Saturday Recap: Bravos shock Rhein Fire, Milano earns first win

Saturday's slate of games featured an enormous upset as the Madrid Bravos defeated the Rhein Fire, stunning the defending champions on their own home field. Later in the day, the Raiders Tirol dominated the Barcelona Dragons in Spain, while the Milano Seamen earned their first win of the season defeating the Helvetic Mercenaries in a close defensive battle. 

Let’s recap every game of today’s action!

The Madrid Bravos hand the Rhein Fire their first loss since 2022

The Madrid Bravos traveled to visit the Rhein Fire in Oberhausen Germany to take on the defending champions in their first-ever away game. Madrid came out of the gates swinging scoring first and exploding out to a 15-0 nothing lead at the end of the first half. Running back Dwayne Obi scored and kicker Alvaro Guitián nailed three field goals, as Madrid's defense was able to get pressure on the quarterback and force turnovers to shut out the Rhein Fire in the first half. 

Bravos quarterback Chris Helbig left the game with a serious injury at the beginning of the second half, leaving Madrid to rely on their running game and defense to hold onto the lead. Both units responded as Jalen Embry picked off Jadrian Clark for the second time, while Dwayne Obi was able to score again and control the clock. The British running back ran for 149 yards and two scores on the day as he, and receiver Willie Patterson who came in at quarterback did enough to help them pull off one of the ELF's largest upsets to date. Madrid ended up stunning the Rhein Fire fans and winning the game 22-10. The loss snaps a 16-game winning streak dating back to 2022 for the defending champion Rhein Fire. 

The Milano Seamen win their first game of the season

The evening game was a defensive nail bitter as the Milano Seamen defeated the Helvetic Mercenaries 14-7 in front of their home fans in Milan. Mercenaries quarterback Carlton Aiken Jr was able to strike first finding Anthony Brown for the initial points of the game. Milan responded as Zack Bronkhorst found the Italian receiver Gianluca Santagostino tying the game at 7 in the second quarter. A score that would hold until halftime. 

After several punts and solid defensive play from both teams, the Seamen were able to take the lead as Bronkhorst found last year's offensive rookie of the year Juan Flores Calderon on a 58-yard touchdown pass late in the third quarter. 

Milan's defense certainly deserves credit in this one, as defensive lineman Destiny Giuliani Osawe, All-Star linebacker Zachary Bliar, and safety Maxime De Falcis all made crucial plays against the Mercenaries' offense, helping the Seamen earn their first win of the season. Offensively, Zack Bronkhorst was able to move the chains with his feet and wind down the clock late in the fourth setting up the Seamen for a short-field goal. However, the Seamen missed the kick and needed their defense to come up in the clutch with less than two minutes left. 

Blair and the Milano defense did just that, as the ELF veteran linebacker was able to sack Aiken Jr. A few plays later the Seamen defense stopped the Mercenaries on fourth down as Gabriel Nogueira Montagner sacked Aiken Jr again sealing up the win and igniting the home crowds celebration.

The Raiders Tirol dominate the Barcelona Dragons on the road

The Raiders entered the field today with a new face behind center in quarterback Kason Martin. Martin made his first start for the Raiders helping them cruise to a blowout victory and 63 points. Martin threw for five touchdowns and 364 yards finding Marco Schneider, Richard Weber, Tim Tonko, and Darin Chafin for scores. On the ground, the Raiders offensive line played very well, as a stable of Raiders ball carriers ran for well 300 yards on the day. 

Defensively, Ruben Seeber and Jack Koerner were the leaders in an impressive outing for the Raiders. Tirol's unit held Levi Lewis and the Barcelona Dragons to only two touchdowns while picking off the Dragons twice.