Almost half a year later, but still! The Czech American football league will start this weekend, and Sunday’s duel between rookie Přerov Mammoths and vice-champion Ostrava Steelers will be broadcast live by ČT Sport from 4 pm. Nevertheless, the restart of the competition did not go without complications, they decided not to enter this year’s atypical year Prague Lions, the defending champion.
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Invitation to the start of the Paddock League of American Football
ČAAF
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The leadership of the league must soon cope with the loss of the second of the long-standing pillars of the competition. While last year’s departure of the Prague Black Panthers to the Austrian elite competition met with understanding, this year’s absence of their city rival surprised many.
In June, the Lions team released a statement as to why they decided not to sign up this year. He argued for health reasons with reference to his player Dylan Red, who had to be hospitalized after returning to the USA, insufficient conditions for the physical readiness of players during the coronary crisis and the economic situation when the club lost at least half a million crowns.
The head of the Czech American Football Association, Filip Hobza, persuaded the Lions representative in vain. “It seems illogical to me, my opponents also liked it. I don’t want to downplay the coronavirus, on the other hand, I would understand health as an argument if they didn’t build any team even in youth competitions, which didn’t happen, “he says.
“I understand the economic aspect more, but almost every club faces similar difficulties. Then all that remains is speculation that they would do worse if they could not use all the planned imports (foreign player), “Hobza muses.
The vacant place in the competition was filled quite quickly by the Prague Mustangs, led by Josef Fuksa, one of the greatest personalities of American football in the Czech Republic. “If everyone approaches it this way, we can close it and go back ten years,” he said to the Lions.
He feels the chance for the title after three second places in the Ostrava Steelers series, but with a limited number of overseas players, this year is unpredictable. Mainly in Jihlava and Ústí nad Labem, they plan to use visiting Black Panthers players, whose A team is not participating in any of the competitions this year.
The Paddock League is divided into two groups. West is played by Pilsen Patriots, Prague Mustangs, Ústí nad Labem Blades, Vysočina Gladiators and the group Východ consists of Brno Alligators, Brno Sigrs, Přerov Mammonths and Ostrava Steelers.
Football Mammoths are waking up!
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Each team should play eight matches of the basic part, followed by the semifinals and the final Czech Bowl, which could be played in Jihlava at the turn of September and October. There will be no relegation, after the return of the Lions, the Mustangs would probably return to the second highest competition, or the first league would expand to ten teams.
The completion of the season could be thwarted by stricter measures against coronavirus, for American football it would be critical to reduce the number of participants to less than a hundred.
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