The Ingolstadt Dukes are a German
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...
team from
Ingolstadt
Ingolstadt (, Austro-Bavarian: ) is an independent city on the Danube in Upper Bavaria with 139,553 inhabitants (as of June 30, 2022). Around half a million people live in the metropolitan area. Ingolstadt is the second largest city in Upper Ba ...
,
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total l ...
.
The club, formed in 2007, experienced its greatest success in 2016 when it won promotion to the
German Football League
The German Football League (GFL) is an American football league in Germany and was formed in 1979. Playing rules are based on those of the American NCAA. In 1999, the league switched its name from ''American-Football-Bundesliga'' to ''German Foot ...
, the top tier of league football in Germany.
History
The Ingolstadt Dukes were formed on 8 October 2007 at the club house of TV 1861 Ingolstadt, which became the parent organisation for the American football club. The early seasons of the new club were spent in nearby
Manching
Manching is a municipality in the district of Pfaffenhofen, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated on the river Paar, 7 km southeast of Ingolstadt. In the late Iron Age, there was a Celtic settlement, the Oppidum of Manching, on the location ...
as the Dukes were unable to secure a permanent home in Ingolstadt.
The Dukes first season, in 2008, was spent in the tier eight Aufbauliga Bayern where it finished fourth and last in its division. It spent the following year in the Landesliga Bayern where it finished first and remained unbeaten all season. The club rose to the Verbandsliga for 2010, won this league, too, and played in the Bayernliga in 2011. After another league title there the Dukes entered the tier three
Regionalliga Süd from 2012. Three seasons at this level followed in which the club improved season by season.
[Historic American football tables and results from Germany]
football-history.de, accessed: 15 April 2015
In 2014, the Dukes won the Regionalliga, remaining unbeaten throughout and earned promotion to the
German Football League 2
The German Football League 2 (GFL2) is the second tier of American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players ...
for the first time after a play-off victory over Regionalliga Mitte runners-up
Langen Knights. The team finished second in the southern division of the GFL2 in 2015.
In 2016, the Dukes made their step to the German Football League.
At the end of their first season, 2017, the Dukes ranked 4th. In the playoff-quarterfinal the Dukes lost against Braunschweig Lions.
Logo and name
The club's logo results from the cities car number plates which start with ''In''. The club's name, the Dukes, comes from the fact that Ingolstadt was once the capital of the Duchy of
Bavaria-Ingolstadt
Bavaria-Ingolstadt ( or ') was a duchy which was part of the Holy Roman Empire from 1392 to 1447.
History
After the death of Stephen II in 1375, his sons Stephen III, Frederick, and John II jointly ruled Bavaria-Landshut. After seventeen yea ...
.
Honours
*
GFL
** Play-off qualification: 2017
** League membership: 2017–present
*
GFL2
** Champions: 2016, 2022
*
Regionalliga Süd
** Champions: 2014, 2021
* Bayernliga
** Champions: 2011
* Verbandsliga Bayern-Süd
** Champions: 2010
* Landesliga Bayern
** Champions: 2009
Recent seasons
Recent seasons of the Dukes:
3. Liga Süd 2014 tables and results
football-aktuell.de, accessed: 19 April 2015
* PR = Promotion round.
* QF = Quarter finals.
References
External links
*
Official website
*
German Football League official website
*
Football History
Historic American football tables from Germany
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ingolstadt Dukes
American football in Bavaria
German Football League teams
American football teams in Germany
American football teams established in 2007
2007 establishments in Germany
Dukes