Helvetic Guards
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The Helvetic Guards were an American football team based in Zurich, Switzerland, that plays in the European League of Football (ELF) since 2023. Operations were discontinued in 2024. A successor team to take part in the 2024 season has been announced. [1]
On April 11, the succeeding franchise unveiled its name, Helvetic Mercenaries
History[edit | edit source]
The entry of the newly founded franchise into the professional league was announced on 13 May 2022, during a press conference to open the 2022 ELF season by the team's general manager Toni Zöller. Together with co-owner Mukadder Erdönmez and others they established the first ELF franchise in Switzerland.[2]
On 26 August 2022, the team announced Norm Chow as the head coach for the European League of Football 2023 season.[3]
On 30 October 2022 the front office announced that they will play their home games in the Lidl Arena in Wil, Switzerland, about 25 miles (40km) eastern of Zürich.
On 2 December 2022, the team signed Colin Hill to be their starting quarterback. They added fellow US-American running back and wide receiver Silas Nacita on 17 December 2022.
2023 Season[edit | edit source]
In their first season, the Guards finished with a record of 3-9 and failed to qualify for the playoffs.
They recorded the first win in their history on Matchday 6 with a 22-19 (OT) win over the Barcelona Dragons. On the following game day 7, they defeated the eventual finalists Stuttgart Surge 31-13. The last victory came in week 8, when they won 31-24 in overtime against the Milano Seamen. [4]
2024 Season[edit | edit source]
On April 4, 2024, it was announced that Helvetic Guards had new owners. They will not compete under the name Helvetic Guards, but will establish a new franchise. The colors and logo will also be changed accordingly. [5]
Stadium[edit | edit source]
The Lidl Arena Wil has a total capacity of 6,048. The stadium contains 748 seats and 5,300 standing places.
Players[edit | edit source]
Top Players[edit | edit source]
| Quarterback | Year | G | COMP | ATT | CMP% | YDS | TD | INT | SCK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tristan Noble | 2023 | 7 | 100 | 192 | 52.1 | 1035 | 5 | 11 | 24 |
| Receiver | Year | G | RRC | TGT | YDS | CTCH % | YPG | YPC | LNG | TD | TD/G |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Silas Nacita | 2023 | 12 | 52 | 70 | 603 | 74.3 | 50.2 | 11.6 | 49 | 3 | 0.2 |
| Running | Year | G | ATT | YDS | AVG | YPG | LNG | TD | TD/G | FMB | FML |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Silas Nacita | 2023 | 12 | 131 | 490 | 3.7 | 40.8 | 22 | 3 | 0.2 | 1 | 1 |
2023 Roster[edit | edit source]
| Quarterbacks
Running backs Wide receivers
Tight ends |
Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen |
Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
|
Injured reserve
Names with a strikethrough = season ending
| ||||||
Head Coach[edit | edit source]
| Name | Tenure | Record | Titles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | |||
| Norm Chow | 2023 | 3 | 9 | 0 |
Total record[edit | edit source]
| Games | Win | Loss | Win % | P+ | P- | PDiff | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Helvetic Guards | 12 | 3 | 9 | 0.250 | 174 | 378 | -204 |
Record per oppenent[edit | edit source]
| Games | Win | Loss | Win % | P+ | P- | PDiff | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barcelona Dragons | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0.500 | 39 | 48 | -9 |
| Stuttgart Surge | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0.500 | 50 | 60 | -10 |
| Milano Seamen | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0.500 | 31 | 56 | -25 |
| Raiders Tirol | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0.000 | 21 | 46 | -25 |
| Munich Ravens | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0.000 | 16 | 74 | -58 |
| Rhein Fire | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0.000 | 17 | 94 | -77 |
Source: https://elfdata.eu/
See also[edit | edit source]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ https://europeanleague.football/news/swiss-franchise-enters-2024-elf-season-with-new-ownership-group-and-new-team-name-1779
- ↑ https://www.americanfootballinternational.com/elf-adds-milano-seamen-fehervar-enthroners-and-zurich-for-2023/
- ↑ https://europeanleague.football/elf-news/nfl-legend-norm-chow-signs-with-helvetic-guards-as-head-coach
- ↑ https://elfpedia.eu/2023_ELF_Regular_Season
- ↑ https://europeanleague.football/news/swiss-franchise-enters-2024-elf-season-with-new-ownership-group-and-new-team-name-1779
