The Fall Experimental Football League ( FXFL ) was a professional football minor league that played two seasons in 2014 and 2015. This league's stated goal was to become a professional feeder-system for the National Football League (NFL).
118-449: The league claimed 44 out of 126 players ended up on NFL rosters. After the FXFL ceased operations, FXFL founder and CEO Brian Woods made another attempt at an NFL feeder-system by creating The Spring League in 2017. Woods and the FXFL were subject to lawsuit after folding, claiming he did not pay players, assistant coaches, cheerleaders and officials. In 2019 Woods settled and agreed to pay
236-418: A touchdown , but stops after an extra point or two-point conversion attempt. If a quarter ends as a touchdown is scored, an untimed conversion attempt takes place. The play clock is 30 seconds, starting at the end of the previous play. In all arenas, the final minute of the period is measured in tenths of a second. Prior to the 2018 season, during the final minute of the fourth quarter, the clock stopped if
354-515: A "dead" player may participate on kickoffs, or as long snapper or holder. In 2006, the AFL changed its substitution rules such that free substitutions were allowed on all kickoffs. The most significant change was the introduction of free substitution , the so-called " Elway Rule". Previously, AFL coaches were limited to one substitution per position per quarter. From 2007 to 2019 and come 2024 , coaches can substitute players at will. The rationale
472-435: A 15-minute halftime ( ArenaBowl has a 30-minute interval). Teams are allowed three timeouts per half, and two per overtime period if regulation ends tied. Teams must use a timeout if there's an injury inside a half-minute left in regulation or overtime; exception applies to when team has no timeouts, and this occurs, they're granted an extra timeout. The clock stops for out-of-bounds plays, incomplete passes, or sacks only in
590-573: A 67-yard touchdown. The game's top rusher was Paul Harris of the East team, who rushed twice for 74 yards and a 6-yard touchdown. East defeated California 23–19. The league had try-outs in various cities in October and November 2017 and February 2018. On December 7, 2017, The Spring League announced it would play its second season in Austin, Texas beginning in late March 2018. The league was also to have
708-660: A certain level of stability, however. The National Indoor Football League (NIFL) began in 2001 and was the most successful league in the early 2000s. The Indoor Football League (IFL) began in the autumn of 2008 when two already-established leagues (the Intense Football League and United Indoor Football ) chose to merge into a single organization. The IFL's expansion model has been based less on establishing new teams and more on acquiring existing teams from other leagues. The IFL has 16 teams as of 2024. Other, regional leagues include Champions Indoor Football (CIF),
826-508: A few team names and logos owned by outside parties, in a December 2009 bankruptcy auction. Shortly after the purchase, AF1 adopted the Arena Football League name, and the AFL relaunched in 2010 . The "iron man" rule, requiring at least six of the eight players to play on both offense and defense, was dropped, but most other past AFL rules remained unchanged. The relaunched league saw franchises return and renewed interest, but by
944-507: A field that was identical in size to a standard North American ice hockey rink, 200 by 85 feet (61 m × 26 m). This resulted in the field being 50 yards long (half of the length of a standard American football field) with eight-yard end zones (which may, if necessary, be curved in the end zones as hockey rinks are), and the field being slightly over half as wide as a standard football field. Foster adopted short-pile artificial turfs (which were then standard) such as AstroTurf for
1062-529: A financial loss in the 2014 season, and Woods is said to have invested almost all of his personal wealth into the league by the end of the 2015 season. A franchise cost was set at $ 500,000. The Brooklyn Bolts was a joint venture between the league and Jeff Wilpon , owner of the New York Mets and Brooklyn Cyclones . The Blacktips and Omaha Mammoths were league owned and operated. The Brawlers were initially reported as being independently owned but no owner
1180-526: A football-specific tech forum and a joint internship program with the University of Texas’ Center for Sports Leadership & Innovation. Turner Sports announced in mid-January 2018, while the league games would be on its new streaming service B/R Live , the league was also finalizing a deal to practice and play games at Circuit of the Americas near Austin, Texas . On February 14, the league announced
1298-630: A former executive of the National Football League and the United States Football League . The name is trademarked by Gridiron Enterprises and had a proprietary format until its patent expired in 2007. Three leagues have played under official arena football rules: the Arena Football League , which played 32 seasons in two separate runs from 1987 to 2008 and 2010 to 2019; arenafootball2 ,
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#17327722662851416-825: A four-team, three-week single round-robin tournament in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia at The Greenbrier resort in April, and a two-team "Showcase" game in Napa, California in July. The teams in each tournament were only identified with vague geographic names such as North, South, East, West and California. A game streamed on Facebook received 60,000 views while a practice received 30,000 views. Coaches with long NFL or College experience included quarterback coach Terry Shea , Steve Fairchild , Donnie Henderson , Dennis Creehan and Art Valero (offensive line). For
1534-417: A hockey rink; this is much like some Canadian football fields where the end zones can be cut off by a track). Each sideline has a heavily padded barrier, with the padding placed over the hockey dasher boards. The goalpost uprights are 9 feet (2.7 m) wide, and the crossbar is 15 feet (4.6 m) above the playing surface. Taut rebound nets on either side of the posts bounce any missed field goals back into
1652-466: A major network television broadcasting contract with NBC , and eventually launched an official minor league , af2 , beginning in 2000. This effort basically served two purposes: one as a developmental league for the AFL, and as a place where former collegiate players could develop while at the same time learning and becoming accustomed to the unique arena rules, and secondly as a pre-emptive way of shutting out potential new indoor football competitors (this
