Template:Infobox sports league
The Elite Football League of India (EFLI) was a professional American football league based in India. It was founded with eight franchises in 2011, and had 23 franchises throughout South Asia, among whom 20 located in India, two in Sri Lanka and one in Pakistan. The league had only two seasons.[1]
The winners of the first championship were Pune Marathas, who claimed the title after defeating Delhi Defenders 6–0 in the Elite Bowl I on 10 November 2012.[2]
Establishment
In August 2011, the EFLI announced the launch of the league.[3] The aim of the league was to introduce American football to the Indian market and its large consumer base.[4] The organisation's management team consists of United States and Indian business and entertainment executives, and several U.S. sports figures.[5] U.S. brand marketing consultant Sunday Zeller is noted as the founder.[6]
Prominent investors include Brandon Chillar, an Indian American linebacker from the Super Bowl-winning Green Bay Packers who played eight games that 2010 season until an injury put him on the injured reserve list,[7] Super Bowl-winning head coach Mike Ditka, former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Michael Irvin, and former NFL quarterbacks Ron Jaworski and Kurt Warner.[8][9] Investors outside of the sports community include U.S. actor and entertainment producer Mark Wahlberg.[10]
The first regular-season games began 22 September 2012.[11] EFLI games are broadcast on television in India, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan, and in the Maldives, Bangladesh, Nepal, Hong Kong, Indonesia and Japan on Ten Sports. This will represent a potential audience of over 500 million viewers.[12][13]
League structure
The EFLI management's intent is to draw current rugby players from India over to the sport, in part by paying higher salaries than the rugby leagues.[14] In the announcement of the league on 5 August 2011, CEO Richard Whelan noted that orientation programmes had attracted over 4,000 interested players in the previous month alone.[15] Similar orientation events are planned for Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal to attract a wide talent pool.[16]
Ownership of the teams will follow a franchise system, similar to the structure of the NFL, and ownership will be determined in an auction format. Unlike ownership rules in other Indian sports leagues, bidding will be open to both Indian and non-Indian investors alike. Although specifics about league finances have not been announced, officials note that 15% of revenues will be shared with the Ministry of Sports.[12]
While the teams represent cities across India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan, all games for the inaugural season were hosted in Sugathadasa Stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The Sports Authority of India provided also the Balewadi Stadium, which was used for pre-season activities.[12] The games were held in a round-robin format so that all teams played each other.[16]
The expansion plans include total of 24 teams, as a part of a project, which aims to expand to 52 teams by 2022.[17]
Teams-across Asia
Current teams
| India | Pakistan | Sri Lanka |
|---|---|---|
Former/defunct teams
| Team | City/State | Stadium | First season | Last season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hyderabad Skykings | Template:Flagicon Hyderabad, Telangana | Gachibowli Stadium | 2012 (Season 1) | 2012 (Season 1) |
Championships
| Season | Elite Bowl | Final Venue | MVP | # of Teams | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winners | Score | Runners-up | ||||
| 2012 Details |
Pune Marathas | 06–00 | Delhi Defenders | Sugathadasa Stadium, Colombo, Sri Lanka |
Roshan Lobo (RB, Warhawks) | 8 |
| 2015 | Cancelled in favour of inaugural EFLI University Championship | |||||
Elite Bowl records
In the table below, teams are ordered first by number of wins, then by number of appearances, and finally by year of first appearance. In the "Season(s)" column, bold years indicate winning seasons.
| Team | Appearances | Wins | Losses | Season(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pune Marathas | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2012 |
| 2 | Delhi Defenders | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2012 |
Documentary
In 2012, the filmmaking duo Evan Rosenfeld and Jenna Moshell began following the EFLI and chronicling its inaugural season and the introduction of American football to South Asia in the documentary Birth of a Sport.[18]
See also
- National Football League
- NFL Europe
- Israeli Football League
- Philippine Tackle Football League
- Korea American Football Association (South Korea)
- X-League (Japan)
- List of leagues of American and Canadian football
References
- ↑ Uncertainty prevails despite hype surrounding EFLI(29 June 2014).
- ↑ EFLI Stat Sheet: Pune Marathas, Roy Chowdhury, Souvik. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
- ↑ Elite Football League of India launched - Mumbai, Acayan, Ezra. Demotix.com(2011-08-05). Retrieved 2013-10-06.
- ↑ American football is coming to India | ProFootballTalk. Profootballtalk.nbcsports.com(2011-08-03). Retrieved 2011-12-02.
- ↑ Gridiron league launched in India. The Times of India(2011-08-05). Retrieved 2011-12-02.
- ↑ EFLI - Letter from the founder. Retrieved 2011-08-06.
- ↑ ESPN.
- ↑ Ron Jaworski is investor in new India football league - Philadelphia Business Journal. The Business Journals(2011-08-03). Retrieved 2011-12-02.
- ↑ American Football in India?. Inquisitr.com(2011-08-03). Retrieved 2011-12-02.
- ↑ Kurt Warner, Mark Wahlberg investing in new Indian football league. The Business Journals(2012-01-25). Retrieved 2012-01-29.
- ↑ Scores and Schedules. EFLI. Retrieved 13 November 2012.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 NFL stars taking American football overseas: A fan's perspective - NFL - Yahoo! Sports, Ivie, Eric R.. Yahoo!. Retrieved 2011-12-02.
- ↑ Template:Cite magazine
- ↑ Money scores, American football lures Indian rugby players(2011-07-18). Retrieved 2011-12-02.
- ↑ Now, EFL wants to take India by storm - Times Of India. The Times of India(2011-08-06). Retrieved 2011-12-02.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 American football comes to India(2011-08-05). Retrieved 2011-12-02.
- ↑ Coming soon: American football in cricket-crazy India. Firstpost(2012-04-01). Retrieved 2013-10-06.
- ↑ Birth of a Sport: American Football in India and Pakistan by Evan Rosenfeld — Kickstarter. Kck.st. Retrieved 2013-10-06.
External links
Template:Elite Football League of India Template:National sports leagues of India Template:Asian Football Leagues