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The Complete List of American Football Teams in Europe

  Of Europe’s 50 countries, 41 have American football teams with an estimated 1,500 teams spread throughout these countries. The sport’s widespread appeal in Europe is undeniable, however the extensive prevalence of American football in Europe will likely come as a surprise to many. In an effort to facilitate the growth of American football in […]

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Developmental Camp Schedule Announced

  With the objective of facilitating the development of American football in Europe, The Growth of a Game has established a developmental camp system that will commence in 2016. As one of the many long-standing plans we’ve had since The Growth of a Game first launched, our camp system is aimed at long-term skill development […]

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The Genesis of The Growth of a Game

  The genesis of The Growth of a Game really started during my first season as an import player in Europe in 2008. I played for a team called the Brussels Bulls, an upstart team in the Belgian Football League. The Bulls were coming off of a winless first season in 2007 and failed to […]

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Perseverance: The Story of American Football in Ireland

  To any fan of American football, the story of the sport in Ireland is not only fascinating but also deeply inspiring. The sport is growing in Ireland at a faster pace than in almost every other country in Europe. The Irish American Football Association (IAFA) is the recognized governing body for the sport and […]

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Crowdfunding in American Football: A Lesson from the Berlin Adler

  We’re living in a digital age. It’s time to rethink the financing of amateur or semi-pro athletes and sports teams. If you look at the websites of amateur sports teams, most of them seem to be stuck in 1998. The same problem occurs with earning profits. Most teams’ horizons end with sponsoring, ticket and […]

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Beyond the Budget: Dominating American Football on a Shoestring

  While conducting research for Travis Brody’s upcoming book, which aims to cover the past, present and future of American Football in Europe, Travis and I have collectively interviewed dozens of American football teams from nearly every European country. Altogether, this exploration is rapidly becoming the most exhaustive body of research in existence concerning American […]

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Kyle Newhall-Caballero: From the NFL to Prague and Back Again

  You might think that a dairy farm is not the traditional launching pad for a professional football career, but then you might not know Kyle Newhall-Caballero. And yet, after stops with the Ivy League, the Oakland Raiders, and Prague, growing up on a farm seems to be by far the most traditional thing he’s […]

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Flag Football: A Gateway for Youth Participation in American Football

  When I tell people that by the time I turned 22 I had already played American football for nine years, they’re often surprised and sometimes even amazed. Yet instead of donning a American football player. You may argue that for some positions such as linebacker or lineman, there isn’t much value in playing flag […]

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American Football in Europe: A Tool for Driving Social Progress

  American football in Europe is still in its formative years. Despite the fact that many clubs date back to the late 1970’s, that there are currently well over 1,500 teams peppered across 41 countries in Europe, and that the popularity of the sport within the many cultures of Europe is widely growing, most teams […]

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The Complete List of European NCAA College Football Players

Through extensive research and the assistance of The Growth of a Game community, we’ve compiled a list of European NCAA football players. One of our stated goals is to increase the public awareness of American football in Europe, and one of the ways in which we aim to do so is by acknowledging the prevalence […]

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What is the Likelihood of an NFL Franchise in London?

  The potential of a move to London by an NFL team has not gone without its doubters. Since the National Football League first brought the NFL International Series to the U.K. in 2007, many claimed that the league had some fairly unrealistic expectations about the growth of American football abroad. Yet since that initial […]

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Studying Abroad: Irish Coach Shadows U.S. College Football Program

Taking it upon himself to increase his coaching knowledge and understanding of the game of American football, Eoin O’Sullivan recently shadowed the coaching staff of the Alfred State football program in New York. O’Sullivan, an assistant coach for the Irish national U-20’s team, opted to learn from some of premier coaches at the NCAA Division […]

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Some Thoughts on Coaching

  Coaching is, most importantly, putting your players in the best position for them to succeed. The most obvious ways to do this are to train your players well in practice and to call plays that take advantage of your opponents’ weaknesses. However, it also means putting the right players on the field in the […]

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Why Isn’t American Football an Olympic Sport?

  The game of American football has been around since 1869, just four years after the American Civil War ended. For some perspective on how long ago that was, the telephone wasn’t invented by Alexander Graham Bell until 1876, a full seven years later. That makes American football really, really old. For a sport that […]

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10 Ways to Build a Profitable Football Team

  With approximately 1,600 American football teams in Europe and new clubs popping up every week, there is significant interest in maximizing profitability for these organizations. Many teams understand the basics of building a budget, but most have yet to tap into the full extent of profit models available to them. We’ve spoken with teams […]

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