By Europe’s Elite
Imagine at the end of each youth season, the champions of each country played in one more football game against the champion of their neighboring country as part of a European wide tournament.
A simple extension of the season by a maximum of three games to claim that your U19 team is not only the best in your country , but all of Europe. As we know the American football community within this continent is fairly small. But earning bragging rights like this would be an unforgettable moment.
Most countries do not compete during the same time of the year, which would make organizing this kind of competition challenging. The reasons for this varies due to issues with weather, conflict of schedule with adult teams, lack of officials, and many more. But as already proven by the U19 European Championship tournament that is hosted every two years, the ideal time to host a tournament like this would be in the summer months of July and August.
The idea of this tournament would be to provide teams with more opportunities to compete at the international level. Giving young athletes the chance to compete against other athlete their own age with their club team rather than just national team competition. Teams from Germany, France, Sweden, Norway, Austria, Spain and all other countries within Europe would be eligible.
Over the past 6 months several U19 American Football teams have proven to have an argument to be in a tournament like this. Many of us are itching to see teams such as the NFL Academy compete against well known programs such as the Vienna Vikings of Austria , the Cologne Crocodiles of Germany, or RIG Academy of Sweden. But there are still several programs in Europe who were not listed on our tournament graphic whom are worth mentioning. Teams such as the Fursty Razorbacks of Germany , Flash De La Courneuve of France , the Oslo Vikings of Norway, and the Hamburg Huskies of Germany are just a few competitive teams that come to mind.
However, if previous years are of any indication, a tournament like this is still unlikely to happen in the near future. Some league schedules , cost of travel, limited field spaces , and conflict of schedules would make this difficult to happen. This does not remove the idea that an event on this scale would be a huge step forward for American Football in Europe. Seeing as the European League of Football has challenged the way football is organized at the men’s level, maybe it is time we start to push some boundaries at the U19 level as well. This would create an opportunity to crown the true champion in Europe’s Elite top 25 teams year in and year out.
Seeing as this is a mythical event a set venue has not been selected. But If this we were able to select a stadium to host the championship game, the small town of Innsbruck, Austria could be a great location. At the end of 2020 a brand new multi-million dollar American football center was built, that would remind many football fans of a small piece of heaven on earth.
American Football Zentrum in Innsbruck Austria. Photo Credit to Swarco Raiders