Rhein Fire (ELF)
| Rhein Fire | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Current season | |||||||||||
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| General information | |||||||||||
| Founded | 2021 | ||||||||||
| Headquartered |  Düsseldorf, Germany | ||||||||||
| Colors | Maroon, Black, Gold, White[1] | ||||||||||
| Personnel | |||||||||||
| Owners | Rene Engel Daniel Thywissen Martin Wagner Markus Fong Dirk Reiner Ottogerd Karasch David Wallen Andre Missing Mirko Kürten | ||||||||||
| General manager | Christoph Lörcks | ||||||||||
| Head coach | Mark Ridgley | ||||||||||
| Team history | |||||||||||
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| Home fields | |||||||||||
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| League / conference affiliations | |||||||||||
European League of Football (2022–2025)
American Football League Europe (2026–present)
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| Championships | |||||||||||
| League championships: 2 2023, 2024 | |||||||||||
| Conference championships: 3 Western: 2023 2024 North/West: 2026 | |||||||||||
| Playoff appearances (4) | |||||||||||
| 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026 | |||||||||||
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The Rhein Fire are an American football team in Düsseldorf, Germany, which plays in the American Football League Europe, and formerly competed in the European League of Football after being added as an expansion team during the 2022 ELF season.
History
[edit]European League of Football (2022-2025)
[edit]On 25 September 2021, the Rhein Fire was announced as the third expansion and 11th overall team to play in the European League of Football beginning in the 2022 season.[2] The team would be taking the identity of the former NFL Europe team, after the league reached an agreement before the 2021 season with the NFL for the naming rights. In the 2022 pre-season, the management announced that the former NFL Europe Rhein Fire head coach Jim Tomsula would also be the first head coach of the Rhein Fire in the European League of Football.[3]
In the 2022 season, the Fire finished with a 7–5 record, second in the Southern Conference and one game out of a Wildcard spot. In their second season, the Rhein Fire become the first team in ELF history to finish with a perfect season, going 12–0 in the regular season and winning the ELF Championship Game over the Stuttgart Surge 53–34.[4] Fire quarterback Jadrian Clark was named Most Valuable Player of the regular season and championship game. The Fire would win their second-straight ELF championship in 2024, beating the undefeated Vienna Vikings 51–20. Jadrian Clark won his second ELF Championship Game MVP, while Fire running back Glen Toonga was named Most Valuable Player of the 2024 season.
Following the 2024 season, both Clark and Toonga, as well as quarterback coach John Shoop would depart the Fire for the expansion Nordic Storm. Head coach Jim Tomsula announced he would not return for the 2025 season, citing personal needs.[5] The Rhein Fire finished the 2025 season with an 8–4 record, finishing second in the North Division and qualifying for their third-straight postseason berth. The Fire would lose to the Nordic Storm in the Wildcard round, the first postseason loss in franchise history.[6]
American Football League Europe (2026-present)
[edit]Following the 2025 season, numerous teams left the European League of Football, citing a lack of transparency by the league's leadership as well as revenue shares not being paid to teams. Teams that formed the European Football Alliance could not agree upon a league structure, with several agreeing to a new structure with the ELF. However, other teams preferred creating a new league with an external investor. This league was publicly presented as the American Football League Europe on December 2, 2025.[7] On December 6, the AFLE announced the Rhein Fire as its first member.[8] The Fire will play in the North/West Conference for the 2026 season.[9]
On January 7, 2026, former Los Angeles Chargers' running backs coach Mark Ridgley was named the third head coach of the Fire.[10]
The Rhein Fire finished the 2026 AFLE season with a 10-2 season, winning the North/West Conference championship.[11] In the semifinal, the Panthers Wrocław eliminated the Fire scoring the go-ahead touchdown inside the two-minute warning to win the game 41-40.[12] Several days later, the AFLE announced that they were taking over a majority ownership of the franchise to prevent immediate insolvency and ensure playability beyond 2026.[13]
Season-by-season
[edit]| Name | Coach | Regular season | Postseason | Result | Ø Attendance | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Won | Lost | Win % | Finish | GP | Won | Lost | Win % | ||||
| 2022 | Jim Tomsula | 12 | 7 | 5 | .583 | 2nd (Southern) | DNQ | 8,755 | ||||
| 2023 | 12 | 12 | 0 | 1.000 | 1st (Western) | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1.000 | ELF Champion | 9,814 | |
| 2024 | 12 | 11 | 1 | .917 | 1st (Western) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | ELF Champion | 10,786 | |
| 2025 | Richard Kent | 12 | 8 | 4 | .667 | 2nd (North) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.000 | Lost Wildcard to Nordic | 10,205 |
| 2026 | Mark Ridgley | 12 | 10 | 2 | .833 | 1st (North/West) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.000 | Lost Semifinal to Wrocław | |
| Total | 60 | 48 | 12 | 0.800 | - | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0.714 | - | 9,890 | |
Stadium
[edit]The stadium is the Schauinsland-Reisen-Arena in Duisburg with a capacity for 31,500 people. The venue is shared with MSV Duisburg of the third tier German association football league.
