LIF 1980

	P	W	L	T	PF	PA	Pct
Lupi Roma	6	4	2	0	73	52	.667
Tori Torino	6	4	2	0	52	56	.667
Diavoli Milano	6	3	2	1	87	42	.583
Gladiatori Roma	6	0	5	1	24	88	.083

Reference: [1]

LIF 1981

	P	W	L	T	PF	PA	Pct
Gladiatori Roma	3	3	0	0	68	0	1.000
Lupi Roma	3	2	1	0	40	12	.667
Tori Torino	3	1	2	0	12	64	.333
Diavoli Roma	3	0	3	0	0	50

Reference: [2]

Note: Season Unfinished.

Note on Team Names

Team	Translation	Notes on Team Name
Lupi Roma	Rome Wolves	According to Etruscan legend a Wolf gave birth to Romulus & Remus, the founders of Rome. The Etruscan were the first inhabitants of Rome.
Gladiatori Roma	Rome Gladiators	Gladiators are famous for their association with Rome. They took part in sword fights in Rome for the pleasure of the Roman public.
Diavoli Milano / Pavullo	Milan Devils	Milan was founded by the Celts, who had a God who resembled a deer, hence their later association with the devil by Christians.
Tauri Torino	Torino Minotaurs	The Minotaur in Ancient Greek Myth was a beast that was Half Man – Half Bull (A Man with a Bull’s Head)

[4][5]

Report

The first domestic Italian American Football League was the Northern Italian Football League , started in 1976, following the first unsuccessful attempts at introducing Pro American Football to Europe in 1973-1975, with the Intercontinental Football League, which was to feature NFL players, and six teams in Europe, including the Rome Gladiators in Italy.

The Northern Italian Football League was started in 1976, with Vicenza teams Geronimos & Blue Knights dominating play, winning all the Spaghetti Bowls between them and finishing in the top two spots in the Regular Season most years.

The FIFA (Federazione Italiano Football Americano) association was set up the following year, in 1977, with a four-team National Playoff.

In 1980, the second attempt at starting a true National League was founded – the Lega Italiana Football Americano. It lasted one and a half seasons, with the second season finishing at the midway point. Lupi Roma won the first title in 1980 and Gladiatori Roma were the leaders at the halfway point in the second season. The rival Associazone Italiana Football Americano, which played its first season in 1981 took over thereafter.

The Italian League was the first domestic American Football League in Europe, with the game being restricted to US Army men playing at Air Force bases in Europe prior to that. The film M*A*S*H had popularised American Football in Europe in 1970, the first time the game had been seen on screen in Europe in a Major Film. See the Intercontinental Football League 1972-1975: Intercontinental Football League 1970-1975

References

Websites

[1] Enciclopedia del Football Italiano (2018) Lega Italiano Football Americano 1980 http://www.warriorsbologna.it/public/Enciclopedia/PDF/1980_lif.pdf[Accessed 15 October 2019]

[2] Enciclopedia del Football Italiano (2018) Lega Italiano Football Americano 1981 http://www.warriorsbologna.it/public/Enciclopedia/PDF/1981_lif.pdf[Accessed 15 October 2019]

[3] Alex Macbeth | The Local.it (2018) Four Civilizations that predate Rome [Internet] Available from: https://www.thelocal.it/20180911/four-civilizations-in-italy-that-pre-date-the-roman-empire [Accessed 27 October 2019]

[4] Medievallists.net (2019) Foundation myths in Mediaval & Renaissance Italy [Internet] Available from: https://www.medievalists.net/2015/06/foundation-myths-in-medieval-and-renaissance-italy/ [Accessed 27 October 2019]

[5] Tauri Torino (2019) Home | Sito Storico [Internet] Available from: https://tauritorino.com/ [Accessed 27 October 2019]

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Santina Farrinella.

About this document

Researched, compiled and written by Enda Mulcahy for the

Eirball | Irish North American and World Sports Archive

Last Updated: 27 October 2019

(c) Copyright Enda Mulcahy and Eirball 2019

You may quote this document in part provided that proper acknowledgement is given to the authors. All Rights Resereved.