Munich was announced on August 3, 2022 as new location for the 2023 season.[1] It is the eighth and, according to the league, final German location in the European League of Football. The name Ravens and the logo was revealed on September 8, 2022.[2]
Sebastian Stolz was presented as inaugural general manager on September 1, 2022,[3] and former Raiders Tirolquarterback and MVP for the 2022 season, Sean Shelton, as Director of Sport Operation on September 28, 2022.[4]
On November 4, 2022, the Ravens announced the first player signing, Darius Robinson.[5] A day later, the franchise held its first try out at Olympic Stadium in Munich.[6]
On September 28, 2023, the Ravens announced Kendral Ellison as their new head coach. Ellison was defensive coordinator of the league rival Hamburg Sea Devils from 2021 to 2023. The new offensive coordinator is Kyle Callahan, who previously held the same position with the Raiders Tirol.
On January 9, 2024, the Munich Ravens introduced Joe Thomas as offensive line coach. The former NFL superstar is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and supports the Ravens not only as a coach, but also as a marketing ambassador.
The Munich Ravens started with an away game against Stuttgart. They celebrated their first win a week later at home against Prague. The game at the Max Morlock Stadium in Nuremberg was a highlight. 10,822 spectators attended the game (again against Stuttgart). This was followed by a run of seven wins in a row and a record of 9:3 victories. The Munich Ravens thus reached the playoffs for the first time.
As the fifth seed, they played the Paris Musketeers in the wild card round. The game took place in Valenciennes, as no venue was available in Paris. In a thrilling duel with nine lead changes, the Bavarians were ultimately defeated 37:40.
General Manager Stolz was dismissed after the season.
On June 4, 2023, the Munich Ravens played their first game in the ELF. In front of 6,238 spectators at Sportpark Unterhaching, they were beaten 38:59 by last year's semi-finalists Raiders Tirol.
The Bavarians celebrated the first victory in the team's history in their first away game. They prevailed 39:10 against the Helvetic Guards on June 18, 2023. This was followed a week later by a 39:15 win at Barcelona Dragons.
The Munich Ravens then celebrated their next two victories at home (56:37 against Milano Seamen; 35:6 against Helvetic Guards).
They finished the season with two more victories and ended up with seven wins from twelve games. Despite the best record of a league newcomer, they narrowly missed out on play-off qualification.
An average of more than 5,000 spectators attended the six home games.
Shortly after the end of the season, the Ravens parted ways with head coach John Shoop and defensive coordinator Vince Okruch.
Sportpark Unterhaching is located in the Munich suburb of Unterhaching. The stadium has a capacity of 15,053 โ 6,874 seated and 8,179 standing. It is owned by the municipality of Unterhaching and home of soccer club SpVgg Unterhaching.
.svg)
