Düsseldorf is now not only home to reigning champion Rhein Fire, but with the Düsseldorf Panthers also the oldest active American football club on the continent. Both organizations are now joining forces in the state capital of Düsseldorf and launching a joint flag football project. In close cooperation, the two clubs are launching the Düsseldorf Firecats project, utilizing each other's existing expertise, structures and opportunities with the common goal of becoming the leading flag football project in Germany, as the organizations announced. On Friday, February 23, the two clubs signed an agreement to work together in order to play a pioneering role nationally, from youth to senior level, both in terms of breadth and at the top - also with a view to the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

Local athletes can compete at the highest level

Jim Tomsula, president of football operations & head coach Rhein Fire, believes that this can succeed: "Football in Düsseldorf is a project close to my heart, having already experienced many great and successful years here with my family. The opportunity to help shape a flag football program with national appeal through our expertise right from the start excites us as a Rhein Fire organization. In Richard Kent, we have an expert who has traveled all over the world for the NFL and is an absolute expert in the field of player development. Wouldn't it be fantastic to see our local athletes on the field against Team USA in Los Angeles in 2028?"