The Danish American Football Federation (DAFF; Danish: Dansk Amerikansk Fodbold Forbund) is an American football organization in Denmark founded in 1988. Its headquarters are located in Brøndby. DAFF organizes Denmark's national American football team, which competes in the International Federation of American Football.

Since 2000, DAFF has seen a huge increase in membership, influenced by Danish television station TV2 Zulu broadcasts of National Football League (NFL) games on Sunday evenings. The sudden popularity of the sport in Denmark has been dubbed "the Zulu effect" after the name of the TV station.[1] As of the 2007 season, Viasat obtained the rights to broadcast the NFL in Denmark on both 3+ and TV 2 Sport (Viasat owns 49 percent of TV 2 Sport).

The popularity of American football in Denmark can also be attributed to the nation's interest in the long career of Danish placekicker Morten Andersen, the NFL's all-time leader in points.[2]

National League teams

Team City Stadium Coordinates Founded (Lineage) Head Coach Top Executive Owner
AaB 89ers Aalborg, North Denmark Region 89ers Field 57°02′36″N 10°01′10″E / 57.0434°N 10.0195°E / 57.0434; 10.0195 (AaB 89ers) March 1989 Jacob Zinck Thellufsen Simon B. Nielsen
Triangle Razorbacks Vejle, Region of Southern Denmark Vejle Athletic Stadium 55°42′50″N 9°33′33″E / 55.7139°N 9.5591°E / 55.7139; 9.5591 (Triangle Razorbacks) 2000
Aarhus Tigers Aarhus, Central Denmark Region Bøgeskov Sports 56°07′09″N 10°07′38″E / 56.1192°N 10.1271°E / 56.1192; 10.1271 (Aarhus Tigers) 2012 Thomas Pedersen Jesper Christensen
Søllerød Gold Diggers Nærum, Rudersdal Municipality Rundforbi Stadion 55°49′33″N 12°32′26″E / 55.8258°N 12.5405°E / 55.8258; 12.5405 (Søllerød Gold Diggers) 2003 Troels Vestergaard Casper Reinhardt
Copenhagen TowersGentofte, Capital Region of Denmark Gentofte Sportspark 55°45′26″N 12°31′38″E / 55.7571°N 12.5272°E / 55.7571; 12.5272 (Copenhagen Towers) 1990 Peter Herbild Jakob Munksgaard
Odense BadgersOdense, Region of Southern Denmark
Frederikssund OaksFrederikssund, Capital Region of Denmark

Danish American Football Federation Hall of Fame

DAFF opened the Danish American Football Federation Hall of Fame on February 5, 2006, the day of Super Bowl XL.

Players
Coaches
  • Ron Da Costa (Inducted 2006) for Copenhagen Vikings, Roskilde Kings, Kronborg Knights, Herlev Rebels, Vestegnen Volunteers.
  • John Lawson (2007) for Roskilde Kings, Aarhus Tigers, Herning Hawks. Appeared in five consecutive Mermaid Bowls with an overall 5-1 Mermaid Bowl record
  • John Martinko (2006) for Copenhagen Towers.
Contributors
  • Jimmy Bøjgaard (Inducted 2007) - play-by-play commentator with Claus Elming through 7 years on Zulu.
  • Claus Elming (2006) - Color commentator for NFL on Denmark's TV2 Zulu. Also a coach for Avedøre Monarchs and Wide receiver for Herning Hawks and Aarhus Tigers also a founder of Aarhus Tigers.
  • Torben Elming (2006) - Chairman of the Danish American Football Federation
  • Menno Hilverdink (2006) - Started American Football in Denmark - Copenhagen Vikings
  • Agnar Nielsen (2006) - Executive of Danish American Football Federation
  • Tommy Terp (2006) - Executive of Esbjerg Hurricanes

References

  1. ↑ Masculine, action-packed American import gains popularity Archived 2011-07-12 at the Wayback Machine, The Copenhagen Post, 24 February 2007.
  2. ↑ Say Danish cheese, The Toronto Sun, 10 December 2008.
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