American football has gained popularity in Luxembourg over recent years.
Paul Zahlen has become the first Luxembourgish head coach in the second division of the the German American football Bundesliga.
Zahlen is already well-known in Saarbrücken as a former player. After having been on the Saarland Hurricanes team for two years, he gathered experience as a coach and has now returned with a B training license to take over the current squad. Although in times of the pandemic, his wider future remains uncertain:
"It is very strange at the moment, as we don't know whether we will play a season or not. If the crisis ends in the foreseeable future, I will be able to make arrangements for training in Saarbrücken, where I will be driving three times a week. Right now, most preparations work via phone or video conference. As soon as we know if we can play again, we will also need to start studying our opponents."
A few US American soldiers stationed at the airbase near Saarbrücken also play in the team.
Considering salaries, the state of Saarland is not the most lucrative work environment for coaches. Nonetheless, American football has grown in popularity over recent years, according to Zahlen:
"There is no comparing to the feeling of having prepared an entire year to finally run onto the pitch in your home stadium in front of 1,500 to 2,000 people. Our fan club is also amazing and makes its support evident."
Both the thirty-one-year-old coach and the team are under considerable amount of pressure:
"The first major aim is to be promoted to the first division of the Bundesliga. Speaking long-term goals, I believe that a spot in the German Bowl is realistic, although that might still be in distant future."
The Bundesliga was set to start at the beginning of May.
