IFAF Senior World Championship begins today: USA v Austria, Germany v Mexico preview

2011 IFAF SENIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP OF AMERICAN FOOTBALL KICKS OFF IN AUSTRIA ON FRIDAY, JULY 8

Eight nations from four continents converge on Graz, Innsbruck and Vienna to compete for the fourth world title; USA vs. Australia; Germany vs. Mexico preview

Defending world champion the United States will kick off the fourth IFAF Senior World Championship of American football against Australia at 3pm Central European Time (9am US EDT) in the picturesque Austrian city of Innsbruck.

Eight national teams from four continents – Australia, Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Mexico and USA – will battle for the right to call themselves World Champions over 16 games played during a period of nine days. The Gold Medal Game will be played on Saturday, July 15 at the 50,000-seat Ernst Happel Stadium in the nation’s capital Vienna.

“The true world champion of our sport will be crowned here in Austria this summer for the fourth time, joining the Japanese team that triumphed in 1999 and 2003 and the reigning champion from 2007, the United States,” said IFAF President TOMMY WIKING.

“We are delighted to be here in the cities of Graz, Innsbruck and Vienna in the beautiful country of Austria. The American Football Bund Österreich has worked tirelessly during the past two years to host this event and we recognize and applaud the hard work and tireless effort produced by Michael Eschlböck and his staff. There will be touchdowns, celebrations, winners and losers, but the true winners here will be the sport of American football and its loyal fans.”

Also in Group A action on Friday is European champion Germany, who face Mexico at 7pm (1pm ET), at the Tivoli Stadium in Innsbruck. Group B kicks off on Saturday, July 9 at the UPC Arena in Graz when host nation Austria takes on Japan at 3pm, followed by a 7pm clash between France and Canada.

The two group winners will meet in the Gold Medal Game at the Ernst Happel Stadium in the nation’s capital Vienna on Saturday, July 16 at 7pm. The two group runners up will meet for the Bronze Medal in Vienna at 7pm on Friday, July 15. Third place finishers (3pm on July 16) and fourth place finishers (3pm on July 15) will also progress to placement games in Vienna.

Japan became the first ever World Champions of American Football in a 6-0 overtime victory over Mexico in Palermo, Italy in 1999. Four years later in Frankfurt, Germany, Japan again defeated Mexico, 34-14. Japan hosted the 2007 Senior World Championship as the United States entered for the first time and outlasted Japan 23-20 in double overtime to return home triumphant from Tokyo.

2011 IFAF Senior World Championship Schedule

Date	Game	Time	Venue
Fri July 8	USA vs. Australia	3pm	Tivoli Stadium, Innsbruck
Fri July 8	Germany vs. Mexico	7pm	Tivoli Stadium, Innsbruck
Sat July 9	Austria vs. Japan	3pm	UPC Arena, Graz
Sat July 9	France vs. Canada	7pm	UPC Arena, Graz
Sun July 10	Mexico vs. Australia	3pm	Tivoli Stadium, Innsbruck
Sun July 10	Germany vs. USA	7pm	Tivoli Stadium, Innsbruck
Mon July 11	Japan vs. France	3pm	UPC Arena, Graz
Mon July 11	Canada vs. Austria	7pm	UPC Arena, Graz
Tue July 12	Australia vs. Germany	3pm	Tivoli Stadium, Innsbruck
Tue July 12	USA vs. Mexico	7pm	Tivoli Stadium, Innsbruck
Wed July 13	Canada vs. Japan	3pm	UPC Arena, Graz
Wed July 13	Austria vs. France	7pm	UPC Arena, Graz
Fri July 15	Seventh Place Game	3pm	Ernst Happel Stadium, Vienna
Fri July 15	Bronze Medal Game	7pm	Ernst Happel Stadium, Vienna
Sat July 16	Fifth Place Game	3pm	Ernst Happel Stadium, Vienna
Sat July 16	Gold Medal Game	7pm	Ernst Happel Stadium, Vienna

