ALLIANCE OF AMERICAN FOOTBALL (AAF) was a professional football league that began play on 19 February 2019 following the NFL's Super Bowl LIII. Teams were to play a 10-week season, followed by a 4-team playoff that would haved ended with the Championship Game. However, after 8 weeks, Thomas Dundon (owner of the NHL's Carolina Hurricanes) pulled the plug and all players immediately became free agents.
The AAF consisted of eight centrally owned and operated teams, based in metropolitan areas that have at least one major professional sports franchise and will all play in major FBS college football stadiums.
The AAF had a mini-draft for quarterbacks and not for every position but the biggest obstacle for any league is how to introduce fans to both the league and their favourite team as it is literally building a fan base from nothing and therefore players are assigned from affiliated colleges, CFL and NFL teams.
Firstly, players were assigned based on which college they played for, which helped teams to tap into the local college fan bases that helps for fans to not only attend games but also see their favourite college players in action at the pro level. Players were also chosen by the last professional team that they played for either in the CFL or NFL. However, if a player had never played professionally then they were free to be signed by any AAF team.
TEAMS
Eastern Conference |
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ATLANTA LEGENDS (ATLANTA,GA) |
GEORGIA STATE STADIUM (ATLANTA,GA) (2019) |
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BIRMINGHAM IRON (BIRMINGHAM,AL) |
LEGION FIELD (BIRMINGHAM,AL) (2019) |
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MEMPHIS EXPRESS (MEMPHIS,TN) |
LIBERTY STADIUM (MEMPHIS,TN) (2019) |
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ORLANDO APOLLOS (ORLANDO,FL) | CAMPING WORLD STADIUM (ORLANDO,FL) (2019) |
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Western Conference |
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ARIZONA HOTSHOTS (TEMPE, AZ) |
SUN DEVIL STADIUM (TEMPE,AZ) (2019) |
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SALT LAKE STALLIONS (SALT LAKE CITY, UT) |
RICE-ECCLES STADIUM (SALT LAKE CITY,UT) (2019) |
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SAN ANTONIO COMMANDERS (SAN ANTONIO, TX) |
ALAMODOME (SAN ANTONIO,TX) (2019) |
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SAN DIEGO FLEET (SAN DIEGO, CA) |
SDCCU STADIUM (SAN DIEGO,CA) (2019) |