Assindia Cardinals
Encyclopedia
The Assindia Cardinals are an American football
team from Essen
, Germany
. Assindia is the Latin
name for Essen.
As its greatest success, the club has finished in third place in the northern division of the American Football Bundesliga
in 1986, and reached the quarter finals of the national championship once, in 2009.
The new club enetered the tier-three Oberliga Nord for the 1984 season, where it finishes third and earned promotion to the northern division of the 2nd Bundesliga. Another third place in 1985 was enough to qualify for the American Football Bundesliga, now the German Football League
, as the league was expanded from 16 to 24 teams for the 1986 season.
The Cardinals came third in their inaugural season at this level in group B of the northern division, the league being then subdivided into four regional divisions, which qualified the team for the play-offs. There, the Red Barons Cologne
proved to strong and the team was knocked-out in a 0-18 defeat. The following four seasons, the club was unable to qualify for the play-offs again, finishing in fourth and fifth places, before a league reduction from 26 to 16 teams caused the Cardinals to lose their league spot in very similar circumstances to the way it had gained it originally.
The team, instead of entering the 2nd Bundesliga, found itself now playing in the tier-four Verbandsliga NRW and, for the club, an era of lower division football was to follow. For the next eight seasons, the Cardinals drifted between the third and fourth tier, before a Regionalliga West championship in 1998 allowed the team to return to the second level.
After only two seasons in the 2nd Bundesliga, the Cardinals won the northern division in this league and earned direct promotion to the GFL. Live at this level proved difficult for the side and it was never a true play-off contender. A last place in 2003 and subsequent loses to the Düsseldorf Panther
in the relegation round meant a return to the second tier for the Cardinals. From 2004 to 2007, the team moved between this league and the Regionalliga as an elevator side, before another title in the 2nd Bundesliga in 2008 and promotion round victories over Cologne Falcons allowed a return to the GFL.
The club made a successful comeback in the league in 2009, finishing fourth and qualifying for the play-offs for the second time in its history, where it lost to the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns
in the quarter finals. The 2010 season saw the side back in familiar territory, finishing fifth, a point and a place above the relegation rank.
The club finished last in the northern division of the GFL in 2011 and elected not to play a relegation decider against the GFL 2 runners-up. Instead, feeling unable to financially compete at the highest level, the Cardinals voluntarily accepted relegation.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
team from Essen
Essen
- Origin of the name :In German-speaking countries, the name of the city Essen often causes confusion as to its origins, because it is commonly known as the German infinitive of the verb for the act of eating, and/or the German noun for food. Although scholars still dispute the interpretation of...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. Assindia is the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
name for Essen.
As its greatest success, the club has finished in third place in the northern division of the American Football Bundesliga
German Football League
The German Football League is the elite league for American football in Germany. Playing rules are based on those of the American NCAA....
in 1986, and reached the quarter finals of the national championship once, in 2009.
History
The club was formed in 1983 as the AFC Assindia Cardinals 1983 e.V..The new club enetered the tier-three Oberliga Nord for the 1984 season, where it finishes third and earned promotion to the northern division of the 2nd Bundesliga. Another third place in 1985 was enough to qualify for the American Football Bundesliga, now the German Football League
German Football League
The German Football League is the elite league for American football in Germany. Playing rules are based on those of the American NCAA....
, as the league was expanded from 16 to 24 teams for the 1986 season.
The Cardinals came third in their inaugural season at this level in group B of the northern division, the league being then subdivided into four regional divisions, which qualified the team for the play-offs. There, the Red Barons Cologne
Red Barons Cologne
The Red Barons Cologne were an American football team from Cologne, Germany.The clubs greatest success came in 1988, when it won its sole German Bowl, followed by a losing appearance in the game in1989...
proved to strong and the team was knocked-out in a 0-18 defeat. The following four seasons, the club was unable to qualify for the play-offs again, finishing in fourth and fifth places, before a league reduction from 26 to 16 teams caused the Cardinals to lose their league spot in very similar circumstances to the way it had gained it originally.