1770-534: A multi-year agreement with FS1 to televise The Spring League along with the option to acquire a minority stake in the league. CEO Woods founded The Spring League in early 2016. On December 22, 2016, SiriusXM NFL Radio initially reported the league as being owned by the NFL, but retracted that by the end of the day. The NFL informed its teams of the league's existence and its plans to operate from April 5 through April 26, 2017. The Spring League's 2017 season consisted of
1888-472: A new ownership group that had acquired the league's trademarks and social media accounts announced another revival of the league, which began play in 2024. On May 12, 2024, kicker Melissa Strother made an extra point while playing for the Washington Wolfpack , making her the first female player to score a point in the league. Other indoor football leagues have been formed, without the use of
2006-536: A non-traditional (spring-summer) season, was in operation in 1983–1985. When the USFL ceased operations, Foster saw his opportunity. He staged a "test" game in Rockford, Illinois in 1986 and put together a four-team league for a "demonstration season" in the spring of 1987, with games televised on ESPN . Foster had to adopt a field that would fit within the smaller playing surfaces found in most arenas and thus created
2124-628: A partnership with a minor league, following the Association of Professional Football Leagues of the 1940s, the Atlantic Coast Football League in the 1960s, NFL Europe of the 1990s and 2000s, and the NFL-owned teams in the Arena Football League (prior to 2008). Each FXFL team employed 40 players on their roster with a base salary of $ 1000 per game and a maximum potential payout of $ 1250 per game. (At least one team
2242-406: A player development fee and provide their own insurance to participate. Isos Capital Management is one of the league's investors. Teams active at the last league season. Before the 2020 Fall season, no official champion were named by the league. Indoor American football Arena football is a variety of gridiron football designed to be played indoors. The game is played on
2360-576: A player to the sideline for less than a penalty level offense. Both rules and the kickoff formation were later implemented in the XFL. The Spring League was also hired by the XFL to hold three mini-camp style tryouts. With this revenue source, the league's revenue exceeded one million dollars and would have its first profitable year. The two leagues are in preliminary discussions of the Spring League becoming
2478-402: A punt striking the ceiling. The end zones were slightly shorter—eight yards instead of the standard ten (coincidentally, the eight-yard endzone length is the standard in modern indoor football). While several attempts to create a true indoor football game have been made since shortly after American football was developed, the first version to meet with relatively widespread success and acceptance
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#17327722662852596-489: A similar concept but did not pay its players and operated its seasons all in one location. After five seasons of play, TSL ceased operations as Woods assumed the presidency of a reboot of the United States Football League . As its name implies, the league adopted several experimental rule changes differing from those at other levels of the game with some at the request of the NFL. Initial plans for
2714-618: A small field was actually played outdoors at the original open-air Madison Square Garden . Using nine-man sides , Pennsylvania defeated Rutgers 10–0 at the annual meeting of the Amateur Athletic Union on January 16, 1889. The first documented indoor football game was an exhibition between the Springfield YMCA Training School and a Yale Senior Class team played on December 12, 1890, at Madison Square Garden II . James Naismith scored
2832-432: A smaller field than American or Canadian football, designed to fit in the same surface area as a standard North American ice hockey rink , and features between six and eight players for each team playing at any given time depending on the league, resulting in a faster and higher-scoring game that can be played on the floors of indoor arenas . The sport was invented in 1981 , and patented in 1987 , by Jim Foster ,
2950-400: A subsidy that the state of Texas provides to hold its events there, as well as from organizations seeking to test equipment and rules changes. In 2019, the XFL served as The Spring League's largest revenue source, paying the league "six figures" to test-run its rulebook, a payment that allowed The Spring League to turn a profit that year for the first time. In October 2020 the league reached
3068-585: A three- or four-point stance at the start of the snap. Two defenders serve as linebackers , called the Mac and the Jack. The Mac may blitz from the side of the line opposite the offensive Tight End. The Jack's role has changed after new rules set in place by the league in 2008. The Jack cannot blitz, but under new, more defense-friendly rules, the Jack Linebacker may roam sideline to sideline within five yards of
3186-477: A time from a 21-man active roster. Before 2007, players played both offense and defense except for the Quarterback , Kicker , and Offensive Specialist (Wide Receiver/Running Back combination) and two Defensive Specialists (Defensive Backs). If a player enters and leaves, from the moment he leaves the player is considered "dead" and cannot return to play until the designated time is served. Exception:
3304-551: A touchdown for Springfield, though Yale won the exhibition 16–10. The following day a second exhibition game was played, with Pennsylvania defeating Rutgers 20–12. The field at Madison Square Garden measured 260 feet (79 m) long and 100 feet (30 m) wide. The first documented indoor regulation football games were those played at the Chicago Coliseum in the late 1890s. The first such game matched Michigan against Chicago on Thanksgiving Day 1896. The match
3422-670: A traveling team. The FXFL debuted on time with the inaugural game in Omaha on October 8, 2014 between the Omaha Mammoths and the Boston Brawlers at TD Ameritrade Park with the Mammoths winning 41–18. By Week 3 of the 2014 season, Nivea had become a sponsor of the league, with sponsor logo on the left shoulder and helmets; additionally, a reality web show on the FXFL appeared, sponsored by Nivea. The inaugural 2014 season
3540-556: A year during the 1930s; the stadium stopped hosting games in 1940 and did not resume hosting football games until 1961. In the 1960s, the Boardwalk Bowl , a post-season game involving small college teams, was contested at the convention center. The Bowl was an attempt to make Atlantic City more of a year-round resort in the pre-gambling era as opposed to a single-season one (the Miss America Pageant , also held at
