World Bowl '97 was won by the Barcelona Dragons, whose quarterback was Jon Kitna, then on the roster of the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL.
During the regular season the 7–3 Rhein Fire finished ahead of the 5–5 Barcelona Dragons in the standings.
[2] In week 4 the Dragons beat London, who suffered the "most spectacular collapse in World League history" according to Nick Halling, in giving away a 23-point lead.
31,100 fans were in attendance as the Dragons won their first and only World Bowl title in franchise history.
Jon Kitna was given MVP honors after completing 23 of 31 attempts for 401 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.