2022 German Football League

2022 German Football League
LeagueGerman Football League
SportAmerican football
Duration21 May – 2 October
Number of teams16
Relegated to GFL2Düsseldorf Panther, Frankfurt Universe
Regular season
GFL North championsPotsdam Royals (1)
GFL South championsSchwäbisch Hall Unicorns (12)
German Bowl XLIII
ChampionsSchwäbisch Hall Unicorns (5)
  Runners-upPotsdam Royals
Finals MVPReilly Hennessey
GFL seasons

The 2022 German Football League season is the 43rd edition of the top-level American football competition in Germany.

The regular season started on 21 May and ended on 28 August 2022, followed by the play-offs.[1] The season culminated in the German Bowl XLIII, which was held on 2 October 2022 in Frankfurt, where the north champion Potsdam Royals met the south champion Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns. The Unicorns won their 5th German title with a 44–27 victory.

Modus

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Location of teams in the German Football League 2022

The league is divided in two conferences, north and south, and both conferences are divided in two divisions. During the regular season each club plays all other clubs in its division twice, home and away, and the teams of the other division of its conference once, resulting in each team playing 10 regular season games.[2][1]

The best four teams in each conference qualify for the play-offs where, in the quarter-finals, teams from opposite conferences play each other, whereby the better placed teams have home field advantage. The first placed team plays the fourth placed from the other conference and the second placed the third placed team. From the semi-finals onwards teams from the same conference can meet again.[1]

The eighth placed team in the southern conference enters a two-leg play-off with the winner of the respective conference of the German Football League 2, the second tier of the league system in Germany. The winner of this contest qualifies for the GFL for the following season.[1]

League tables

GFL

The league tables of the two GFL divisions:

North

Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD PCT Qualification or relegation
1 Potsdam Royals 10 10 0 0 514 278 +236 1.000 Qualification to play-offs
2 New Yorker Lions 10 6 2 2 337 225 +112 .700
3 Cologne Crocodiles 10 7 0 3 386 243 +143 .700
4 Berlin Adler 10 6 0 4 326 318 +8 .600
5 Dresden Monarchs 10 4 0 6 265 257 +8 .400
6 Berlin Rebels 10 3 1 6 348 371 −23 .350
7 Kiel Baltic Hurricanes 10 2 1 7 179 311 −132 .250
8 Düsseldorf Panther 10 0 0 10 67 419 −352 .000 Relegation play-offs to GFL2
Source: GFL.info, football-aktuell.de

South

Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD PCT Qualification or relegation
1 Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns 10 10 0 0 437 148 +289 1.000 Qualification to play-offs
2 Munich Cowboys 10 8 1 1 303 176 +127 .850
3 Allgäu Comets 10 6 0 4 391 291 +100 .600
4 Straubing Spiders 10 6 0 4 339 307 +32 .600
5 Saarland Hurricanes 10 4 0 6 348 302 +46 .400
6 Marburg Mercenaries 10 4 0 6 225 255 −30 .400
7 Ravensburg Razorbacks 10 1 1 8 270 402 −132 .150
8 Frankfurt Universe 10 0 0 10 124 556 −432 .000 Relegation play-offs to GFL2
Source: GFL.info, football-aktuell.de

GFL2

The league tables of the two GFL2 divisions:

North

Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD PCT Qualification or relegation
1 Paderborn Dolphins 10 8 0 2 234 144 +90 .800 Qualification to promotion play-off
2 Langenfeld Longhorns 10 8 0 2 349 185 +164 .800
3 Hildesheim Invaders 10 7 0 3 396 267 +129 .700
4 Lübeck Cougars 10 7 0 3 292 254 +38 .700
5 Rostock Griffins 10 4 0 6 264 232 +32 .400
6 Solingen Paladins 10 3 0 7 235 292 −57 .300
7 Assindia Cardinals 10 3 0 7 177 259 −82 .300 Relegation to Regionalliga
8 Hamburg Huskies 10 0 0 10 153 467 −314 .000
Source: football-aktuell.de, gfl.info
Rules for classification: 1) Winning percentage, 2) Head-to-head results

South

Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD PCT Qualification or relegation
1 Ingolstadt Dukes 10 10 0 0 445 147 +298 1.000 Qualification to promotion play-off
2 Kirchdorf Wildcats 10 8 0 2 346 116 +230 .800
3 Bad Homburg Sentinels 10 7 0 3 279 184 +95 .700
4 Gießen Golden Dragons 10 6 0 4 341 222 +119 .600
5 Fursty Razorbacks 10 5 0 5 263 145 +118 .500
6 Stuttgart Scorpions 10 3 0 7 136 261 −125 .300
7 Wiesbaden Phantoms 10 1 0 9 177 407 −230 .100 Relegation to Regionalliga
8 Frankfurt Pirates 10 0 0 10 70 575 −505 .000
Source: football-aktuell.de, gfl.info
Rules for classification: 1) Winning percentage, 2) Head-to-head results

Postseason

Relegation and Promotion round

Division GFL Team GFL2 Team 1st leg 2nd leg Total
North Düsseldorf Panther Paderborn Dolphins 7–13 13–8 20–21

In the Southern Division the Frankfurt Universe withdrew from playing the relegation game against Ingolstadt Dukes.

Playoffs

Quarterfinals Semifinals German Bowl XLIII
         
N1 Potsdam Royals 66
S4 Straubing Spiders 25
N1 Potsdam Royals 49
N3 Cologne Crocodiles 21
S2 Munich Cowboys 31
N3 Cologne Crocodiles 34
N1 Potsdam Royals 27
S1 Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns 44
S1 Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns 35
N4 Berlin Adler 21
S1 Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns 33
S3 Allgäu Comets 8
N2 New Yorker Lions 10
S3 Allgäu Comets 14

References

  1. ^ a b c d "ERIMA German Football League". stats.gfl.info (in German). Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  2. ^ "2022 startet die GFL am 21. Mai mit 32 Teams in die Saison" (in German). 16 December 2021. Retrieved 5 January 2022.