Ingolstadt Dukes

Last updated
Ingolstadt Dukes
Ingolstadt Dukes.png
Founded2007
League German Football League
Based in Ingolstadt
ColorsWhite and Black
  
OwnerTV 1861 Ingolstadt
PresidentBettina Ritter
Head coachEugen Haaf
Website in-dukes.de

The Ingolstadt Dukes are a German American football team from Ingolstadt, Bavaria.

Contents

The club, formed in 2007, experienced its greatest success in 2016 when it won promotion to the German Football League, the top tier of league football in Germany.

History

The Ingolstadt Dukes were formed on 8 October 2007 at the club house of TV 1861 Ingolstadt, which became the parent organisation for the American football club. The early seasons of the new club were spent in nearby Manching as the Dukes were unable to secure a permanent home in Ingolstadt. [1]

The Dukes first season, in 2008, was spent in the tier eight Aufbauliga Bayern where it finished fourth and last in its division. It spent the following year in the Landesliga Bayern where it finished first and remained unbeaten all season. The club rose to the Verbandsliga for 2010, won this league, too, and played in the Bayernliga in 2011. After another league title there the Dukes entered the tier three Regionalliga Süd from 2012. Three seasons at this level followed in which the club improved season by season. [2]

In 2014, the Dukes won the Regionalliga, remaining unbeaten throughout and earned promotion to the German Football League 2 for the first time after a play-off victory over Regionalliga Mitte runners-up Langen Knights. The team finished second in the southern division of the GFL2 in 2015. [2]

In 2016, the Dukes made their step to the German Football League.

At the end of their first season, 2017, the Dukes ranked 4th. In the playoff-quarterfinal the Dukes lost against Braunschweig Lions.

Logo and name

The club's logo results from the cities car number plates which start with In. The club's name, the Dukes, comes from the fact that Ingolstadt was once the capital of the Duchy of Bavaria-Ingolstadt. [3]

Honours

Recent seasons

Recent seasons of the Dukes: [4]

YearDivisionFinishPointsPct.GamesWDLPFPAPostseason
2012 Regionalliga Süd 3rd10–100.50010505307176
20132nd16–40.80010802366114Lost PR: Holzgerlingen Twister (6–6 & 23–24)
20141st24–01.000121200521195Won PR: Langen Knights (42–25 & 53–7)
2015 GFL2 (South)2nd22–60.786141103476182
2016 1st28–01.000141400565169Won PR: Rhein-Neckar Bandits (41–6 & 60–0)
2017 GFL (South)4th14–140.50014707399406Lost QF: New Yorker Lions (6–47)
2018 6th9–190.32114419350401
2019 5th10–180.35714509298433
2020 No season played because of the COVID-19 pandemic
2021Regionalliga Süd1st12–01.0006600282119Won PR: Gießen Golden Dragons (35–22)
Won PR: Pforzheim Wilddogs (48–0)
2022 GFL2 (South)1st20–01.000101000445147Won PR: Frankfurt Universe (withdrew)
2023 GFL (South)4th12–120.5001266387340Lost QF: Potsdam Royals (0–54)
2024 [5] Landesliga Bayern (5th)

Players

The current kicker and punter for the Dukes is Zane Davis, from Charlotte, North Carolina. [6] He is currently attending UNC Chapel Hill.

References

  1. History Archived 2015-02-25 at the Wayback Machine (in German) Ingolstadt Dukes website, accessed: 15 April 2015
  2. 1 2 Historic American football tables and results from Germany Archived 2017-09-28 at the Wayback Machine (in German) football-history.de, accessed: 15 April 2015
  3. Das Logo der Ingolstadt Dukes (in German) Ingolstadt Dukes website, accessed: 19 April 2015
  4. 3. Liga Süd 2014 tables and results football-aktuell.de, accessed: 19 April 2015
  5. "Ingolstadt Dukes informieren über Rückzugspläne" (in German). GFL. Retrieved 2024-08-26.
  6. "US-Quintett für die Ingolstadt Dukes". football-aktuell. Retrieved 2023-05-21.