Amsterdam Crusaders
 |
|
| Founded | 1984 |
|---|---|
| Based in | Amsterdam, Netherlands |
| Home stadium | Sportpark Sloten (1984–present) |
| Head coach |
Winston Ronde (Senior) Robert von Gerhardt (Youth) Jimmy Bergwijn (Flag) |
| General manager | Ruben Kon |
| League |
|
| Colors | Red, White, and Black |
| Nickname(s) | Crusaders, Cru |
| Tulip Bowl Championship | 18 (1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1998, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2015, 2016) |
| Eurobowl Championship | 2 (1991, 1992) |
The Amsterdam Crusaders are an American Football club from Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Together with the Rotterdam Trojans and Alphen Eagles, Amsterdam Crusaders are the oldest surviving Dutch American Football club.
The Crusaders started as a spin-off of the former Amsterdam Rams in the spring of 1984. Several former players decided it was time to have another team in Amsterdam. This initiative became official on 6 September 1984. At the office of the Amsterdam Notary Loeff & van der Ploeg the three legal founders ([Winston Ronde], [Marc van Velzen] and [Anthony da Costa Gomes]) signed the documents to become an official team (Vereniging). In the years that followed they grew into a team capable of playing at both national and international levels.
The 1980s saw frequent battles with fierce rivals Amsterdam Rams, The Hague Raiders and Utrecht Vikings for places in the Tulip Bowl and Eurobowl.
The Crusaders joined the European elite by reaching the Eurobowl final in 1988, with upset wins over the London Ravens and Berlin Adlers in the quarter and semi finals, only to lose against the Helsinki Roosters (35-14), who ran a power wishbone attack with Mike Kane, former All-American running back at CSUN. He Scored 4 TDs' and was elected the games MVP. In 1989 Amsterdam again reached the final, unfortunately losing a thriller 27-23 to the Legnano Frogs (Italy). In 1990, the "third Crusade" ended in Manchester (UK) when the Manchester Spartans defended three drives from the Crusaders in the 4th quarter to progress on their way to a European title.
Finally, the Crusaders managed to claim the big prize. In 1991 the Amsterdam Crusaders won Eurobowl V with a 21-20 win over Berlin Adler in Offenbach, with safety Najib Nakad blocking a Berlin PAT to secure a hard-fought win. Later that year the Amsterdam Crusaders played a regular season game against San Francisco State University. A year later, Eurobowl VI was added to the "Cru" trophy cabinet with a 42-21 win over Torino Giaguari (Italy) at Uppsala, Sweden. Incredibly, 1993 saw the Crusaders reach their 5th Eurobowl final in six years, this time in the illustrious setting of the Heysel Stadium, Brussels. In a fantastic game, the London Olympians proved too strong for the Crusaders.
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