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99-489: The IPFL was unique among indoor football leagues in that it sanctioned the use of a white football, manufactured by Rawlings , which was easier to see in the artificial lighting conditions. The league's slogan was "Great Football, No Gimmicks". In 1999, IPFL was headed by a new commissioner, Mike Storen , and the league offices were moved to Atlanta . Before the Pro Indoor Football League folded,

198-418: 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

297-515: 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

396-435: 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

495-660: 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),

594-508: 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

693-507: 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

792-417: 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

891-466: 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

990-472: 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

1089-536: 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

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1188-402: 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

1287-618: 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

1386-585: 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

1485-477: 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:

1584-551: 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

1683-556: 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

1782-474: 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

1881-423: Is a professional indoor football league that began play in 2017. As of the end of the 2024 season, the league consisted of five teams. A team's typical payroll budget is $ 600,000 per season, but as of the 2022 season, there is no salary cap limit. Players are usually paid $ 200 per week (before taxes), and veterans can make $ 225 with the potential raises for loyalty on a year-by-year basis. Additionally, $ 50 bonus

1980-413: Is a variety of gridiron football designed to be played indoors. The game is played on 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

2079-449: Is ahead after one possession wins. If the teams are tied after each has had a possession, true sudden death rules apply thereafter. Each overtime period is 15 minutes, and continues from the ending of the previous overtime period until the tie is broken. All overtimes thereafter are true sudden death; no games can be tied. This includes both games of all semifinal series. National Arena League The National Arena League ( NAL )

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2178-482: Is given to players on the winning team each week. Some teams also provide housing for their players during the season. Teams' estimated annual revenue is between $ 500,000 to $ 800,000 a year. In June 2016, Columbus Lions ' owner Skip Seda and father Keke Seda founded a league called the Arena Developmental League (ADL) in the wake of several years of minor indoor leagues folding. The league

2277-403: 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

2376-449: 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

2475-434: 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

2574-413: 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

2673-877: 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

2772-654: The Jacksonville Sharks . On November 30, the league added the Monterrey Steel from Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico , becoming the first American indoor/arena league to house a Mexican team as well as the first in fifteen years to house a team from outside the United States. In order to satisfy the Sharks' contract with their arena, they were given eight home games in the 12-game season. To balance

2871-538: The Maine Mammoths on December 5, with both teams owned by National Sports Ventures, and organization led by NAL executive Rob Storm and Atlanta businessman Richard Maslia and includes Sharks' owner and expansion chairman Jeff Bouchy. The Monterrey Steel and the expansion Jersey Flight would be removed from the league for failing to meet the minimum league obligations prior to the release of the 2018 schedule. In October 2017, commissioner Gregory stepped down and

2970-780: The Oklahoma Flying Aces were as announced as the eighth and final team for the 2024 NAL season. The NAL, however, terminated the North Texas Bulls' membership on February 16, 2024, due to "failure to pay league dues as well as failure to provide an executed arena lease for the upcoming 2024 season." The announcement came one day after the NAL revoked the Topeka Tropics' membership "due to violations of their League Affiliation Agreement, including failure to pay league dues and meeting other criteria to participate in

3069-689: The Omaha Beef and Sioux City Bandits from Champions Indoor Football for the 2024 season. On August 22, 2023, the Jacksonville Sharks announced they were joining the Indoor Football League (IFL). The league added the expansion Colorado Spartans , based out of Loveland, Colorado , on August 31. Also on August 31, the Warbirds, which had been renamed as the West Texas Desert Hawks , were announced as joining

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3168-623: The Tampa Bay Tornadoes . The Baltimore franchise membership was revoked less than three weeks after being announced. The Louisville and Tampa Bay organizations left the league three months after being added, and the West Virginia Roughriders opted to go dormant for 2021 while the owner was trying to sell the team. Louisville instead joined the IFL. The start of the 2021 season was delayed to at least May 2021 due to

3267-585: 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

3366-554: 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

3465-429: 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

3564-518: The 2019 NAL championship. Following the season, the NAL announced it had partnered with Champions Indoor Football (CIF) to create a new league for the 2020 season under a new identity with two conferences: the CIF and NAL. The Massachusetts Pirates chose to not join the merged league and the New York Streets were not mentioned as an included team. However, it was announced on October 10 that

3663-791: The ADL added the Anderson Gladiators from Anderson, South Carolina , but they were removed from the league in November due to arena lease issues. On October 17, the Corpus Christi Rage announced it had joined the ADL (although the ADL did not confirm until October 28). On October 20, the ADL announced that the Fort Myers area -based Florida Tarpons were joining the league. However, the Tarpons would also withdraw from

3762-482: 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

3861-636: 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

3960-743: The Columbus Lions and Lehigh Valley Steelhawks joining from the defunct American Indoor Football . On July 21, the High Country Grizzlies announced their ADL membership after initially being announced as an AIF expansion team . On August 11, the Dayton Wolfpack were announced as the league's fourth team. On September 13, the ADL added the Georgia Firebirds from the AIF as the fifth team. On September 21,

