FIRED-UP RHEIN AIMING FOR DOUBLE OVER PARIS

Duisburg will be ablaze this Sunday, as home team Rhein Fire face the Paris Musketeers just three weeks after playing out a close encounter on the opening weekend of the 2025 European League of Football campaign.

The German side emerged as 17-15 victors in the French capital, but the Musketeers gave them all they could handle, and have since gone on to beat — and shut out — the Stuttgart Surge before going down to another two-point defeat in dramatic fashion on the road in Frankfurt last week. As a result, no-one on the Fire roster is taking things for granted this time around, especially having lost on home soil, albeit in Düsseldorf, to the Vienna Vikings last Sunday.

“It’s going to get even tougher,” Rhein wide receivers coach Mario Schulz said of their upcoming opponent. “Paris is a very well-coached team. We all want to see exciting games, and now we just have to make sure we get one more point [than them]… then everything will be fine.

“The [Vienna] loss hurt, but you learn from your mistakes — even if you work hard, you sometimes make mistakes. Now we’re on point — and we’ll perform!”

The head coach of the Paris Musketeers is probably the most well-known figure in the ELF for many fans, as Jack Del Rio filled similar positions at the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars and Oakland Raiders. The Musketeers’ active roster includes a who’s who of French football — which is strong by European standards — including wide receiver Anthony Mahoungou, who won the 2023 ELF ‘Perfect Season’ championship with the Fire.

Rhein currently sits second in the North Division with a 1-1 record, having been on a bye week between the win in Paris and last weekend’s disappointment against Vienna. Another win over the Musketeers could keep them close to the division leaders, prior to having to play the currently undefeated Nordic Storm, who a bye this weekend.

The game, at Duisburg’s Schauinsland-Reisen-Arena, kicks off at 1pm local, but stadium gates will open at 10am for the start of the popular Fire Party. In addition to a stage programme featuring live music, performances by the Pyromaniacs and the Flight Crew Cheerleaders, as well as numerous activity and food stands, Duisburg Zoo will also be present for the first time. Children can have animal faces painted at the Fire Party, and there are chances to win free tickets for their next zoo visit on the Wheel of Fortune, as well as interactive modules from the zoo exhibition to be experienced.

“Duisburg is truly on fire and everyone should experience it on game day,” Fire GM Max Paatz commented.