1992 Barcelona Dragons Media Guide from the World League of American Football

Barcelona Dragons

World League of American Football (1991-1997)
NFL Europe (1998-2003)

Tombstone

Born: May 19, 1990 – WLAF founding franchise11991 Sacramento Surge Media Guide
Folded: Postseason 2003

First Game: March 24, 1991 (W 19-7 vs. New York-New Jersey Knights)
Last Game:
June 7, 2003 (33-7 @ Rhein Fire)

World Bowl Champions: 1997

Stadia

1991-2002: Montjuic Stadium (54,000)

2003: Miniestadi

Marketing

Team Colors: Dark Green, Scarlet & Yellow

Ownership

Owners:

  • 1991-1992: Josep Figueras
  • 1992: WLAF

 

 

Background

The Barcelona Dragons were a founding franchise in the NFL-backed World League of American Football (1991-1992), which sought to serve as both a developmental league for the NFL and a marketing mechanism to extend the NFL brand into European markets.  The original concept saw a mix of European (Barcelona, Frankfurt & London) franchises with North American franchises.

The NFL pulled the plug on the WLAF after two seasons in September 1992.  But the league was re-organized as the Europe-only “World League” in 1995 and the Barcelona Dragons returned to action after a two-year hiatus.  In 1998 the World League was re-branded as NFL Europe.  The Dragons played nine seasons in the re-booted league before going out of business after the 2003 season.

World Bowls

All told, the Dragons played eleven seasons and made four trips to the World Bowl championship game. This included the WLAF’s first championship game on June 9th, 1991. The Dragons ended the league’s debut season with a whimper, bowing out 21-0 to the host London Monarchs before 61,108 spectators at Wembley Stadium.

On June 22, 1997, the Dragons captured their only World Bowl victory. Before an announced home crowd of 31,100 at Estadi Olimpic de Montjuic, quarterback Jon Kitna passed for 401 yards and 2 touchdowns to Barcelona over the Rhein Fire 38-24. Kitna, undrafted out of college in 1996, would make his first NFL start with the Seattle Seahawks six months later and go on to a 15-year NFL career.

Barcelona later lost World Bowl VII to the Frankfurt Galaxy (38-24) in 1999 and fell again World Bowl IX to the Berlin Thunder (24-17) in 2001.

Notable Names

Jon Kitna was Barcelona’s greatest success story in the desired purpose of the WLAF/NFL Europe’s operating as a developmental league. But the team also featured a number of other prominent American ex-college stars finishing out their playing days overseason.

Former Boston College head coach Jack Bicknell was the Dragons’ only head coach for their 11-year history. The team employed quite a few former Boston College Eagles over the years, including 1985 Outland Trophy winner Mike Ruth, who played for the 1991 and 1992 Dragons after his NFL career failed to pan out.

Other notable players included ex-Penn State defensive lineman Bruce Clark, the #4 overall pick in the 1980 NFL Draft, who finished his career with Barcelona in 1991.  Former Notre Dame quarterback Tony Rice, who led the Fighting Irish to the national championship in 1988, played for the Dragons in 1991 and 1992 but could not unseat ex-Rutgers signal caller Scott Erney for the starting job.  Former Temple running back Paul Palmer, an NFL 1st round draft bust in 1987, played for the Dragons in 1991 and 1992.

Tony Rice

Murder-for-Hire Conviction of Eric Naposki

The Dragons – and the World League’s – most notorious player was former UConn linebacker Eric Naposki. Naposki, who kicked around the NFL briefly in the late 1980’s as an undrafted free agent, was Barcelona’s leading tackler in 1991.  He played the 1991 & 1992 seasons during the WLAF era and later returned to play for the Dragons again in 1996 and 1997.  In 2012, a judge sentenced Naposki to life in prison without parole for the 15-year old murder-for-hire of Bill McLaughlin in Newport Beach, California in December 1994.  The murder went unsolved for 15 years before Naposki and a female accomplice were arrested.  Chillingly, Naposki continued to play for the Dragons for two seasons after committing the killing.

 

Barcelona Dragons Shop

Our Favorite Stuff

Barcelona Dragons
Logo T-Shirts

For my money, Barcelona’s dragon’s head mark was far and away the best looking logo created during the NFL’s European developmental league adventures of the 1990’s and 2000’s.
The Dragons, who played from 1991 through 2003, remain the nation of Spain’s only professional American Football team to this day. 
Royal Retros offers a selection of different Barcelona Dragons t-shirt designs in forest green, white, athletic heather & red!

 

When you make a purchase through an affiliate link like this one, Fun While It Lasted earns a commission at no additional cost to you. Thanks for your support!

 

Global Fashion

WLAF Logo T-Shirt

Hope springs eternal, it seems, that someone will make professional spring football work in the United States. But even the NFL itself couldn’t make it happen with its own short-lived developmental league of the early ’90’s. Still, there’s never been another league that gave us rivalries like Birmingham versus Barcelona…
This World League of American Football logo tee is available from our partners at American Retro Apparel in both Sport Grey and White. Sizes small through XXXL available today!
 
When you make a purchase through an affiliate link like this one, Fun While It Lasted earns a commission at no additional cost to you. Thanks for your support!

 

 

 

Links

World League of American Football Media Guides

World League of American Football Programs

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Comments

2 Responses

  1. Looking for the game that was covered by ABC network between Barcelona Dragons and London Monarchs in 1991. I viewed this game a couple years ago, but can not seem to find it now. Can you help point me in the right direction please? I was in the marching band that performed for the halftime show and is one of the reasons I want to see it again. This youtube link that is listed here may be the one I’m looking for, but it is no longer valid. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kInsYDY1l8I

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