Kirchdorf Wildcats and the north-south divide

A shock went through football Germany. The Kirchdorf Wildcats have deregistered their GFL team. However, this headline had nothing to do with financial problems. They simply lacked players. There were probably a few departures and the player pool was pretty tight anyway. Of course, this is rightly prompting experts to think about where this is coming from.

The most common theory is probably that it’s far out of the way and nobody wanted to go there or that there aren’t enough active players in the rural region.

I think it’s a kind of mixture of several points. The point is not wrong. There are only a few “locals” there. But to be honest, many other teams have the same problem. Some simply have the problem that the “locals” that are available are not good enough for the GFL or even the ELF. They may then come from League 4 and below. That’s certainly great for the “second tier”, but for the starters and therefore a successful team, most teams have to look further afield. And unfortunately Kirchdorf is probably not attractive enough for that. In fact, Kirchdorf is only a good hour’s drive from Munich, and even less from the outskirts. But why should a player from Munich and the region go to the Wildcats? Unfortunately, they weren’t really successful in 2024. But there are an incredible number of teams in the south of Germany that all play at the top.

This is a “misconception” that has somehow become ingrained. Again, there are several reasons for this. For one thing, Rhein Fire and Cologne Centurions are two ELF teams that are extremely close to each other. That’s also true. But it dilutes things a little. Because in the ELF we rarely talk about real “locals”. Players are more willing to travel longer distances for the ELF. But nevertheless, you should take a look at the map first. The catchment area from NRW (especially Rhein Fire and the Centurions) is often referred to as Frankfurt. However, Frankfurt can just as easily be included in the south. The travel time from Stuttgart to Frankfurt is about the same as from Cologne, from Duisburg it is much further away. On the left you can see the map I created. You can also hide the GFL 2 and the former teams from the GFL and ELF. If you only see the GFL and ELF teams on the map, one thing becomes clear. Sure, in NRW there are 3 teams right next to each other: the Panthers from Düsseldorf (GFL), the Cologne Centurions (ELF) and Rhein Fire (ELF). But if you take a look at the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns, for example, then it must be obvious to everyone. They have many more teams in their immediate catchment area. And by the way, it’s even quicker to get to Frankfurt from Hall than from Cologne and Stuttgart.

Mit der Erkenntnis kommen wir auch zum dem Punkt “Nord-Süd-Gefälle”. Wenn wir davon ausgehen, dass in NRW die Bevölkerungsdichte wesentlich höher ist, und wenn wir davon ausgehen, dass die Unicorns vor dem Weggang vieler Leistungsträger in die ELF, lange ein Top-Team waren, dann ist jetzt auch klar, was die Schwierigkeit ist. Denn auch Schwäbisch Hall ist jetzt nicht unbedingt im Zentrum des blühenden Lebens. Und dazu noch gibt es im weiteren Umkreis noch wesentlich mehr als Surge. Und diese Fülle der Teams, gepaart mit der niedrigeren Bevölkerung, ist meiner Meinung nach auch ein Auslöser dieses “Gefälles”. Ich denke, auch die Ravens haben ähnliche Probleme. Klar, sie sind die “Platzhirsche” und in der Regel ziehen sie eher Leute, als dass sie welche verlieren. Aber Tirol und sogar die Mercenaries, Cowboys, Comets, und auch sie Surge sind da alle in Schlagdistanz. Was meinst Du denn dazu?