1984: Growth of Interest
The first game played by a Dutch American Football team was on Easter Sunday in 1981 when the Amsterdam Rams faced the Herne Tigers from Germany. A lack of any Dutch opponents forced the Rams to compete in the German Oberliga in the 1983 and 1984 season. This successful German adventure led the Rams to a 1984 victory in the Oberliga West Division.
Meanwhile, initiatives were springing up all over the Netherlands via exhibition games and the broadcasting of college football by the fledgling SkyChannel. From these flames a number of Dutch clubs emerged including The Hague Raiders, Delft Dragons, Rotterdam Trojans, Zwolle Bulldogs, Alphen Eagles and Utrecht Vikings. Toward the end of 1984 a number of players from the Amsterdam Rams broke off to form a second team from the nation's capital city: the Amsterdam Crusaders.
The Rams returned to the Netherlands and, along with the new teams, formed the Nederlandse American Football Federatie (NAFF).
Read more about this topic: American Football In The Netherlands, 1981
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