Vienna Vikings
 | |
| Founded | 1983 |
|---|---|
| Based in |  Vienna, Austria |
| Home stadium | Generali Arena Vienna (ELF) Football-Zentrum Ravelin (AFL) |
| Head coach | Chris Calaycay |
| League | European League of Football Austrian Football League |
| Division | Eastern Conference |
| Colors | Purple, gold, white |
| League titles | ELF: 2022 AFL: 1994, 1996, 1999–2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2012–2014, 2017, 2020 Eurobowl: 2004–2007, 2013 |
| Website | viennavikings |
The Vienna Vikings is a professional American football club based in Vienna, Austria. Founded in 1983, the Vikings are known as one of Europe's most dominant clubs, having won the Eurobowl title five times (2004–2007 and 2013), as well being the runner-up five times (2001, 2003, 2008, 2010 and 2012). In the national championship the Vikings are holding the record of 15 Austrian Bowl victories. Since the 2022 season they are member of the European League of Football and under the name Dacia Vienna Vikings they are also still part of the Austrian Football League (AFL).
History
[edit]The Vikings were founded in 1983. Three years later, the Vikings made it to the Austrian Bowl, the Austrian championship game, where they fell short against the Graz Giants. In 1994, the Vikings won their first national championship and repeated the victory two years later. In 1999, the Vikings played their eighth Austrian Bowl, all of them against the Giants, and gained their third title. It was also their first of five consecutive Austrian Bowl wins. Until 2007 the Vikings made it always to the Austrian Bowl and collected two more national titles becoming the team with the record number of 10 Austrian Bowl wins. From 2012 to 2017 the Vikings won four more national titles.
After also competing in the European Football League for many years, the club took part in a new European competition from 2014 to 2018 the BIG6 European Football League.[1]
Naming rights
[edit]- 1983–1998: Vienna Vikings
- 1999–2005: Chrysler Vikings
- 2006–2007: Dodge Vikings Vienna
- 2008–2014: Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna
- 2015–2016: Vienna Vikings
- 2017– Dacia Vienna Vikings
Notable persons
[edit]- George Paton (American football executive) - Defensive back 1993
- Mark Helfrich - Quarterback 1997
- Bernhard Seikovits - Vikings youth and senior
- Bernhard Raimann - Vikings youth
- Stacy Collins - DC 1999–2001
- Tony Hunt - RB 2011
- Thomas Smythe - Head coach 1994-2006
European League of Football
[edit]On September 25, 2021 the Vienna Vikings announced their that their first team will compete in the 2022 European League of Football season together with their league rival Tyrolean Raiders[2][3][4][5][6] The coaching staff of the former AFL team will continue coaching the ELF team. The franchise, now being a private corporation as a GesmbH, is owned by the Voluntary association. Together with its rivals Raiders Tirol the Vikings play in the Central Conference of the ELF. The participation allows the signing of up to 6 European foreign players and 4 US-American, Canadian, Mexican or Japanese players.
At the start of the 2022 season, business lawyer and long-time Austrian Football League quarterback Robin Lumsden joined as co-owner and investor.[7] On February 17, 2022 the organisations announced that all home games in the ELF season will be played at the Generali Arena Vienna.[8]
Roster
[edit]Reference[9]
Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
| Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
| Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
|
Rookies in italics | ||||||
Staff
[edit]| Front office
Head coach
Offensive coaches
| Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
| |||||
Season-by-season
[edit]| Season | Head coach | Regular season | Postseason | Result | Ø Attendance | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Won | Lost | Win % | Finish | GP | Won | Lost | Win % | ||||
| 2022 | Chris Calaycay | 12 | 10 | 2 | .833 | 1st (Central) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1. | Won Championship Game | 3,085 |
| 2023 | Chris Calaycay | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | (Eastern) | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | – |
Honours
[edit]- European League of Football
- Champions: 2022
- Eurobowl
- Champions: (5) 2004–2007, 2013
- Runners-up: (5) 2001, 2003, 2008, 2010, 2012
- Austrian Bowl
- Champions: (15) 1994, 1996, 1999–2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2012–2014, 2017, 2020
- Runners-up: (14) 1986, 1988, 1991, 1995, 1998, 2004, 2006, 2011, 2015, 2018, 2019, 2021–2023
References
[edit]- ^ "BIG6 European Football League starts 2014". www.eurobowl.com. 20 November 2013. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
- ^ "ELF: Dacia Vienna Vikings become the league's newest member". 25 September 2021.
- ^ "PR: Ninth Team, Fourth Nation: Vienna Vikings Will Start in the European League of Football for the 2022 Season". 25 September 2021.
- ^ "Vienna Vikings ab 2022 Teil der European League of Football". 30 September 2021.
- ^ https://news.in-24.com/sports/news/168498.html [dead link]
- ^ "Der Krampf ums Eierlaberl: Warum sich Football in Europa schwertut". Der Standard (in German). October 4, 2021. Retrieved February 17, 2022.
- ^ "Vienna Vikings present new investors with interesting background". May 12, 2022.
- ^ "Vikings sorgen für internationale Spiele in der Generali Arena". Kurier (in German). February 17, 2022.
- ^ "ELF: 2023 Vienna Vikings – A Complete Roster Breakdown". American Football International.
External links
[edit]