Most sports fans around the globe call it “football.” In the United States we call it soccer. So, what does one say when Italians play American football? Un pomeriggio fantastico!
During World War II, American servicemen stationed in Europe played American football all over the region, including Italy and France, for relaxation. American football in Italy achieved its present fame thanks to the inaugural “Spaghetti Bowl” on Jan. 1, 1945.
The game between the U.S. Fifth Army Krautclouters and Twelfth Air Force Bridgebusters was played in front of 20,000 fans at Stadio Giovanni Berta in Florence.
Army won the game 20-0.
For decades, Italians playing American football have competed for their own Super Bowl, the Italian Bowl Championship, which determines the league champion of the Italian Football League (IFL).
On July 1, 2023, the IFL championship was played on American soil for the first time in 40 years at the University of Toledo’s Glass Bowl. The Parma Panthers defeated defending champion Firenze Guelfi for the Italian Bowl XLII title in front of an estimated 10,000 fans, many of whom made the trip from Italy.
And in June, it’s coming back. The Italian Bowl is returning to Toledo!
At a press conference Wednesday at the University of Toledo, game organizers and local and state officials met at the Grogan Room at Savage Hall to announce that Italian Bowl XLIV will be played at the Glass Bowl.
Events related to the Italian Bowl will begin in March and culminate with the game on June 28. Italian Bowl XLIV will be televised live on BCSN, which will also televise IFL regular-season games.
Geoff Shook, president of Buckeye Broadband, said the 2023 Italian Bowl at UT “was an absolutely phenomenal success.
“The community embraced it,” he said. “So much so that when the next opportunity came around, the IFL was happy to meet with us and happy to take advantage of our invitation to come back. I love the fact we have the opportunity to work with other business leaders and help promote Toledo.”
Shook added that the genesis of this event coming to Toledo two years ago can be attributed to “Nick Eyde’s vision.”
Eyde, a Lansing, Mich., native and Toledo real estate executive, played quarterback at a small college in Minnesota before going on to play five seasons in the IFL and two seasons in the Austrian League.
Eyde formed partnerships with community leaders, including the University of Toledo and BCSN, to help bring the Italian Bowl to the Glass City in 2023.
“It’s exciting for me,” Eyde said. “It’s a huge part of my life. Coming back to Toledo and playing in the Glass Bowl at the University of Toledo’s campus; it’s very special.”
Eyde gave a shout out to BCSN for televising IFL games, and he thanked UT director of athletics Bryan Blair “for being such a big proponent of this, as well.”
The partners here locally – I just cannot say enough. A lot of good things continue to happen and I’m excited to bring the Italian Bowl back on June 28.
Nick Eyde
“The partners here locally, I just cannot say enough,” Eyde said. “A lot of good things continue to happen and I’m excited to bring the Italian Bowl back on June 28.”
Blair said the university couldn’t be more excited to host an event like this, “not only for the city but for our campus and its beauty and all it has to offer.
“The Italian Bowl is going to invite not only this region but the entire world to ask more questions about what is Toledo?” Blair said. “Why Toledo … and why not Toledo and all the amazing things that, in my two and a half years here, I’ve found out about this amazing community.”
State senator Theresa Gavarone, from Bowling Green, expressed how excited she is to bring an international event, such as the Italian Bowl, back to Toledo.
“When you can bring people and countries together through sports, it can be a really great unifier,” Gavarone said. “We can start to build upon relationships. You’ve heard about the immediate economic impact of bringing Italy, this Italian game, here to our community.”
She noted the long-term benefits of those relationships really cannot be overstated. “This is an incredible opportunity to show leaders and business leaders what we’ve got here in Ohio.”
