Samu Juppo has been appointed as the head coach of the Women’s National American Football Team. Juppo served as the team’s defensive coordinator at the World Championships held in Vantaa in August. The new head coach’s contract is valid until the 2026 World Championships.

The position of the Women’s American Football National Team head coach became available after Mika Eloranta’s successful project ended with a bronze medal in the World Championships. Samu Juppo, who will begin his role as head coach in September, served as the defense coordinator in Eloranta’s coaching team.

Juppo began playing flag football in 1989 and transitioned to coaching in 2009. He has served as head coach, offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator, special teams coordinator, video coach, and assistant coach for teams he has coached. From 2020-2021, Juppo served as head coach of Seinäjoki Crocodiles playing in the Maple League.

Juppo has been working with the Women’s National Team since 2017. In 2019, he played a role as the defense coordinator in winning the European Championship for Finland, and in August 2022, they won the World Championship bronze medal.

Roope Noronen, the President of American Football Association of Finland, is pleased that they quickly found a coach with strong credentials and support from the rest of the coaching staff:

-I am extremely pleased that we got Juppo as the head coach of our Women’s National Team. Juppo has been involved in national team coaching for several years, and after a successful World Championships, we get good continuity in our operations.

Samu Juppo is excited about his new role and is ready to lead the Women’s National Team towards the 2023 European Championships:

-I’m really excited to take the Women’s National Team forward and develop our operations. The team’s impressive performance in the World Championships showed that we have full potential to fight for the highest medal in every future competition. The first challenge is the European Championships and preparing for them. However, the British finished above us in the World Championships, so there is still a lot to prove in future European matches. A big thing for me is that we can continue the work we started with the same coaching staff. This development work also requires close cooperation and support for club teams.

Juppo already has a clear vision of the next steps for ensuring the Women’s National Team’s continued success:

-The first task is to finalize the entire staff composition. After that, we will work together to sum up the development areas and experiences that we have encountered in previous projects. We will think together about solutions and implementations to ensure that the development path continues in Finnish women’s American football.

The battle for women’s European medals begins in the fall of 2023. More detailed schedules for international games will be announced later.