3658-425: Is 17,000 square feet (1,600 m )). The scrimmage area is 50 yards (46 m) long (unlike the field in NFL which is 100 yards (91 m) long), and each end zone is approximately 8 yards deep, two yards less than the standard 10 yards. Depending on the venue in which a game is being played, the end zones may be rectangular (like a basketball court) or, where necessary because of the building design, rounded (like
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3776-403: Is kicked off from the goal line, to start the halves and odd overtimes, or after any score. The team with the ball is given four downs to gain ten yards or score. Punting is illegal because of the size of the playing field, however, a field goal that either misses wide (therefore bouncing off the nets surrounding the goalposts) or falls short, may be returned. Thus an impossibly long field goal
3894-449: Is most recently known as American Indoor Football (AIF) went through three names and two ownership changes in its first three seasons. Several other indoor leagues have been announced without ever actually commencing play, or operating only briefly with a handful of teams. Some were claimed attempts to form a second "major" league of indoor football while others were strictly efforts to form a new "minor" league. A few leagues have achieved
4012-434: Is played exclusively indoors, in arenas usually designed for either basketball or ice hockey teams. The field is the same width 85 feet (26 m) and length 200 feet (61 m) as a standard NHL hockey rink, making it approximately 30% of the dimensions of a regular American gridiron football field , and 19% of a Canadian gridiron football field (the total playing area, including the end zones of an Arena football field
4130-413: Is tantamount to a punt in other football variants. A receiver jumping to catch a pass needs to get only one foot down in bounds for the catch to be ruled a completed catch, just as in college football . Practically, this means that one foot must touch the ground before the receiver is pushed into the boards by an opposing player. Passes that bounce off the rebound nets remain "live." Balls that bounce off
4248-877: The American Arena League (AAL) and National Arena League (NAL). Both CIF and the AAL were formed by mergers of existing leagues. The CIF was formed from a merger of the Champions Professional Indoor Football League and the Lone Star Football League in 2015. The AAL was formed in late 2017 as the combination of three leagues that each played one season: the Can-Am Indoor Football League , Arena Pro Football , and Supreme Indoor Football . Champions Indoor Football merged with
4366-550: The Tampa Bay Buccaneers , was signed to the Brooklyn Bolts for that year. Each team also had territorial rights to players, so any player in a team's territory was first choice is to that team. The league and team owners originally planned to arrange host families for the players, similar to other minor leagues; players instead were housed in hotels. The league operated under a budget of $ 8 to $ 9 million for
4484-509: The " World Series of Pro Football ." The games were played on a 70-yard by 35-yard dirt field but otherwise adhered to outdoor rules. Poor attendance led to the tournament being discontinued after two years. The Chicago Bears of the National Football League hosted an experimental game against their crosstown rivals, the Cardinals , after the 1930 NFL season , at the indoor Chicago Stadium . Two years later, poor weather conditions led to
4602-554: The "deuce": if a kickoff goes through the uprights, the kicking team receives two points. This rule had previously been in effect in the IFL and the NAL . The league also instituted the rouge / single , as used in the CFL , whereby, on a kickoff, the kicking team receives one point if the receiving team fails to bring the ball out of its own end zone. After scoring a touchdown, the scoring team has
4720-429: The 10-yard line after any touchdown, if they want to. Any kickoff that goes through the uprights is scored as a "deuce", or two points. Four offensive players must be on the line of scrimmage at the snap ; one of the linemen must declare himself the tight end . One offensive player may be moving forward at the time of the snap as long as he has not yet crossed the line of scrimmage. Three defensive players must be in
4838-453: The 2019 season, The Spring League partnered with the XFL to test rule changes the new league hoped to implement for its own 2020 season. One rule change, originally proposed by Pro Football Talk in 2017, was replacing overtime with a two-point conversion shootout occurring simultaneously at both end zones with five rounds in the TSL. Also tested was the tap rule, which allows a referee to send
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4956-482: The AFL's erstwhile developmental league , which played 10 seasons from 2000 through 2009; and the China Arena Football League , which played two abbreviated seasons in 2016 and 2019 but was not directly affiliated with the now-defunct AFL. A 2024 reboot of the Arena Football League uses the original league's rulebook with minor variations. Through the late 1990s, the Arena Football League was
5074-413: The April games, roughly two dozen players were invited to NFL rookie mini-camps . The Carolina Panthers picked up six for their rookie mini-camp. After the first season, NFL scouts seemed to like the league structure but otherwise gave mixed responses. Value was perceived by scouts as they got updated information on forgotten players or saw a player with a conditioned arm, but otherwise the talent level
5192-432: The April games, the league had four teams and 105 players. Its players included NFL veterans Fred Jackson , Anthony "Boobie" Dixon , Ben Tate , Greg Hardy , Ricky Stanzi , McLeod Bethel-Thompson and Ahmad Bradshaw . The players ranged from two to 10 years out from college. The league indicated two CFL and 10 NFL teams had their scouts visit the league while another 20 made requests for video footage. Following
5310-636: The Bears hosting the 1932 NFL Playoff Game against the Portsmouth Spartans (now the Detroit Lions ) at the stadium. A dirt and tanbark field measuring 80 yards long (60 yards plus two ten-yard end zones ) and 45 yards wide was constructed on the arena's floor. The Chicago Stadium games were notable for introducing several rule changes, including the introduction of hash marks to keep play away from spectators who were seated next to
