The Warsaw Eagles faced off against the Gdynia Seahawks in last year's PLFA NAC SuperFinal VII Courtesy of Marcin Warpechowski/PLFA.pl

Poland’s newly formed national American football team will take on Sweden at the Atlas Arena in Łódź on February 2. Following the unprecedented success of last summer’s PLFA NAC SuperFinal VII, it was decided that Poland needed a national squad to represent the burgeoning game in the country. The new team will be made up of players from Poland’s 74 teams and Maciej Cetnerowski, head coach of the Topliga champions, the Gdynia Seahawks, will manage them against their neighbors from across the Baltic Sea.

The location of the event is significant and fans, players and coaches will be hoping for some good omens as Poland has already seen major international success in both volleyball and handball at the Atlas Arena in recent years. However, as it is an indoor venue, the format of the play will be slightly different from the traditional form of American football. Arena football is a highly energetic version of the game, with spectacular plays being the norm, and fans treated to thrilling action on practically every play.

“I expect it to be a very inspiring experience for our players, coaches and fans. I am excited for the team to experience the great event that I know the Polish federation is capable of delivering. We expect a full arena and some great football,” said Tommy Wiking, president of the International Federation of American Football (IFAF) and the Swedish American Football Federation (SAFF).

“We are delighted that Sweden has accepted our invitation. We are well aware of the strength and the experience of the opponent we will face in our national team’s debut. We will do our very best both on and off the field,” said Jędrzej Stęszewski, president of the Polish American Football League (PLFA).

Alex Zarganis, David Ingham