TEN TEAMS STILL IN EUROPEAN PLAYOFF RACE
In its fifth season, the under-fire European League of Football is proving as competitive as ever at the top, with ten teams still harbouring realistic playoff ambitions through nine weeks of the 2025 campaign.
The league, which is facing criticism for lacking quality on the field and transparency at management level, puts six teams through to the postseason but, with division titles still up for grabs as well as two wildcard places, there is still much to play for between now and the middle of August.
Entering the final third of the regular season, only six franchises have had to abandon their playoff ambitions, with the three winless teams — Fehérvár Enthroners, Helvetic Mercenaries and Cologne Centurions — being joined by three clubs with ties back to the original NFL Europe, two of which have appeared in at least one ELF title game over the past four years. German sides Berlin Thunder, Frankfurt Galaxy and Hamburg Sea Devils complete the sextet who will definitely be watching September’s championship game at VfB Stuttgart’s MHP Arena from the sidelines, but who could still potentially trip up some of the remaining playoff contenders over the remaining weeks.
Newcomers Nordic Storm are currently shaking up the established order, with their defeat of reigning champions Rhein Fire at the weekend taking them to an unbeaten 7-0 record. The Scandinavian outfit is the only remaining unbeaten team, with last year’s beaten finalists Vienna Vikings (7-1), the Munich Ravens (7-1), and the Stuttgart Surge (6-2) also enjoying impressive seasons and appearing on course for their respective division crowns.
Six other teams have legitimate hopes of making the playoffs, however, and all have enjoyed their moments in the sun this year. The Paris Musketeers (5-3) and Raiders Tirol (5-3) have both, along with Vienna and Nordic, beaten Rhein this season, although the reigning champions (4-4) remain on course for at least a wildcard option and will remain a dangerous opponent for anyone in either the regular season or playoffs. The Madrid Bravos (5-3) and Panthers Wroclaw (5-3) remain firmly in the hunt for a postseason berth, with the Spanish side’s exciting offense deserving of an extended campaign if nothing else, while the season’s most pleasant surprise, the Prague Lions (4-4), share a similar record to the Fire and appear capable of upsetting the applecart more than once over the coming weeks, as almost every game looks to be a head-to-head with playoff relevance.
“I’ve been working since day one of the European League of Football to bring a great product to the field — and we’ve succeeded,” commissioner Patrick Esume claimed. “But this season is more exciting than ever. The ELF has matured athletically, the games have become even more intense and the competition is closer. That’s exactly what we want.”
Confusingly, despite their unbeaten status, Nordic Storm have not yet done enough to slide into a guaranteed bye week, with the Vikings and Ravens holding those spots after Week 9. Instead, the Storm would currently host Raiders Tirol at Gladsaxe Stadium in the first of the wildcard games, with Paris travelling to Stuttgart in the other. With the standings so closely packed at the top, however, these games are likely to change over the next few weeks, with Madrid, Wroclaw and, of course, Rhein all capable of making a postseason push.