5428-525: The FXFL, The Spring League is built upon the concept of serving as a second opportunity to allow players to advance to more established professional leagues, yet The Spring League has some prominent differences from the FXFL. While The Spring League's core player is around 24 years old, it also took in experienced professionals, which the FXFL discouraged. All four teams are brought to one location, and at first not have distinctive identities or home cities/franchises (this began to change beginning in 2019). Rather,
5546-577: The Hudson Valley team's future, as the stadium owner had only offered a one-year trial lease to the team, and their lone season was marred by safety concerns and defections. The Brooklyn Bolts were the last holdout, waiting through summer 2016 for word from the league whether or not it would return, before the team's parent company announced in August that neither the league nor the Bolts would return for
5664-451: The NBA, every referee entering the league (in recent years) comes from NBA Development League . We can be a testing ground for proposed rules, too." The league has an agreement with the NFL to use officials from the elder league's training academy for FXFL games. Had the FXFL succeeded in establishing a formal partnership with the NFL, it would have been the fifth such time the NFL has established
5782-528: The NFL have arisen, such as the FXFL, Gridiron Developmental Football League , and the Rivals Professional Football League . On September 2, 2016, the FXFL, after two abbreviated seasons of operation, announced it had suspended operations in hopes of finding a more effective business model. A developmental league continued to be an internal NFL discussion as of December 2016 with a decision deadline of February 2017. Like
5900-697: The Omaha Mammoths would not return for 2015 and would be replaced by a team in the Hudson Valley , but that the Florida Blacktips would make a second attempt at establishing themselves in Florida. The league unexpectedly contracted the Brawlers on September 28, 2015, with the team's franchisee stating that the league demanded a large sum of money in order for the team to take the field for the 2015 season. The 2015 season also ended prematurely, with
6018-611: The South Division in Houston, Texas . For the first time, one game every week will be broadcast on Fox including the championship game, while all other games will be broadcast on FS1 and FS2 . The Linemen beat the Jousters 26–23 in the first and only Mega Bowl , and won the TSL championship. Linemen QB Ryan Willis won both final and regular season MVP awards. On June 3, 2021, Woods announced that he had acquired
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#17327722662856136-526: The South Network , Untamed TV, and Chicago's The U Too . In addition, ESPN3 held online streaming media rights. The broadcast deals provided no guaranteed revenue to the league but did offer a share of advertising; it is not known if the league paid for production expenses or airtime as the UFL had to do. Telecasts of FXFL games abruptly stopped midway through the 2015 season with the last two games on
6254-569: The Texas Outlaws, with other teams announced without ownership were New York, Boston, Omaha, Portland, Oregon and an unselected Florida city. On August 20, 2014, Woods announced that the league would consist of just four teams — Brooklyn , Boston , Omaha and Miami — with players released from NFL teams to allocated and reporting on September 24 with games to start October 8. Cities in which interest in franchises came from Columbus, Ohio , and Springfield, Missouri . The Miami team became
6372-614: The United States . The league held its annual Summer Showcase in July in Glendale, Colorado with a total of 85 players and another 25 staff members and medical personnel participated. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic all players had to go through 14-day self-quarantine before camp and all meetings were conducted in a video conference. In October 2020 FS1 reached a multi-year agreement to televise The Spring League along with
6490-603: The X cup (formerly Legends Cup and Lingerie Bowl), the LFL played a variant of indoor rules with most of its games in indoor stadiums, although a few teams experimented with playing in outdoor stadiums. The league's brief foray into Australia was played in outdoor stadiums; these teams nevertheless played under indoor football rules. All other women's leagues play on outdoor fields with outdoor rules; there have been several other attempts to form indoor women's football leagues, but none have made it to play. As its name implies, arena football
6608-579: The XFL - the first in June in Mission Viejo, California and the second on July 30 in Long Beach, California , 2019 with 100 pay-to-play players in a four-day camp and a six quarter scrimmage. XFL executives and coaches and ESPN and Fox staff were on hand to view rule tests and in-game technologies, with the broadcaster giving feedback on how it would effect broadcast coverage. A "Fall Showcase"
6726-630: The XFL's official development league. 2019 season practice began March 31, 2019 with double headers on April 6 and 11, 2019. Each of the four teams played two games. For the first time, one of the teams had a brand name; the Austin Generals (formerly South) was named after its host city of Austin, Texas , and used the logo and colors of the former New Jersey Generals of the United States Football League . The remaining three teams retained their generic North, East and West brandings. The league held its two "Summer Showcases" in partnership with
6844-438: The center, likewise began as an attempt to extend the season beyond Labor Day). The Atlantic Coast Football League played its inaugural championship game at the convention center in 1962, but the game only drew 2,000 fans and the game would thereafter move to the home stadium of the team with the best regular season record. The Philadelphia -based Liberty Bowl game, which had been played at Municipal Stadium from 1959 to 1963,
6962-595: The contract to play the 2018 season at the Circuit of the Americas and instead announced events to take place at Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex in Round Rock, Texas . Following the April games another "Summer Showcase" was announced for July 2018. The Spring League announced a "Fall Showcase" for Miami, Florida to take place November 6–9, 2018, which was intended to prepare players for the then-future AAF and XFL , which were set to play winter/spring seasons. For
7080-410: The current year's draft. Players must also pay a $ 350 application fee. By 2019, the application fee had jumped to $ 2000, as players now also had to cover room and board as part of the fee; players with professional experience are exempt from this fee. Players must also cover their own health insurance. The league also assists in developing NFL referees. The Spring League earns additional revenue from