Honors
[edit]Team
[edit]League Championship
| Season | Coach | Location | Opponent | Score | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 |  Jim Tomsula |
MSV-Arena (Duisburg) | Stuttgart Surge | 53–34 | 12–0 |
| 2024 | Ventins-Arena (Gelsenkirchen) | Vienna Vikings | 51–20 | 11–1 |
Conference/Division Championships
| Season | Coach | Division | Record |
| 2023 | Jim Tomsula |
Western | 12–0 |
| 2024 | 11–1 | ||
| 2026 | Mark Ridgley | North/West | 10-2 |
Players
[edit]| Honor | Player Name | Season |
|---|---|---|
| ELF Most Valuable Player | Jadrian Clark |
2023[14] |
 Glen Toonga |
2024[15] | |
| AFLE Defensive Player of the Year | Nazir Streater |
2026[16] |
| AFLE Most Improved DPOY |  Diego Paz González |
2026[16] |
| AFLE Offensive Lineman of the Year | Sven Breidenbach |
2026[16] |
Coaches
[edit]| Honor | Coach Name | Season |
|---|---|---|
| ELF Coach of the Year | Jim Tomsula |
2023 |
| ELF Assistant Coach of the Year | Andrew Weidinger |
2023 |
| Richard Kent |
2024 |
References
[edit]- ↑ "CREATING THE NEW LOGO".
- ↑ Alex Malchow (26 September 2021). "ELF Expansion: Rhein Fire reignited". American Football International.
- Tim Hanswillemenke (25 September 2021). "New Franchise Announced: Düsseldorf Rhein Fire". European League Football. Archived from the original on 21 March 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2021. - ↑ "Jim Tomsula wird Rhein Fire Headcoach" [Jim Tomsula becomes Rhein Fire head coach]. Lokalbüro Düsseldorf (in German). 12 February 2022.
- ↑ "Rhein Fire are the 2023 European League of Football champions!". European League of Football. 24 September 2023.
- ↑ "Jim Tomsula will not return as Fire Head Coach in 2025". European League of Football. 11 June 2025.
- ↑ "Data Watch: Why Storm ended Fire's reign". European League of Football. 26 August 2025.
- ↑ Redaktion (2 December 2025). "AFLE präsentiert neues europäisches Football-Projekt: „The League Europe" soll Stabilität bringen". Österreichs Football Portal (in German). Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ↑ "AFLE: Rhein Fire als erstes Team bestätigt". www.ran.de (in German). 6 December 2025. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ↑ "AFLE – The League Europe". www.aflepro.com. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ↑ Spencer (7 January 2026). "Mark Ridgley neuer Head Coach von Rhein Fire". Rhein Fire (in German). Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ↑ "Rhein Fire Clinch the North West Conference With Dominant Win Over Berlin Thunder". www.aflepro.com. 9 August 2026. Retrieved 1 September 2026.
- ↑ "Panthers Wroclaw Claim Revenge Against Rhein Fire and Advance to the Gold Bowl". www.aflepro.com. 30 August 2026. Retrieved 1 September 2026.
- ↑ "American Football League Europe Becomes Majority Owner of Rhein Fire, Securing the Franchise's Future in European American Football". www.aflepro.com. 31 August 2026. Retrieved 1 September 2026.
- ↑ "Top 100 Players of 2023, No. 1: Jadrian Clark". europeanleague.football. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ↑ "ELF Honors: All winners are named - Glen Toonga is MVP 2024". europeanleague.football. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- 1 2 3 "AFLE Honors presented by CITIZEN 2026 crowns the best of the inaugural season". www.aflepro.com. 6 September 2026. Retrieved 7 September 2026.
