Frankfurter Löwen
| Founded | 1977 |
|---|---|
| League | American Football Bundesliga (1979–1984) |
| Team history | Folded in 1985 |
| Based in | Frankfurt, Germany |
| Championships | German Bowl: 1979, 1980 |
| Division titles | AFB North: 1980, 1981 |
The Frankfurter Löwen (English: Frankfurt Lions) were an American football team from Frankfurt, Germany.
The Löwen were the first American football club to be formed in Germany. The club, a founding member of the American Football Bundesliga, was also the winner of the first two editions of the German Bowl. However, the club was short-lived, folding in 1985. It was the last team to represent Frankfurt at the GFL level for over three decades before Frankfurt Universe earned promotion to the top tier after the 2015 season.
The history of American football in Germany, outside the US Army bases in the country, began in 1977, when the Frankfurter Löwen were formed as the first club to play the game in Germany. At first, this team was only able to play US Army teams, lacking German opposition. The driving force behind the formation of the club was Alexander Sperber, son of an U.S. Army soldier and a German mother.
In 1979, the American Football Bundesliga, later to be renamed the German Football League, was formed, consisting of six clubs, the Frankfurter Löwen, Ansbach Grizzlies, Düsseldorf Panther, Munich Cowboys, Berlin Bears and Bremerhaven Seahawks. The first official game of the league was played on 4 August 1979, between the Löwen and the Düsseldorf Panther, and ended in a victory for Frankfurt.
The Löwen were an early power house of the game in Germany. The first season was completed undefeated, culminating in a German Bowl victory over the Ansbach Grizzlies, the team it would face in all three editions of the German Bowl it played in.
While the club was able to repeat its championship the following year, with the league now split into a northern and a southern division, Ansbach finally managed to triumph in 1981. Frankfurt won its division, the northern, which it played in despite being a rather central German club, but was stopped by the Grizzlies in the final. While the Grizzlies continued to play in the German Bowl until 1986, the short golden era of the Löwen had come thereby to a halt.
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