4059-508: The NAL announced on their Facebook page that the Jacksonville Sharks, Lehigh Valley Steelhawks, Columbus Lions, and Jersey Flight had all signed three-year NAL membership agreements and committed to play in the league until 2020. The Monterrey Steel could not commit for 2018 citing the 2017 Central Mexico earthquake . The Georgia Firebirds could not commit due to an ownership transition, but failed to obtain an arena lease. Despite

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4158-550: The NAL conditionally approved ownership groups in Boston , Providence , Richmond , and Orlando with an expansion application deadline of August 15, 2017. The Richmond Roughriders , formerly of Arena Pro Football , confirmed the next day that they were finalizing their NAL expansion requirements. However, on September 13, the Roughriders announced they were joining the American Arena League instead. On September 28, 2017,

4257-474: The NAL during a dispute with the league contract, but were then in discussions with selling the team to the ownership group led by Ron Trideco to keep the team in the NAL. On November 11, the league announced the San Antonio Gunslingers as an expansion team after playing their inaugural 2021 season in the AAL. The Roughriders, Ontario Bandits, and Jersey Flight were eventually removed from

4356-655: The NAL for the 2025 season. On July 9, 2024, the league announced a merger with American Indoor Football and added the Corpus Christi Tritons and Harrisburg Stampede and welcomed back the Columbus Lions . On August 15, 2024, the first-year Shreveport Rouxgaroux joined the NAL. On August 20, 2024, the Amarillo Dusters (formerly known as the Venom and played in various leagues over

4455-577: The NAL suspended operations during the COVID-19 pandemic , with intention to hold the season once social distancing mandates were lifted and it was safe to do so. The season was fully canceled by June 12, 2020. Following the cancellation of the 2020 season, Massachusetts Pirates left for the Indoor Football League (IFL), while the NAL announced the additions of the Albany Empire , Baltimore Lightning, Louisville Xtreme , Ontario Bandits, and

4554-603: 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

4653-438: 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,

4752-549: The deal had been postponed, with both leagues playing their own individual schedules in 2020. The Pirates rejoined the NAL and the league then added two teams that had originally been given conditional approval to join in the 2018 season, the Jersey Flight and the West Virginia Roughriders (then known as the Richmond Roughriders), from the American Arena League . As with almost all other sports leagues,

4851-466: 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

4950-807: The demise of the Pro Indoor Football League. The Pro Indoor Football League was re-formed as the Indoor Professional Football League and the three remaining clubs from the old league; the Hawaii Hammerheads (formerly Honolulu Hurricanes), the Rocky Mountain (Colorado Springs) Thunder (formerly Colorado (Denver) Wildcats) and the Louisiana Bayou Beast were joined by three new franchises in Boise, Idaho; Biloxi, Mississippi; and Austin, Texas. The league

5049-559: 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,

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5148-685: 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 ,

5247-514: 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

5346-399: 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

5445-492: 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

5544-402: 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

5643-662: The floors of indoor arenas . The sport was invented in 1981 , and patented in 1987 , by Jim Foster , 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 ,

5742-716: The initially announced August 15 deadline, the next confirmed expansion team was announced in November as the Massachusetts Pirates based out of Worcester, Massachusetts . In the expansion announcement, the league also mentioned adding teams in Greensboro, North Carolina , and Portland, Maine , but no mention of the other previously conditionally approved teams in Boston, Providence, or Orlando. The Carolina Cobras were announced in Greensboro on December 4 and

5841-529: 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

5940-490: 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

6039-513: The league announced its sixth team to be from Highland Heights, Kentucky , owned by Northern Kentucky Professional Indoor Football LLC headed by W. Leland Bennett III. Bennett was one of the owners of the Northern Kentucky Nightmare , a travel team that played in the AIF the previous season, but no name for the ADL team was announced and the franchise was removed from the league when the league later changed names. In October,

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6138-453: 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

6237-403: 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

6336-422: The league on November 10 to join the upstart Arena Pro Football . On November 18, 2016, the league announced it had changed its name to National Arena League. As part of the change in name, the league management was also restructured so that it was no longer managed by Lions' owner Skip Seda, but was instead managed by all member teams equally. Later that day, the league added a former Arena Football League team,

6435-546: The league was looking into replacing the two folded franchises of Minnesota and Texas and expanding the league back to 8 teams, or even beyond, to 10 or 12, for what was supposed to be its second season. However, the league took a major hit when Madison and Green Bay left the league to form a new league called the Indoor Football League. This left the league with only four teams: Honolulu, Utah, Colorado and Louisiana. The Utah Catzz soon folded as well, leading to

6534-494: 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,

6633-460: 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

6732-433: 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

6831-618: The list of 2022 NAL teams and were not included in the schedule. On July 14, 2022, the league announced its first addition for the 2023 season in Fayetteville, North Carolina , later named the Fayetteville Mustangs . At halftime of the 2022 NAL championship, the league announced the West Texas Warbirds from Odessa, Texas , would be joining the league for 2023. On August 24, 2022, the league announced

