AFI exclusive: Dresden Monarchs HC Greg Seamon on winning the GFL Bowl, coaching in Germany and chasing another title

Greg Seamon may have been coaching for decades but he shows no signs of slowing down.

The veteran American coach has spent more than four decades roaming football sidelines, from the NFL to major college programs and, most recently, the German Football League (GFL). At an age when many of his contemporaries are content to watch from the stands, Seamon is still drawing up game plans, developing players and chasing championships.

And he’s having a pretty good time doing it.

Fresh off guiding the Dresden Monarchs through a perfect 2026 season, Seamon has signed on for another year, with his sights set firmly on defending the title that took three trips to the championship game to secure.

“I love to coach football. I love the relationships, the challenges, the process,” Seamon told American Football International in an exclusive interview.

For a man who has worked with the Dallas Cowboys, Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals, the appeal of coaching hasn’t diminished with the passing years.

If anything, his experience in Dresden has given him a few new reasons to keep going.

Three trips, one championship and a little unfinished business

The Monarchs’ championship breakthrough didn’t happen overnight.

In 2024, Seamon’s first season at the helm, Dresden entered the title game against Potsdam as a considerable underdog. The Monarchs gave the favorites everything they could handle before their final opportunity evaporated on a fourth-down incompletion at the Royals’ 16-yard line.

“We fought hard and played well,” Seamon recalled. “The game ended for us on the Potsdam 16-yard line when we threw an incomplete pass on fourth down with time running out.”

The following year, there was no longer any question about whether Dresden belonged on the championship stage.

The Monarchs entered the game confident in their preparation and carried a lead into halftime. Unfortunately, football has a nasty habit of disregarding even the best-laid plans.

Quarterback Justin Miller injured his throwing hand and was forced to leave the contest.

“I don’t know if we would have won if Justin had played the whole game, but I liked our chances,” Seamon admitted.

The defeat left a mark.

“That loss really stung and motivated our team going into the offseason program. We had our best attendance last winter and entered this season a bigger, faster, more confident team.”

A June victory over Potsdam on the road provided the final piece of evidence that Dresden needed.

“When we beat Potsdam at their place in June, it confirmed for us that we could win the championship if we played good football.”

They were right.

American football, German realities

Few coaches arrive in the GFL with Seamon’s breadth of experience, but even he had some adjusting to do.

The biggest difference between developing players in the United States and Germany, he explained, isn’t necessarily athletic ability or enthusiasm. It’s the amount of time players have spent around the sport.

“The biggest difference is time in the game,” Seamon said.

“In the United States, kids are exposed to the game at a very young age and have access to good instruction. In Europe, that same kind of infrastructure has long been in place for soccer.”

That gap is beginning to close as youth football opportunities expand across Germany, but the demands of coaching at the senior level remain distinctive.

Unlike their American professional counterparts, many GFL players have significant commitments away from football. Coaches must therefore squeeze maximum value from every practice, meeting and film session.

“We must be extremely well organized with our time, and we must make great use of technology in our teaching and in our evaluation,” Seamon explained.

That doesn’t mean reinventing his approach to the game.

“My philosophy of coaching has not changed. It has just been adjusted to a different situation.”

In other words, the fundamentals still work. You just have to be a little more creative about delivering them.

No need to fix what wasn’t broken

Seamon also resists the temptation to portray himself as the architect of some sweeping organizational revolution.

When he arrived in Dresden in 2024, the Monarchs were already a successful club coming off a playoff appearance.

There was no need to tear everything down and start over.

“I don’t know that I needed to change the culture,” he said. “I think that it is important that a coach be himself and express clearly what his beliefs are regarding the game.”

The results suggest that approach has worked rather well.

Seamon puts the Monarchs’ record during his tenure at 40 victories in 45 games, a remarkable stretch of consistency that has culminated in a championship.

Yet ask him what makes him proudest, and he doesn’t immediately reach for the trophy.

“I think that I am most proud of the fact that we have played the game well on a pretty consistent basis.”

It might not be the sort of answer that sells championship T-shirts, but it tells you plenty about the man running the show.

 

Dresden gives the old coach something new

For someone who has worked on the sidelines of some of America’s most famous football venues, Seamon has developed a particularly strong appreciation for the atmosphere surrounding the Monarchs.

And the 2026 GFL Bowl apparently made quite an impression.

“I have had the good fortune to coach in many of the great stadiums in the United States,” he said. “None of them surpassed the electric atmosphere that we all experienced in the 2026 GFL Bowl.”

That’s no small compliment coming from a coach with his résumé.

Seamon readily acknowledges that German football isn’t packing American-sized crowds into stadiums every weekend. But he has discovered that passion isn’t necessarily measured by the number of seats in a building.

“We may not yet have crowds as large as those in the United States, but we have exceptionally loyal and energetic fans.”

Just as important is the environment those supporters create.

“The fact that our GFL games are so family-friendly makes me proud as well.”

After decades in a sport that can sometimes take itself a little too seriously, there is something refreshing about that perspective.

The problem with being perfect

Of course, winning every game creates its own complications.

The Monarchs won’t be sneaking up on anybody in 2027. Every opponent will have their championship matchup circled, and the defending champions will be expected to deliver their best performance every single week.

Seamon understands the assignment.

“We realize that we will now be the hunted and need to play at an even higher level if we are to succeed in 2027.”

That prospect, far from discouraging him, is part of what keeps him coming back.

A local reporter recently asked whether he had expected to spend four years coaching in Dresden when he first accepted the position.

Seamon’s response revealed something about how he has managed to remain enthusiastic after so many seasons.

“I have never thought about coaching that way,” he explained. “At the end of each season, I take a little time to determine if I want to continue coaching.”

And this year?

“That answer is an emphatic … I do!”

The challenge of defending an undefeated championship season provides plenty of motivation, but Seamon knows that the past offers no guarantees.

“We know now that we are capable of great things. We know the amount of work that it takes.”

He also knows that championship rings aren’t particularly useful when the next opponent lines up across from you.

“Our success last year will not win us any games this coming season. Every season and every team is different than the year before.”

So the process begins again this winter, with offseason preparation followed by the installation of new plans on offense, defense and special teams next spring.

The Monarchs have a championship to defend, a perfect season to live up to and an entire league eager to knock them off their perch.

And Greg Seamon?

He’s still having far too much fun to call it a career.