The BIG6 European Football League (BIG6) was a
European Cup
The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by top-division European clubs. The competition begins with a round robi ...
style tournament for European
American football
American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...
teams. Originally organized by the
EFAF (European Federation of American Football), the tournament had been run by the
German Football League International since 2015. The final game of the BIG6 was called the EFL Bowl from 2014-2018. Previously the final game of the
European Football League
The European Football League (EFL) established in 1986, was a tournament for the best European American football
American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a ...
was called the
Eurobowl and had been held annually since 1986 to 2014.
History

In 2014, the newly created BIG6 European Football League was introduced as the new top-tier competition of American football in Europe, replacing the old
European Football League
The European Football League (EFL) established in 1986, was a tournament for the best European American football
American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a ...
(EFL). The EFL continued to be played as a second-tier competition, with its teams now playing for the newly created EFL Bowl trophy instead of the
Eurobowl.
The BIG6 initially consisted of three teams from Germany, two from Austria and one from Switzerland, the clubs being
Berlin Adler,
New Yorker Lions,
Dresden Monarchs,
Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna,
Swarco Raiders Tirol and the
Calanda Broncos. The Berlin Adler became inaugural BIG6 champions, defeating fellow German club New Yorker Lions 20–17 in Eurobowl XXVIII.
For the 2015 season, Dresden and the Calanda Broncos were replaced by the
Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns (Germany) and the
La Courneuve Flash (France), making La Courneuve the first team from outside of
German-speaking Europe
This article details the geographical distribution of speakers of the German language, regardless of the legislative status within the countries where it is spoken. In addition to the Germanosphere () in Europe, German-speaking minority languag ...
to enter the competition. In Eurobowl XXIX, the New Yorker Lions defeated fellow German club Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns 24–14.
For the 2016 season, the Flash were replaced by fellow French club
Aix-en-Provence Argonautes. The 2016 season saw the first time that a non-German team survived the group stage when the Swarco Raiders Tirol knocked out the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns in the last group match to advance to Eurobowl XXX against the New Yorker Lions. In the final in Innsbruck, the Lions defeated the Raiders 35–21.
Before the 2017 season, both Austrian clubs left the BIG6. Aside from founding members New Yorker Lions, the league's management invited the
Amsterdam Crusaders (Netherlands), the
Carlstad Crusaders (Sweden), the
Frankfurt Universe (Germany), the
Milano Seamen (Italy) and one team from Berlin (either founding members Berlin Adler or the
Berlin Rebels
The Berlin Rebels are an American football team from Berlin, Germany.
The team is playing in the German Football League, the highest level of American football in Germany. In the most recent seasons the Rebels managed to qualify for the play-off ...
) to join the league for the new season. However, Carlstad's participation was vetoed by the Swedish American Football Federation. On 1 February 2017, it was announced that the Amsterdam Crusaders, the
Badalona Dracs (Spain), the Berlin Rebels, the Frankfurt Universe, the Milano Seamen and the New Yorker Lions would be the six teams to compete in the 2017 BIG6 European Football League. From 2017 on, the last placed team of the BIG6 may have to play a relegation game against the winners of the
EFL Bowl, and be
relegated
Promotion and relegation is used by sports leagues as a process where teams can move up and down among divisions in a league system, based on their performance over a season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are sometimes call ...
to the EFL if they lose.
Regulations for Club-Team Competitions
eurobowl.efaf.info, published: 15 October 2016, accessed: 2 November 2016 So far, this rule was never applied.
For the 2018 season, which was the league's last, the BIG6 was reduced to four teams.
Teams
Former teams
Eurobowl Champions
For a list of champions by year (1986-2018), see Eurobowl.
See also
* Eurobowl
* EFAF
Notes
References
External links
BIG6 European Football League
{{European Football Leagues
European Football League
Sports leagues established in 2014
2014 establishments in Europe