6930-424: 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

7029-410: 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

7128-425: 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

7227-476: The ongoing restrictions in the pandemic. One week before the start of the 2021 season, the Ontario Bandits went dormant. For the 2022 season , the league announced it was going to start playing using ironman rules , where most players must play both offense and defense, as originally used by the Arena Football League from 1987 to 2007. In October 2021, the Roughriders stated they will not return to

7326-460: 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

7425-468: 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

7524-498: 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

7623-564: 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

7722-626: 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

7821-609: The relaunched Arena Football League . On September 14, the Topeka Tropics also joined the NAL from the CIF. On September 21, the two-time American West Football Conference champions Idaho Horsemen joined the NAL. On September 26, the San Antonio Gunslingers were announced as also joining the IFL. The next day, the North Texas Bulls announced their membership in the NAL. On October 16,

7920-654: The relocation of the Baton Rouge-based Louisiana Bayou Beast to Alexandria, Louisiana and announced the team would be known as the Louisiana Rangers. The Bayou Beast's relocation to Alexandria left the league with no club still remaining in its city that it started operations in. Mississippi defeated Portland in the championship. The Fort Wayne Safari was announced as an expansion team for the 2002 season, which never occurred. Indoor American football Arena football

8019-486: The return of rebound nets, which had been popularized by the Arena Football League. On December 22, the membership of the Columbus Lions was discontinued and the team left the league. Due to various financial problems, both the Albany Empire and Fayetteville Mustangs were removed the league schedule during the season. The Sharks won the 2023 NAL championship. In August 2023, the league announced it had added

8118-479: The same name , was added on January 17, 2019. After failing to reach an agreement with local ownership, both the Lehigh Valley Steelhawks and Maine Mammoths announced they had suspended operations for the season. Prior to the 2019 season, Sharks' majority owner and NAL expansion chairman Jeff Bouchy resigned and sold his interest in the team to the other owners on March 11, 2019. The Sharks won

8217-518: The season, the league took over operations of the Firebirds, Rage, and Wolfpack. The Sharks would go on to finish with an 11–1 record and win the inaugural championship game over the Lions. The Rage and Wolfpack folded at the end of the season. During the first season, the league announced the first 2018 expansion team in the Jersey Flight of Trenton, New Jersey . During the summer league meetings,

8316-402: 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

8415-430: 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

8514-638: The uneven scheduling, the Corpus Christi Rage and Dayton Wolfpack each only were given five home games while the other five teams each had six. This was changed again when the Wolfpack apparently never were able to secure an arena lease, despite announcing they would play at the Nutter Center and signed players were reporting on social media that all players had been cut. As of February 20, 2017, all Wolfpack home games were canceled. During

8613-589: The upcoming 2024 season". The NAL stated it is in discussions with new ownership as it tries to keep a Topeka team part of the 2024 season. The Tropics put out an open letter begging members of the Topeka business community to buy and save the franchise. On February 28, 2024, the league terminated the Tropics membership. On June 21, 2024, the Wheeling Miners , formerly of the American Arena League , joined

8712-469: 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

8811-645: Was announced to begin play in March 2017 and, while not affiliated with any other leagues, intended on developing players to be looked at by scouts in the Arena Football League (AFL), Canadian Football League (CFL), and National Football League (NFL). In their introductory press conference, the league announced former AFL, af2 , and CFL head coach John Gregory as its first commissioner and former AFL and af2 head coach Chris Siegfried as director of football operations. Charter teams began being announced in July 2016 with

8910-497: 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

9009-405: 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,

9108-634: Was going to have 8 clubs, but the Arizona (Tucson) Mirage and the Syracuse Blitz folded. During the off season, the Indoor Professional Football League saw major changes with the loss of three of its charter franchises: Rocky Mountain, Hawaii and Texas. However, the league saw the addition of four new franchises with the fourth new addition expanding the league beyond six franchises. The new clubs were Shreveport-Bossier City, Portland (OR), Omaha and Mobile. The Indoor Professional Football League approved

9207-424: 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

9306-434: 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

9405-574: 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

9504-504: 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

9603-568: Was replaced by the director of operations, Chris Siegfried. The 2018 season began on April 7, 2018. All three expansion teams fared well, with the Cobras winning the league championship, the Pirates finishing the regular season in first place, and the Mammoths ending the season on a five-game winning streak. However, the Lehigh Valley Steelhawks finished the season winless and the owner announced he

9702-455: 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

9801-663: Was trying to sell the team, while the Mammoths were also announced as looking for local ownership. The league announced its first addition of the 2019 season in the New York Streets with plans to play at the Westchester County Center in White Plains, New York , in December 2018. A revived Orlando Predators team, owned and coached by players from the former Arena Football League team of

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