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The German Football League (GFL) is the elite league for American football in Germany. Playing rules are based on those of the American NCAA. In 1999, the league, previously called the ''American Football Bundesliga'' and formed in 1979, adopted the name German Football League.〔(Geschichte ) AFVD website, accessed: 29 December 2010〕 == League set-up == The GFL is partitioned into north and south conferences, each with eight teams. In each conference, every team plays against every other team of its own conference, both at home and away. Until 2011, each team also played home and away interconference games against the team from the opposing conference that finished the previous season on the same rank. However, this was abandoned with the league expansion to 16 teams. After the end of the regular season, four teams from both conferences enter the playoffs, to determine the German championship. The winner of a conference plays against the 4th place team of the other group, second against third of the other conference. The final is called the German Bowl. The lowest ranked team of each conference plays against the winner of the second division, and may be relegated if they lose. The league had been expanded from 12 to 14 teams for the 2011 season. It further increased the number of teams to 16 in 2012.〔(Spielplan der GFL für 2011 steht ) GFL website, published: 8 December 2010, accessed: 29 December 2010〕 Below the ''GFL'' sits the ''GFL 2'', formerly the ''2nd Bundesliga'', which was formed in 1982.〔 It is also divided into a northern and southern division, with eight teams in each. For the 2011 season, both the northern and the southern champions are promoted, while the runners-up of the two divisions will play the last placed team in the GFL division above for another spot in the league in 2012.〔 For most of its history, the GFL has been divided into a northern and southern division. Only in 1979 was it played in single division format, while, from 1986 to 1990, it was divided into four regional divisions. As of 2010, the Munich Cowboys have played more GFL games than any other team, 335, followed by the Berlin Adler with 312, the only other team with more than 300 league games. The Cowboys have played 29 out of a possible 32 seasons at the highest level of the game in Germany, more than any other club.〔(Ewige Bundesligatabelle ) Historic tables of American football in Germany, accessed: 3 January 2011〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「German Football League」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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