The Ingolstadt Dukes are a German American football team from Ingolstadt, Bavaria.
The club, formed in 2007, experienced its greatest success in 2016 when it won promotion to the German Football League, the top tier of league football in Germany.
History
The Ingolstadt Dukes were formed on 8 October 2007 at the club house of TV 1861 Ingolstadt, which became the parent organisation for the American football club. The early seasons of the new club were spent in nearby Manching as the Dukes were unable to secure a permanent home in Ingolstadt.
The Dukes first season, in 2008, was spent in the tier eight Aufbauliga Bayern where it finished fourth and last in its division. It spent the following year in the Landesliga Bayern where it finished first and remained unbeaten all season. The club rose to the Verbandsliga for 2010, won this league, too, and played in the Bayernliga in 2011. After another league title there the Dukes entered the tier three Regionalliga Süd from 2012. Three seasons at this level followed in which the club improved season by season.
In 2014, the Dukes won the Regionalliga, remaining unbeaten throughout and earned promotion to the German Football League 2 for the first time after a play-off victory over Regionalliga Mitte runners-up Langen Knights. The team finished second in the southern division of the GFL2 in 2015.
In 2016, the Dukes made their step to the German Football League.
At the end of their first season, 2017, the Dukes ranked 4th. In the playoff-quarterfinal the Dukes lost against Braunschweig Lions.
Logo and name
The club's logo results from the cities car number plates which start with In. The club's name, the Dukes, comes from the fact that Ingolstadt was once the capital of the Duchy of Bavaria-Ingolstadt.
Honours
GFL
Play-off qualification: 2017
League membership: 2017–present
GFL2
Champions: 2016, 2022
Regionalliga Süd
Champions: 2014, 2021
Bayernliga
Champions: 2011
Verbandsliga Bayern-Süd
Champions: 2010
Landesliga Bayern
Champions: 2009
Recent seasons
Recent seasons of the Dukes:
PR = Promotion round. QF = Quarter finals.
Players
The current kicker and punter for the Dukes is Zane Davis, from Charlotte, North Carolina. He is currently attending UNC Chapel Hill.