International Matches
The Finland Icebreakers are the representative Australian rules football team of Finland, formerly known as the Finnish Lions. They have twice won the Central European AFL Championships, going back-to-back in 2006 and 2007. While the team was started by Australian expatriates, it has been captained by a Finn ever since the 2nd match. Captains have included Kimmo Heikkilä, Jani Saarinen, Fredrik Romar and Ville Koivunen. The Icebreakers are now almost exclusively Finns.
The old Finnish jumper was primarily blue, with a white rectangle in the centre with the blue cross of the Finnish flag through it, and the coat of arms immediately below it. The current national jumper still has the flag as the predominant feature, but instead of the coat of arms, includes a stylized iceberg graphic.
The Lions' first home game on 13 May 2006 was claimed as the northernmost international game of Australian rules ever played, being hosted in Helsinki, the northernmost capital of Europe, although this was later overtaken by the club in Falun, Sweden.
Read more about this topic: Australian Rules Football In Finland
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