German Federation celebrates 35th Birthday and DOSB Recognition

Andrea ‘Oddi’ Furlan (President, EUF - left) and Volker Schlechter (President, DFV - right) at the festivities in Bensheim, GER

On Saturday, November 8th, the EUF President, Andrea “Oddi” Furlan, and the EUF General Secretary, Felix “Nemo” Nemec, attended the festivities for 35 years of DFV and their recognition by the German Olympic Committee in the city of Bensheim, GER, on the invitation of the German Flying Disc Federation (“Deutscher Frisbeesport Verband”).

WFDF President Nob Rauch (USA) sent a video message to welcome the audience and congratulate the DFV, while EDGF President Frank Hellstern (GER) also included greetings from EFDF President Haude Hermand (FRA) in his speech.

In his speech, Oddi congratulated the board of the DFV on behalf of the European Ultimate Federation for this extraordinary achievement, the culmination of many years of hard work, sustainable structures, and a passion for disc sports.

DFV and its members are an essential part of the EUF as tournament organisers. The European Ultimate Championship was held in Cologne in 1987, while 3 Youth Ultimate Championships were played in 2010 (Heilbronn), 2014 (Cologne), and 2016 (Frankfurt), as well as four club championship finals. Last but not least, the European Masters Ultimate Club Championship will be held in Heilbronn from May 8th to 10th, 2026.

Germany is not only a country of great organisers, but also belongs to the top ultimate nations in the world. In addition to congratulating the DFV on its 4th place finish in the World Games 2025, the outstanding achievement of the Ultimate Women's National Team was also honoured. They won the European Ultimate Championship in Limerick in 2023 and acted as great role models for other Female Matching Athletes not only in Germany, but throughout Europe.

Oddi continued to remind that the other competitors in the European Community are very active, especially in the youth sector. In various countries, such as Italy, France, Belgium, and Czechia, some ultimate trainers have turned their passion into a profession. Now, their full-time job is teaching ultimate in afternoon school programs and clubs to kids between 8 and 14, which has led to a significant increase in the number of athletes in those countries. It was further announced that EUF plans to organise a 2-day on-site youth development conference in Vienna at the end of the EYUC 2026 (Vienna, August 2nd-8th, 2026), inviting professionals in ultimate and organised sports as keynote speakers to inspire and connect as many people devoted to youth ultimate development as possible.

Thanks to the recognition of the National Olympic Committee (DOSB), the existing structures and the incredible number of passionate people who see ultimate as an integral part of their lives, Germany has excellent preconditions to boost the quantity and quality of ultimate athletes in the near future.

Once again, congratulations to the DFV.