hitting Ogbevoen (Lucky and Precious) brothers again at linebacker as well as electric edge rusher Jan-Phillip Bombek.
Watch the game live. Team Italy @ Team Austria, Aug. 6, 17:00 CET (5 pm, 11 am EDT)
