Champions! 54-15 in Rüsselsheim — Saints clinch the title early

The Fulda Saints are champions of the Regionalliga Mitte 2026. The 54-15 win in the rescheduled game at the Rüsselsheim Crusaders on August 15 sealed the title with games to spare — delivering the first big goal we set ourselves before this season. The trophy is where it belongs: in Fulda.

It was anything but comfortable. The quarter-by-quarter line tells the story: 8-7, 24-0, 6-8, 16-0. After an open opening quarter, the answer came in the second — 24 unanswered points set the course. "The first one or two quarters were very tight," head coach Jonas Heck said of the early going. "To be honest, I wasn't entirely happy with the officiating; a lot of questionable calls went against us."

What makes this win especially valuable are the circumstances: we had to absorb several absences on offense — and the backups delivered. Kolton Richards, Patrick Dendtler and Holt Egan carried the attack, while the defense grew stronger quarter by quarter and gave up just 8 points after the break. Shortly before kickoff we also signed Canadian safety Dawson Elliott, who already wore the Saints jersey last season.

There is a story behind this game being played in August at all: it was originally scheduled for late June and had to be called off because of the extreme heat after the city of Rüsselsheim closed the field. The rescheduled date turned into the championship game — and we took it.

Even so, the celebration lasts exactly one night. "It feels great — we're celebrating tonight and having a good time, but honestly, from tomorrow the focus is on the playoffs," Jonas Heck said right after the final whistle. The title is a stage, not the destination: ahead of us lies the promotion playoff for GFL 2 — and before that, the home game against the Bad Homburg Sentinels at Johannesberg. The Marathon Continues.

All the photos from the championship celebration and every other update on our Instagram channel.