It's an uneven race with a predictable outcome: Frankfurt Universe versus Frankfurt Galaxy - two American football clubs in one city.
Both teams are light years apart.
One club, Galaxy, was founded this year and is part of the European League of Football (ELF) - a kind of supernova of this sport.
It formed when the German Football League, in which Universe competes, seemed overwhelmed in its possibilities and modernization attempts.
The ELF is a kind of art product of sport and is oriented towards its presence on free TV. They were founded by television entertainer and football expert Patrick Esume, who acts as the league's commissioner, and media entrepreneur Zeljko Karajica. It is broadcast live on ProSieben Maxx and on ran.de. For players, coaches and sponsors, this was a strong argument from the start to get involved in this league - and no longer in the GFL.
In Frankfurt, the entire team switched from Universe to Galaxy.
The former patron and managing director of Universe, Alexander Korosek, organized this radical change and brought players, coaches and the entire infrastructure to the ELF club.
The name Galaxy, which is highly respected by the fans, was secured by the Frankfurt franchise with the National Football League (NFL), which holds the naming rights.
The new club is practically the successor of the team that was the most successful in the NFL Europe, which closed in 2007.
In new galaxies
The new Galaxy has nothing to do with those old times. Especially since the club at that time played with many professionals from the NFL and the new team in the ELF only competes under “professionalized” conditions. The Frankfurters play well anyway. Actually very good. This Saturday (2.45 p.m.) they will meet the Cologne Centurions in the play-off semi-finals in the stadium on Bornheimer Hang and seem to be on a direct course for the final for the ELF title, which will be played in Düsseldorf on September 26th.
At Universe it looks very different. After the exodus of the team to Galaxy, the club management had to set up a completely new first division team in record time. Now, with a few exceptions, only third- and fourth-class players go on the hunt for leatherwork for the Frankfurters. The club still had the license for the highest German league - so the mostly young and inexperienced men try their best to survive against the much better equipped competition. The team managed to win this season. The next few days will decide whether it will have to fight to stay in the class in the relegation.
The fact that Galaxy is so successful in the ELF is also due to the fact that the well-functioning sports system has been transferred from Universe to the new club. "We emerged from a top GFL team," says Galaxy head coach Thomas Kösling. The police officer was also the head coach of Universe and is now one of the most prominent trainers in Germany - if not in Europe. If you want to have football explained to you, you should ask Kösling. Few people can convey an understanding of the sport as clearly as he can.