7198-466: The defensive team for two points. Coaches are given two challenges per game, as in the NFL; to challenge, they must throw their red flag before the next play. If the play stands as called after review, the challenging team loses a timeout. If a team wins both challenges used, a third is granted. Video review is automatic in the final half-minute of regulation, all overtime periods, and all scoring plays and turnovers. A game has four 15-minute quarters with
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#17327722662857316-475: The end of his life as a recluse in Las Vegas. Mettenberger agreed to return as a quarterback. The registration fee for The Spring League's March 2020 season in Las Vegas was $ 2,100. The league was able to get most of its abbreviated 2020 season completed just before social distancing mandates tied to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States took effect, shutting down effectively all in-person sports in
7434-559: The end of the 2017 season, almost all of the league's teams had either folded or moved to other leagues, with only the Philadelphia Soul having existed prior to 2016. Five expansion teams, all in the Mid-Atlantic United States , were established over the next two years, before the league announced after the 2019 season that it was dissolving in a second Chapter 7 bankruptcy. However, on February 1, 2023,
7552-620: The fall season. The league announced a suspension of operations on September 2, 2016. Commissioner Brian Woods has reportedly expressed interest possibly using a former FXFL team's brand in an indoor football league, such as the Arena Football League . A team in the National Arena League acquired the rights to the Boston Brawlers name in August 2017. In 2017, Woods re-emerged as CEO of another minor professional football league, The Spring League , which operated on
7670-685: The fewest schedule conflicts (only competing with touring stadium rock concerts). The spring schedule has since been adopted by virtually all other professional indoor leagues as of 2010. Within a year of the AFL kicking off, its first challenger, the World Indoor Football League formed. The WIFL planned to play a schedule with six teams beginning in summer of 1988 with its own set of indoor-inspired rules, including an unusual system that would have eight men on offense and seven men on defense. Despite having backing from former NFL players, veteran coaches, and singer John Mellencamp ,
7788-514: The field (much like modern indoor football), while goal posts were moved to the goal line. To compensate for the smaller field, teams were "penalized" 20 yards upon crossing midfield. (The Bears' official Web site goes further and claims that field goals were outlawed for the 1932 game.) In 1930, the Atlantic City Convention Center constructed a nearly full-size indoor football field, and used it for one to three games
7906-399: The field because of its ability to be easily rolled up when the arena is being used for other sports. Foster adopted a modified version of eight-man football . He also mandated a one-platoon system that required at least six players to play on both offensive and defensive downs. This had the added desirable effect of limiting team payrolls. There were numerous other rules designed to help
8024-494: The field of play and allow the ball to remain live; the rebound nets were the only part of the patent that was upheld until it expired. As a result, some non-AFL arena leagues that formed after the patent expired like the National Arena League have used rebound nets, while other leagues such as the Indoor Football League and American Indoor Football opt to not use them. The first demonstration of football on
8142-402: The field of play. The ball is "live" when rebounding off these nets or their support apparatus. The entire goalframe and goalside rebound net system is suspended on cables from the rafters. The bottom of the two goalside rebound nets are 8 feet (2.4 m) off the playing surface. Each netframe is 32 feet (9.8 m) high by 30 feet (9.1 m) wide. A player is not counted as out of bounds on
8260-400: The first season and expected to be able to be viable with minor or development team attendance of 3,000 plus. The league reported receiving enough financing to operate for the first season. The FXFL sold game film to NFL teams as an additional source of revenue. In the long term, the FXFL did not expect to be profitable without official NFL support, which it never received. The league operated at
8378-553: The first time in league history. They also declared that players who were on an active roster during TSL's fall 2020 season were not required to participate in the tryouts. In April, TSL announced the 2021 season was to start on May 6, and would feature two new teams – the Linemen and Sea Lions (eight teams in total), competing in a six-week regular season from two hub cities: The North Division in Indianapolis, Indiana and
8496-480: The game. David Ash started the game for the California roster and lead several scoring drives. He had 96 passing yards and 9-of-13 passing, including a 4-yard touchdown pass to Anthony Dixon with an interception and 3 runs for a total of 10 yards with his longest for 9 yards. For the East, two quarterbacks, Casey Pachall and Trenton Norvell, made touchdown passes. Pachall completed 4-of-6 passes for 84 yards and
8614-420: The games are more showcases for the NFL and Canadian Football League (CFL) scouts in the spring and summer months. Unlike the FXFL, which paid a per-game stipend for its players, The Spring League paid only for room and board . Woods said that the lack of payment is out of financial necessity. To be eligible to participate in the league, a player may not be under contract with a pro league nor be eligible for
8732-481: The last half-minute of regulation or overtime (there is only a half-minute warning , as opposed to the two-minute warning in the XFL /NFL and the three-minute warning in the CFL) or because of penalties, injuries or timeouts . The clock also stops for any change in possession, until the ball is marked ready for play; for example, aside from the final half-minute of regulation or overtime, time continues to run down after
8850-515: The league (the league only lasted two years, rendering this rule moot); one anecdote had the league turning down Maurice Jones-Drew on account of his career being near its end (the anecdote may not be true, since Jones-Drew was already signed to a three-year deal with the Oakland Raiders before the league was founded). The league softened its stance on this stipulation for 2015; Josh Freeman , who spent four years as starting quarterback for