Game 1 Preview

Match up	United States vs. Australia
Date	Friday, July 8 at 3pm
Venue	Tivoli Stadium, Innsbruck
SWC meetings	First ever meeting between the two nations
Head Coaches	USA – Mel Tjeerdsma Australia – John Leijten
USA in IFAF SWC	1999 – Did not participate 2003 – Did not participate 2007 – Champions Group stages: W 77-0 vs. Korea; W 33-7 vs. Germany Gold Medal Game: W 23-20 vs. Japan (2OT)
Australia in IFAF SWC	1999 – Fifth Place Group stages: L 6-22 vs. Sweden; L 0-54 vs. Japan Fifth Place Game: W 10-7 vs. Finland 2003 – Did not participate 2007 – Did not participate
National Federations	USA Football: www.USAFootball.com Gridiron Australia: www.GridironAustralia.org.au

Quotes:

USA head coach Mel Tjeerdsma: “We came here to defend our title, but we know the challenges. Each and every country has that goal and we have had about ten days together. Guys like Demetrius Eaton have been here (before) and they have expressed what it takes and I think that feeling has really bonded us together. And it will be interesting to see what happens.”

Linebacker Demetrius Eaton, who played on the victorious 2007 USA team: “I expect eight teams to put on a show for the fans. This is the fourth championship, and I expect the teams to come on firing on all cylinders. We all have prepared very hard and we are all ready to play these games.”

Australia head coach John Leijten: “Our guys are very motivated. When they found out the opening game was against the United States, they were excited. They want to compete with the best in the world. Football players by nature are very competitive human beings.

“When you have to compete against teams like the United States and Canada, it is always going to be difficult. What we ask of our players is to play as hard, as fast, as long as they can. As long as very does a good job of competing. Our main goal is to compete and win as many games as possible.”

Australia running back Matt Croasdaile: “We have a tremendous amount of guys that have been playing together since the last (Australian team) games in the UK in 2009 and there is a solid core of guys. To coincide with that, we have been working with Coach Leijten for the past year and half, and he has really gotten us ready training. I am also playing with six guys from my club team. So overall we have a lot of experience playing together, and I think that puts us in a good place for the championship.

“We have to set our goals high. We might be perceived as underdogs but we have a tremendous spirit. So we are setting our goals high and want to beat everyone we face and we’ll see how we do.”

Game 2 Preview

Match up	Germany vs. Mexico
Date	Friday, July 8 at 7pm
Venue	Tivoli Stadium, Innsbruck
SWC meetings	2003 semi final, Frankfurt: Mexico 21 Germany 17
Head Coaches	Germany – Sport Director Marshall Happer; OC Brad Arbon; DC Dogan Özdincer Mexico – Raúl Rivera Sánchez
Germany in IFAF SWC	1999 – Did not participate 2003 – Bronze Medal Semi Final: L 17-21 vs. Mexico Bronze Medal Game: W 36-7 vs. France 2007 – Bronze Medal Group stages: W 32-2 vs. Korea; L 7-33 vs. USA Bronze Medal Game: W 7-0 vs. Sweden
Mexico in IFAF SWC	1999 – Silver Medal Group stages: W 89-0 vs. Finland; W 54-0 vs. Italy Gold Medal Game: L 0-6 vs. Japan (OT) 2003 – Silver Medal Semi Final: W 21-17 vs. Germany Gold Medal Game: L 14-34 vs. Japan 2007 – Did not participate
National Federations	Germany – AFVD: www.AFVD.de Mexico – FMFA: www.FMFAmericano.com

Quotes:

Mexico linebackers coach Gabriel Sánchez: “This is the third tournament that Mexico has participated in and we have a great team, great players with NFL experience and NFL Europe, which is a huge advantage. We have a complete and focused team. We only have one goal and that is a championship.

“In the past, we have lost twice to Japan. This team is pretty different. The selection process started eight months ago and in our country that is huge. We have never done it that way. We tried to combine NFL players and current league players. We have a balanced team. Our strongest part is that we are together. The communication and the environment is huge.”

Mexico OL/DL Mauricio Lopez: “I think we have a same dream and one mission and play for one country. I feel great, because we play for our country and have the opportunity to play against other countries. This is the most important part for me and the other players.

“We want to change the opinion of American Football in Mexico and win a championship. The most popular sport is soccer, but I think this championship can show we have talent in American Football as well.”

Germany Sport Director Marshal Happer: “The players have learned very quickly, and from there we are in good shape in terms of preparation. The will to win is there!”

Germany Offensive Coordinator Brad Arbon: “The coaches feel positive result after two days of training camp in Frankfurt. We worked well and found our rhythm. The guys are very motivated and will all work hard to be successful and to improve as a group.”