The official goal for the season was no longer achievable, but the spectators didn’t give a damn. Many had come to the Munich Ravens’ last game of the season in costume, following the team management’s call for a “Bavarican” game day to be held, i.e. a Bavarian-American one. In the final seconds of the game against the Barcelona Dragons, a La Ola even sloshed over the stands of the Unterhachinger Sportpark, and the players were able to celebrate with 5,208 spectators. On the one hand for a clear 55:0, on the other hand for a premiere season in which you narrowly missed the playoffs, but also had more wins than losses, and above all: always offered a good show.
Head coach John Shoop, 54, stood near the halfway line after the game and called out several names to applause from fans. Markell Castle, for example. He has now accumulated the most yards from a pass receiver in the entire European League of Football (ELF), 1580, and leads that statistic by a huge margin. His partner Marvinrutsch has the most catches by a European player (76 in 12 games). Ball carrier Tomiwa Oyewo had easily broken the 1000-yard mark. By the way, the playoffs start next weekend, with Vienna and Düsseldorf being the favourites. The final in Duisburg on September 24 is almost sold out, more than 30,000 spectators are expected.
The head of the Munich Ravens cannot answer the question of the most valuable player. “Oh man, that’s like asking me about my favorite son,” said Shoop, who was a quarterback coach in the NFL. And then immediately emphasized again that the entire offensive line in front of the quarterback comes from Bavaria. Then the experienced coach sounds almost a little melancholy: “This is the last time the Ravens will be together in 2023. The team will look different next year.”
The Ravens have undoubtedly landed very well in Munich, their nest in Unterhaching is undoubtedly better suited for American football than the venerable but rugged Dantestadion, home of the traditional Munich Cowboys team in the German GFL league. Although the ELF can’t even come close to keeping up with its big brother NFL in terms of sport, the trappings are pompous by European standards. “People are interested in this event theme. Then we’ll see that we give them a little more of it next year,” says Ravens manager Sebastian Stolz.
One dreamed of an average of 5000 viewers, now one has actually achieved it. When asked whether this income already covers the expenses, Stolz quickly replies: “No, no, no. We don’t need to talk about that in the first year.” The ELF is a million-dollar business, and some have already fallen by the wayside. The fact that the Leipzig Kings had to stop playing in the middle of the season because a sponsor had dropped out can be seen as a warning signal. But probably not for the whole league. Because it is already clear that some locations are simply better suited for American football events than others.
The question remains whether a team like the Ravens needs identification figures in the long run
Munich, for example: Right away, the Ravens can proudly boast of having the third-best average attendance in the 17th league. On Sunday against Barcelona, they also dared to take a step towards a new fan culture: Between the football-typical guitar riffs and beats in the many breaks, there was also brass band music, and the Sunday in the home of the down-to-earth footballers from SpVgg Unterhaching seemed a bit like that a Oktoberfest warm-up program. Many young spectators came, families with small children, one or the other is already wearing a Ravens T-shirt in addition to the diaper. Apparently, this audience doesn’t mind being bombarded with a show that blurs the game with the supporting program. “There was always a good mood, no matter what the weather was like or how the game ended. That shows that Bayern is generally interested in football,” enthuses manager Stolz.
But the question remains whether a team like the Ravens doesn’t need identification figures in the long run. Discussions have already been held with the most important players, i.e. probably with those who were called over the stadium microphone. But who stays is completely open – two-year contracts are still the exception in the ELF. Stolz hopes to keep a “hard core”. But not even the whereabouts of Robert Werner, the Munich football veteran, is certain. The professional structures of the league are taking their toll, Werner’s family lives in Leipzig, for some others, says the 35-year-old, this Ravens season may have been a highlight before the end of their career. It was simply “sensational” how the audience accepted the team. He reports how the training level of the German players has improved with the ELF.
At the same time, Werner does away with a cliché: “Nobody does it here because of the money, you just want to compete with the best.” The ELF has now made this platform possible. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t root for your former team anymore. Werner is just one of around a dozen players who have left the Munich Cowboys. And they received Ravensburg on Saturday in what was probably a decisive game for last place. “The last thing I want is for this new team,” the Ravens, “to suffer so badly that you’re relegated.” He’s a cowboy at heart. But someone who moved on to broaden his horizons.
