RAMS CHASING ‘IMMEDIATE SUCCESS’

The all-new Alpine Rams franchise is setting itself high targets for the inaugural American Football League Europe campaign, by aiming to follow in the footsteps of other illustrious newcomers.

With erstwhile European League of Football battlers, the Helvetic Mercenaries, now plying their trade in the national league, the Rams are Switzerland’s only representative on the continental stage in 2026 and, despite having only been formed in the past six months, believe that they can make an immediate impact on The League: Europe.

“We see a great opportunity to succeed with the players we have brought together from the Alpine region of Switzerland and France, combined with a very experienced coaching staff,” general manager Joshua Fitzgerald, who finished the 2025 season as both GM and head coach of the Mercenaries, commented. “Our goal is clear: we want to win the championship.”

Fitzgerald picked two teams who achieved instant acclaim in the ELF as his measure for the coming season, citing 2025 newcomers Nordic Storm — who reached the ELF semi-finals at the first attempt — and the Vienna Vikings, last year’s losing finalists but overall winners in their debut 2022 campaign, as inspiration for his young squad.

“Teams like Nordic Storm have shown that immediate success is possible, so why not us?” Fitzgerald insisted. “Of course, we look to strong organisations like the Vienna Vikings as a benchmark, and we also expect tough competition from teams such as Rhein Fire, Berlin and the new franchises. However, we are confident that we have built the right structure during the offseason to be competitive early in the season.

“Our vision for this year is to be better than ever, for our team, for Swiss football and for our community. We want to deliver a strong product on the field and create a great game-day experience for our fans.”