8968-490: The league administrators and team owners had allowed player salaries and other costs to rise to the point where the league and many of the teams were losing a substantial amount of money. Late in the summer of 2009, with the team owners unable to agree on a plan for making the league viable again the AFL announced that it was folding, eventually putting its assets up in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation. The developmental af2, however, played its 2009 season as scheduled. Most of
9086-453: The league canceled its 1988 season, folded half of its franchises (including Mellencamp's), and made an unsuccessful bid for the remaining three teams to join the AFL; the WIFL never played a single game. In 1990, Foster patented the rules of arena football, meaning that only persons authorized by him could use his rules and his name for the sport. While the AFL asserted throughout the 1990s that
9204-480: The league had punting , the PAT and kickoffs taken out of the game, but this proposal was scrapped prior to the start of the season. Woods was quoted as saying about the new league: "Our long-term goal is to establish a partnership with the NFL and we feel can do that on many platforms. It would give them a way to work with younger players that they don't currently have. We can help them train prospective NFL officials—in
9322-403: The league had actively promoted for 20 seasons, and that the change took away a key component of what made arena football a distinctive sport. The iteration of the league that began play in 2024 restored the "ironman" rules at the beginning of the season. After the league reorganized, the league abandoned ironman play and restored free substitution; unlike in 2007, the reason for the 2024 change
9440-464: The league office canceling the last regular season game days before it was scheduled to be played. Since the abrupt end of the 2015 season in October, there were no official statements made by the league (whether the Bolts could claim a championship given the extremely irregular schedule was left undecided) and the last posts on social media were made in December 2015. There was already doubt regarding
9558-487: The league was expected to place a franchise in that city for the 2015 season. The announcement also confirmed that the Brooklyn Bolts would return, the league would remain fixed at four teams for the 2015 season, and three out of four of the teams would be sharing a stadium with a New York–Penn League baseball team (this included the Bolts and the Ohio franchise). A later leak reported in the local newspaper The Vindicator that
9676-494: The league's inaugural season, and Terrell Owens joining the following year ( Michael Vick was also announced as a player midseason but would not play). FCF suspended operations following the 2022 season. The best-known indoor women's football league is the X League (formerly known as the Legends Football League, and Lingerie Football League ). Known for its scantily-clad players and its signature event,
9794-460: The line of scrimmage and drop into coverage once the Quarterback pump fakes . (Before this rule, the Jack could not drop back into coverage until the ball is thrown or the quarterback is no longer in the pocket , and the Jack had to stay within the box designated by the outside shoulders of the offensive line , the line of scrimmage, and five yards back from the line of scrimmage.) The ball
9912-433: The line of scrimmage, while defensive linemen were hindered by restrictions that prevented them from using certain techniques to penetrate the offensive line. Quarterbacks and placekickers were exempt from the one-platoon system, allowing two key scoring positions to be more specialized. The AFL also adopted the USFL's concept of playing in the late spring and summer, since this is when most hockey and basketball arenas have
10030-424: The new Arena Football League prior to 2024. Fan Controlled Football launched in 2021 following an interactive format inspired by video games, with "power-ups" and fans voting on plays. It generally targeted a higher caliber of player than the typical indoor league, with outdoor football veterans such as Johnny Manziel , Robert Turbin , Quinton Flowers , Quinn Porter , Shawn Oakman and Josh Gordon playing in
10148-410: The offense and ensure high-scoring games: To further an offensive passing advantage over the defense, Foster also imposed strict restrictions on the defensive formation, mandating that all defenses were required to play a 3-2-Monster formation with three defensive linemen, two linebackers, two cornerbacks, and one safety. Linebackers were not permitted to blitz and were required to stay in boxes behind
10266-425: The offensive team had the lead and did not advance the ball past the line of scrimmage. This prevented the "victory formation" (the offensive team merely kneeling down), or running other plays that are designed solely to exhaust the remaining time rather than to advance the ball downfield. This rule was eliminated in the interest of player safety. In the first overtime , each team gets one possession to score. Whoever
10384-460: The only league playing any variant of the sport designed for indoor play. A clarification limiting the scope of its patent allowed for competing indoor football leagues (sometimes known as arena leagues ) to use the same size field and most other aspects of the game. Arena football is distinguished from the other indoor leagues by its use of large rebound nets attached to the side of each goalpost, which keep any missed field goal or overthrown ball in
10502-420: The option of attempting a four-point conversion (akin to the three-point conversion seen in the UFL and its predecessors) from the opponent's ten-yard line, alongside the existing extra point and two-point conversion options. The rule was carried over as part of a pre-launch merger with Champions Indoor Football . Teams may go for two points from the 2.5-yard line, three from the 5-yard line, or four from
10620-496: The option to acquire a minority stake in the league, with initial agreement to play a 6-team fall-season in late October and November 2020. The league began its fall season on Oct. 27 with six teams competing in what was intended to be a 12-game format over four weeks in a bubble environment, based out of the San Antonio Alamodome . Fox Sports 1 aired games on Tuesday and Wednesday. The league stated that this time
