NFL Europe League was a professional American football league that functioned as the developmental minor league of the National Football League (NFL). Originally founded in 1989 as the World League of American Football, the league was envisioned as a transatlantic league encompassing teams from both North America and Europe. Initially, the WLAF consisted of seven teams in North America and three in Europe. It began play in 1991 and lasted for two seasons before suspending operations; while the league had been "wildly popular" in Europe, it failed to achieve success in North America. After a two-year hiatus, it returned as a six-team European league, with teams based in England, Germany, the Netherlands, Scotland, and Spain. NFL Europa was dissolved in 2007 due to its continued unprofitability and the NFL's decision to shift its focus towards hosting regular-season games in Europe; at the time of its closure, the league consisted of five German teams and one team based in the Netherlands.
The Scottish Claymores, known in shorthand as Scotland, were an American football team based in Scotland. The franchise played in the World League of American Football between 1995 and 2004, initially playing all home games at Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh and latterly sharing home games with Hampden Park, Glasgow. In ten seasons of NFL Europe play, the Claymores reached the World Bowl on two occasions, with victory in World Bowl '96 but defeat in World Bowl 2000. Their name derives from that of the Claymore, a double-edged sword historically used in Scottish clan warfare. One notable player was Gavin Hastings, a Scottish rugby international who was used as a place kicker in 1996.
The Amsterdam Admirals were a professional American football team based in Amsterdam, Netherlands, playing in the NFL Europe.
The Hamburg Sea Devils were an American football team that played in NFL Europe from 2005 to 2007. They played their home games at Hamburg's Volksparkstadion.
The 2007 Rhein Fire season was the 13th and final season for the franchise in the NFL Europa League (NFLEL). The team was led by head coach Rick Lantz in his first year, and played its home games at LTU arena in Düsseldorf, Germany. They finished the season in fourth place with a record of four wins and six losses. The National Football League (NFL) announced the closure of its European branch on June 29, ending the team's 13-year existence.
The 1995 Rhein Fire season was the inaugural season for the franchise in the World League of American Football (WLAF). The team was led by head coach Galen Hall, and played its home games at Rheinstadion in Düsseldorf, Germany. They finished the regular season in fifth place with a record of four wins and six losses.
The 1997 Rhein Fire season was the third season for the franchise in the World League of American Football (WLAF). The team was led by head coach Galen Hall in his third year, and played its home games at Rheinstadion in Düsseldorf, Germany. They finished the regular season in first place with a record of seven wins and three losses, marking the first winning season in franchise history. In World Bowl '97, Rhein lost to the Barcelona Dragons 38–24. Quarterback T. J. Rubley earned all-World League honors and was named the league's offensive most valuable player.
The 1998 Rhein Fire season was the fourth season for the franchise in the NFL Europe League (NFLEL). The team was led by head coach Galen Hall in his fourth year, and played its home games at Rheinstadion in Düsseldorf, Germany. They finished the regular season in second place with a record of seven wins and three losses. Rhein won the first championship in team history by defeating the Frankfurt Galaxy 34–10 in World Bowl '98.
The 1997 Frankfurt Galaxy season was the fifth season for the franchise in the World League of American Football (WLAF). The team was led by head coach Ernie Stautner in his third year, and played its home games at Waldstadion in Frankfurt, Germany. They finished the regular season in fifth place with a record of four wins and six losses.
The 1998 Frankfurt Galaxy season was the sixth season for the franchise in the NFL Europe League (NFLEL). The team was led by head coach Dick Curl in his first year, and played its home games at Waldstadion in Frankfurt, Germany. They finished the regular season in first place with a record of seven wins and three losses. In World Bowl '98, Frankfurt lost to the Rhein Fire 34–10.
The 1997 London Monarchs season was the fifth season for the franchise in the World League of American Football (WLAF). The team was led by head coach Lionel Taylor in his second year, and played its home games at Stamford Bridge in London, England. They finished the regular season in sixth place with a record of four wins and six losses.
The 1995 Frankfurt Galaxy season was the third season for the franchise in the World League of American Football (WLAF). The team was led by head coach Ernie Stautner in his first year, and played its home games at Waldstadion in Frankfurt, Germany. They finished the regular season in second place with a record of six wins and four losses. In World Bowl '95, Frankfurt defeated the Amsterdam Admirals 26–22. The victory marked the franchise's first World Bowl championship.
The 1995 London Monarchs season was the third season for the franchise in the World League of American Football (WLAF). The team was led by head coach Bobby Hammond in his first year, and played its home games at White Hart Lane in London, England. They finished the regular season in fourth place with a record of four wins and six losses.
The 1997 Amsterdam Admirals season was the third season for the franchise in the World League of American Football (WLAF). The team was led by head coach Al Luginbill in his third year, and played its home games at Amsterdam ArenA in Amsterdam, Netherlands. They finished the regular season in fourth place with a record of five wins and five losses.
James Arellanes is a former professional American football player who was a quarterback in the NFL Europe League (NFLEL), the Arena Football League (AFL), and the XFL. He played for the Rhein Fire of the NFLEL, the Carolina Cobras and Florida Bobcats of the AFL, and the Orlando Rage of the XFL. Arellanes played collegiately at Los Angeles Valley College before transferring to Fresno State.
The 1995 World League of American Football season was the third season of the professional American football league organized by the NFL. It was the league's first season with six teams based only in Europe.
The 1997 World League of American Football season was the fifth campaign of the WLAF professional American football league, and the third under its six-team Europe-only format. World Bowl '97 was won by the Barcelona Dragons, whose quarterback was Jon Kitna, then on the roster of the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL.
The 2000 NFL Europe season was the eighth season in 10 years of the American football league that started out as the World League of American Football.
The 2003 NFL Europe season was the 11th season in 13 years of the American Football league that started out as the World League of American Football. Three NFL Europe teams had new homes for 2003, Berlin Thunder at Berlin's Olympic Stadium, the F.C. Barcelona Dragons at Mini Estadi, and the Rhein Fire, at Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen.
The European League of Football (ELF) is a professional American football league based in Europe, continuing some team names and logos of the former NFL Europe. The ELF played its first season in 2021, and has 16 teams in the upcoming 2025 season. Teams are located in Germany, Austria, Spain, Poland, Italy, Switzerland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, France and Denmark with plans to expand.
