Dave Christensen stays head coach of Panthers Wrocław until 2025 season

Dave Christensen is staying in Wrocław for an extended period. Panthers Wrocław have extended the contract with their American head coach for another two years, shortly after his team secured a spot in the European League of Football playoffs.

Dave Christensen took over the reins of Panthers Wrocław in November of last year. The ongoing season marks his first as the head coach of the Wrocław team. Under his leadership, Panthers Wrocław secured a spot in the ELF playoffs and remain contenders for the European championship. It's already confirmed that the American will lead the team in the 2024 and 2025 seasons as well.

– I’m excited to continue as the head coach of the Panthers Wrocław for the next two years. When I took this job in November, I had one goal – to win a championship. After our first season together, we are in the final 6 and look forward to the playoffs. We have made great strides in our first season together, but nobody in our organization is satisfied. We look forward to building Panthers Wrocław into the top organization and team in the European League of Football. We are not going away! – says Dave Christensen, head coach of the Panthers Wrocław.

Panthers, under Dave Christensen's leadership, boasts a record of eight wins, four losses, and a playoff berth. This season, the Wrocław club also leads in the turnovers number and has one of the most effective ground games in the League.

– Together with our owner, we have full trust in Coach Christensen - under his guidance, we have become one of the top six teams in Europe. We feel that, thanks to his dedication and work culture, our entire organization has risen to the next level. Our goal is to build a strong and stable club that competes for top honors every year, which is why we had no doubt about extending our cooperation now – says Michał Latoś, Panthers CEO.

The American brings nearly 40 years of experience at the highest collegiate level in the United States. During his career, he has worked in coaching staffs of teams such as Washington Huskies, Toledo Rockets, Missouri Tigers, Wyoming Cowboys, Utah Utes, Texas A&M, and Arizona State. Before joining Panthers Wrocław, he had never coached a team in Europe.

– Coach Christensen has taken our training to an even higher level, unprecedented until now. He's created an atmosphere within the team where everyone wants to push themselves even harder. I'm confident that under his leadership, our team will reach its full potential and achieve great success – comments Rafał Rogaczewski, offensive lineman for the Panthers.

– Coach Christensen exudes great charisma, to the extent the military commander would envy. This is exactly the kind of person we needed to bring the program to the top. He brought his work ethic and vast experience to the team with a big impact, instilling in us self-belief and a focus on the end result from the very first training camp. Our trust in him grew thanks to his professionalism and understanding of where we were at and what we had to go through every day to meet his expectations. All of this earned him the nickname 'The General' among the players, but I'm not sure if he knows it because few have the courage to tell him that – sums up with a smile Kamil Ruta, one of the Panthers ‘captains.

– It’s really great that Coach is coming back for the next couple seasons. Just being here from day one you can see that he knows how to lead a football program in the right direction and his resume proves that. He has established a winning culture here, and the combination of a great organization with him and the rest of his coaching staff makes me excited for the future here – says A.J. Wentland, american linebacker, who joined the team mid-2023 season.