10738-498: The padded walls that surround the field are "live"; the end zone walls were not live until the 2006 season. Come 2025 gunners must line up on their own 20-yard line on kickoffs, with one receiving player fielding from the end zone. The scoring is the same as in the NFL with the addition of a drop kick field goal worth four points during normal play or two points as a post-touchdown conversion . Blocked extra points and turnovers on two-point conversion attempts may be returned by
10856-564: The patent covered virtually every aspect of the game (from the 50-yard field to the eight-man format), a 1998 lawsuit ( Arena Football League v. Professional Indoor Football League ) established that the patent specifically covered the rebound net feature, meaning that competitors could not use this aspect of the rules. However, under provisions of U.S. patent law , Foster's patent expired on March 27, 2007, enabling competitors to use rebound nets (at least as originally envisioned, without other innovations that he may have patented). The AFL signed
10974-585: The plaintiffs $ 300,000. In the summer of 2013, Brian Woods began work on a business plan for a future football development league. With NFL executive vice president Troy Vincent indicating in an April 2014 interview a need for a developmental football league, Woods, a sports lawyer and executive director of the Medal of Honor Bowl , put that business plan in action to launch such a league in October 2014 that envisioned six franchises primarily based in minor league baseball stadiums. The Fall Experimental Football League
11092-542: The players did not pay to attend, but Woods later explained that some players did pay, while select others did not. All six teams had brands and names, including the returning Generals (originally from Austin ), Aviators (re-branded from Las Vegas Hughes), and four new teams: the Blues (modified from the FXFL Blacktips ), Alphas (a wolf motif), Conquerors and Jousters . In November 2020, amid
11210-626: The rebound nets at the ends of the field. Like the AFL, their playing seasons are entirely or primarily outside the traditional fall/early winter season of the outdoor sport so as not to be competing with it directly for fan support. Since the first such league, the Professional Indoor Football League, began play in the 1998, there has often been a pattern of instability. Each off-season has seen teams jumping from league to league. In addition, leagues have annually merged, changed names, and separated. The organization that
11328-399: The remaining extant trademarks of the United States Football League with intent of launching a USFL-branded league in 2022 , with Fox Sports remaining as a partner in the new USFL. What was to become of The Spring League remained, at the time, an unresolved question, but according to the initial announcement TSL was to continue, probably as a scouting showcase or developmental operation. It
11446-434: The schedule completely blacked out . * – For the 2014 season, for which a championship game had been scheduled but canceled, the Bolts were awarded the league title based on regular season record. No championship was awarded for the 2015 season. The Spring League The Spring League ( TSL ) was an American football developmental league and scouting event (pro showcase) that played from 2017 to 2021 and
11564-402: The sidelines unless he is pushed into or falls over the sideline barrier. This rule was put in place before the 2006 season. Before that time, a sideline with only a small amount of space (typically 6" to 12") existed between the sideline stripe and the barrier which would provide the space for a ball carrier to step out of bounds before hitting the sideline barrier. Each team fields 8 players at
11682-454: The signing of Heisman Trophy winner and former Cleveland Browns first round pick Johnny Manziel to the league playing on the South team. Games to be played on April 7 and 14. Other former NFL commitments to the league were former Cleveland Browns first round pick Kellen Winslow Jr. and former Baltimore Ravens running back Lorenzo Taliaferro . On March 3, the league did not execute on
11800-430: The teams made a sustainable profit and the team owners were eager to see the league continue for another year. However, with the AFL owning 50.1% of the af2, it would fold if the AFL folded. At the end of the 2009 season, a gathering of af2 and remaining AFL team owners set out to form their own organization, originally known as Arena Football 1 (AF1). AF1 went on to purchase all assets of the original AFL and af2, except for
11918-661: The then-resurgent COVID-19 pandemic, TSL announced that the league would be cancelling the final week of the season. The top two teams met in the final on December 15, at the Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida . The Generals finished as the first TSL champions, after beating the Aviators 37–14 in the final. In March 2021, TSL announced that they reached a partnership agreement with Stephen Austin 's American National Combines , and were to hold tryouts for
12036-435: The year, the league arranged additional scouting events, called Spring League Showcases , that began in July 2017. According to the league records, as of May 2021, more than 100 former players have signed contracts with a National Football League (NFL) team. The National Football League (NFL) has not had an official developmental league since 2007 with NFL Europe . Several other developmental leagues unaffiliated with
12154-469: Was "the first collegiate game of football played under a roof." Adding to the novelty, as daylight turned to darkness, the field inside the Coliseum was lit with electric lighting. With seven acres of floor space, the sprawling Coliseum is believed to have not needed any compromises to accommodate an American football field. According to a newspaper account, the field grew dark in the second half, and play
12272-402: Was announced by Woods on May 7, 2014. Original targeted markets for teams were New York City , Boston , Omaha , Orlando , Portland, and either San Antonio or Memphis, Tennessee with Wednesday games. The league is expected to own two teams outright and four franchised teams. By June 20, Tommie Harris and Eric Bassey were announced as the first owners for a franchise in Austin, Texas ,
12390-668: Was below what NFL teams expected for an established developmental league. Some scouts expected younger players that had been to a couple of NFL training camps but in the wrong system. Woods indicated that the older and big names brought attention to the league, which has a secondary purpose of providing a veteran annual showcase. On July 15, 2017, the Spring League Showcase was held at Napa Memorial Stadium in California between Spring League California, coached by Terry Shea and Spring League East, coached by Donnie Henderson. Flofootball.com's FloPRO subscription service streamed