The team, instead of entering the 2nd Bundesliga, found itself now playing in the tier-four Verbandsliga NRW and, for the club, an era of lower division football was to follow. For the next eight seasons, the Cardinals drifted between the third and fourth tier, before a Regionalliga West championship in 1998 allowed the team to return to the second level.
After only two seasons in the 2nd Bundesliga, the Cardinals won the northern division in this league and earned direct promotion to the GFL. Live at this level proved difficult for the side and it was never a true play-off contender. A last place in 2003 and subsequent loses to the Düsseldorf Panther
Düsseldorf Panther
The Düsseldorf Panther are an American football team from Düsseldorf, Germany. The club is the oldest still existing American football club in Europe, having been formed on 1 May 1978....
in the relegation round meant a return to the second tier for the Cardinals. From 2004 to 2007, the team moved between this league and the Regionalliga as an elevator side, before another title in the 2nd Bundesliga in 2008 and promotion round victories over Cologne Falcons allowed a return to the GFL.
The club made a successful comeback in the league in 2009, finishing fourth and qualifying for the play-offs for the second time in its history, where it lost to the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns
Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns
The Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns are an American football team from Schwäbisch Hall, Germany.The clubs greatest successes were winning the southern division title in the German Football League in 2009 and 2011, followed up by winning the German Bowl in 2011....
in the quarter finals. The 2010 season saw the side back in familiar territory, finishing fifth, a point and a place above the relegation rank.
The club finished last in the northern division of the GFL in 2011 and elected not to play a relegation decider against the GFL 2 runners-up. Instead, feeling unable to financially compete at the highest level, the Cardinals voluntarily accepted relegation.
Honours
- GFLGerman Football LeagueThe German Football League is the elite league for American football in Germany. Playing rules are based on those of the American NCAA....
- Play-off qualification : 1986, 2009
- League membership : (11) 1986–1990, 2001–2003, 2009–2011
- GFL 2German Football League 2The German Football League 2 is the second tier of American football in Germany, below the German Football League. Until 2007, the league was known as the 2nd Bundesliga.-League structure:...
- Northern Division champions: 2000, 2008
Recent seasons
Recent seasons of the club:| Year | Division | Finish | Points | Pct. | Games | W | D | L | PF | PA | Postseason |
| 2005 | Regionalliga West | 1st | 22–2 | 0.917 | 12 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 462 | 140 | Won PR: Frankfurt Red Cocks (27–0 & 12–0) |
| 2006 | GFL 2 German Football League 2 The German Football League 2 is the second tier of American football in Germany, below the German Football League. Until 2007, the league was known as the 2nd Bundesliga.-League structure:... (North) |
7th | 3–21 | 0.125 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 122 | 246 | — |
| 2007 | Regionalliga West | 1st | 22–2 | 0.917 | 12 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 362 | 63 | Won PR: Magdeburg Virgin Guards (7–14 & 21–13) |
| 2008 | GFL 2 German Football League 2 The German Football League 2 is the second tier of American football in Germany, below the German Football League. Until 2007, the league was known as the 2nd Bundesliga.-League structure:... (North) |
1st | 21–7 | 0.750 | 14 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 321 | 217 | Won PR: Cologne Falcons (24–17 & 28–23) |
| 2009 | GFL German Football League The German Football League is the elite league for American football in Germany. Playing rules are based on those of the American NCAA.... (North) |
4th | 8–12 | 0.400 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 279 | 268 | Lost QF: Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns The Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns are an American football team from Schwäbisch Hall, Germany.The clubs greatest successes were winning the southern division title in the German Football League in 2009 and 2011, followed up by winning the German Bowl in 2011.... (25–46) |
| 2010 | 5th | 9–15 | 0.375 | 12 | 4 | 1 | 7 | 239 | 275 | — | |
| 2011 | 7th | 3–25 | 0.107 | 14 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 162 | 532 | — |
- PR = Promotion round.
- RR = Relegation round.
- QF = Quarter finals.
- SF = Semi finals.
- GB = German Bowl