Early last year news started making the rounds that the Arena Football League (AFL) would be making a return in 2024. At the time there was promises of 16 teams, all in markets with big money backers to keep the league afloat. The close that we got to the season the more apparent things became that things weren’t going as planned.
The first week of action was a mixed bag in quality of play and facilities. Beyond that, the league had to change broadcasting plans just days leading up to the season. One of the AFL’s major selling points was that they’d be broadcast on the NFL Network. When it came to gameday, only a select few games were available via dodgy streaming sites. It was also when teams started pulling out of the AFL.
By the end of the season the league held on to eight of the original 16 franchises. There were some moments when it looked like the Arenabowl was going to be cancelled due to funding, but backers were able to get the financials sorted in the days leading up to their championship.
Now, it seems as if the eight remaining teams are going a different route and forming an entirely new league; Arena Football One (AF1).
Arena Football One includes the Albany Firebirds, Billings Outlaws, Nashville Kats, Orlando Predators, Salina Liberty, Southwest Kansas Storm, Washington Wolfpack and Wichita Regulators. Additionally, it sounds like more teams may jump on board before the 2025 season takes place.
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Earlier this month, Billings Outlaws owner Steven Titus filed a United States Patent and Trademark Office application to register the name. AF1, which originally dates back to 2009, was previously registered under G6 Sports who currently own the identity of the AFL. There is still some red tape in the way, but we don’t anticipate any issues securing the name.
There were rumors that certain team owners were not happy with how the AFL management handled the season. This seems to confirm their rumors.
There’s no word…