12508-950: Was cut short after the November 7 contest, with one regular season game and a championship left unplayed. The decision was made that the Bolts, the team with the best record at 4–0, would be declared the first FXFL Champions, according to ESPN3 . In a report from the Associated Press , commissioner Brian Woods said that he was satisfied with the season and said he envisioned a bigger FXFL in 2015, with more affiliations with minor league baseball teams and stadia, targeting such cities as Memphis , Austin , Oklahoma City and somewhere in Florida. Woods also expected Brooklyn and Omaha to return. Woods later backed off plans for expansion and said that 2015 would most likely only have five teams at most. WYTV in Niles, Ohio reported on July 10, 2015 that
12626-413: Was devised by Jim Foster , a former executive of the United States Football League and the National Football League . He devised his game while watching indoor soccer , another game derived from a sport played outdoors. He worked on the game in the early 1980s, but put any plans for full development of it on hold while the United States Football League, an attempt to play traditional American football in
12744-405: Was especially important as the 2007 expiration of Foster's patent on the rebound nets approached). At times over forty teams participated in this league, almost uniformly in cities which also had minor league ice hockey teams and hence suitable arenas. Shortly before the end of 2008, the Arena Football League announced that it would not be playing a 2009 spring season. During the previous few years,
12862-717: Was ever identified and the league later admitted that that was not true. For 2015, the franchise was to be operated by the Mahoning Valley Scrappers minor league baseball team. The Hudson Valley franchise was to be held by the Hudson Valley Renegades . The league syndicated its games to a collection of 14 regional channels , digital subchannel networks, and broadcast stations, including SportsNet New York , New England Sports Network (both its main and national feeds), Cox Sports (New Orleans) , Cox San Diego , Altitude , Tuff TV , Soul of
12980-644: Was founded by Brian Woods. Aimed at professional athletes but not paying a salary or expenses, the league's goal was to "serve as an instructional league and showcase for professional football talent". The Spring League was the second football property to be established by Woods, following the Fall Experimental Football League (FXFL) from 2014 to 2015 and preceding the United States Football League revival in 2022 . The league consisted of three to eight teams and played an abbreviated four to six game "season" in April or May. During
13098-424: Was halted for ten minutes to discuss whether play should continue. Play was resumed, and the lights were finally turned on after Michigan scored a touchdown. The press proclaimed the experiment in indoor football to be a success: One thing at least was settled by the game, and that is, that indoor football is literally and figuratively speaking a howling success. The men had no trouble in catching punts, and football
13216-774: Was held in September in Marietta, Georgia , and in November they held another showcase in Miami, Florida . For 2020, TSL played a showcase game against the Japan national American football team at the Ford Center at The Star March 1, and the main competition March 7 and 11 at Sam Boyd Stadium . The designated home team (formerly West) was dubbed the Las Vegas Hughes, named after Howard Hughes , who spent much of
13334-434: Was in part to justify salary cuts that were required when a previous commissioner—Lee Hutton, who was ousted in the reorganization —made promises to cover higher salaries but had no revenue to fund such promises (since under ironman, a player would fill the roles of what would have otherwise been two roster spots, justifying their higher price compared to a one-way player in other indoor leagues). The league also instituted
13452-780: Was later reported that TSL in no longer associated with the new USFL. On February 18, 2022, Woods stated that TSL was "no longer operational", but later reports indicate that it will continues as a business although the football operations are suspended. In June 2023 it was announced that Woods is planning to launch a 11-on-11 spring football league for high school players called the Prep Super League. Games will be played from April 19 through May 24 with teams located in Atlanta , Cleveland , Dallas , Houston , New Jersey , New Orleans , Los Angeles , Miami , Phoenix , San Diego , San Francisco , and Tampa . Players will pay
13570-574: Was moved into the Convention Center in 1964 for the contest between Utah and West Virginia . The game drew just over 6,000 fans, though, and the Liberty Bowl moved to Memphis the next year, where it has remained. Unlike modern indoor football, the size of the playing surface and hence the rules were essentially the same as in the standard outdoor game, with rules updated to deal with contingencies for what could happen indoors, such as
13688-546: Was paying as little as $ 300 per game in the 2015 season.) The league mainly recruited those who were released from NFL training camps in August and not assigned to practice squads with the players being pooled then allocated to the teams and transferable at the league's discretion. Those that could not go or would not go to college were also considered, but the league did not actively recruit NCAA players. The league also did not pursue experienced professional players and intended not to allow any player to play more than three years in
13806-504: Was played on its merits, without the handicaps of a wet field or a strong wind. Toward the end of the second half it got very dark, and the spectators were treated to a novelty in the shape of football by electric light." Although both critically and commercially successful, the Coliseum was destroyed in a fire less than two years after its opening, and its replacement could not accommodate an American football field. Later, at Madison Square Garden in 1902 and 1903, there were games known as
13924-455: Was that free substitution would improve the overall quality of football in the league by giving coaches the freedom to put their best players on the field for every play of the game, and that teams would be able to select from a wider player talent pool when building their rosters. Traditionalists, however, believed the rule changes were the beginning of the removal of the " ironman " (two-way offense and defense) style of play of arena football that
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