Major League Football (MLF)

Planned professional American football league

Major League FootballSport| American football

|

Founded| 2019
Commissioner| Adam McClean
No. of teams| 24 (planned)
Country| United States
Official website| majorleaguefootball.pro

The Major League Football (MLF) is a planned professional fall american football minor league. The league was set to begin play in 2022 after the announcement of several teams, but made an announcement that they were postponing the start of their inaugural season until 2023 and later to October 2024.

## Premise[edit]

The MLF will be a developmental "franchise-model" fall League, playing on Sundays in markets that do not have an NFL presence, with attempt to mirror the United Soccer League.[1]

## History[edit]

In August 2022 Sacramento was the league's first announced team, with plans to play in Heart Health Park. In an interview with the Sacramento press Mclean also said that an Oakland team is slated to play at Laney College and the league is schedule to begin in October.[2] The league will consisted of 18 teams, each playing a 16-game schedule,[3] with eight of them will make to the playoffs - four teams each from the Eastern and Western conferences (three division winners and a wild card qualifier).[2] The MLF claimed that they had secured stadiums leases in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic.[4]

The league would later postpone the 2022 season to 2023, citing issues with four stadiums out of the 18 league locations.[4] The planed league markets were North Carolina, West Virginia, Kentucky, Alabama, Arkansas, El Paso, Utah, Iowa, South and North Dakota, Oklahoma, Rochester, Sacramento, Oakland, San Diego and Connecticut.[4]

In 2023 interview McClean claimed that the league will consist of 20 teams and they are in the process of hiring general managers, who will then hire coaches and a staff, and will conduct tryouts for prospective players in June. McClean also mentioned some of the venues secured by the league, such as: War Memorial Stadium in Arkansas, Pratt & Whitney Stadium in Connecticut, Hughes Stadium in Sacramento and Laney College Stadium in Oakland. Other location mentioned in the interview were: Portland, Iowa, Kentucky, North Carolina, Dallas, Houston, San Diego and New York.[3]

## Teams[edit]

In 2021 the MLF had proposed 32 teams to be split into two conferences,[1] with a buy-in for a Major League Football franchise ranges from $3 million to around $10 million,[5] but this number changed multiple times.[2][3] As of October 2023, the league plan is to have 24 teams for the 2024 season.[6]

East

North  | Central  | South
New York | West Virginia | Alabama
Rochester | Virginia | Kentucky
Oklahoma | North Carolina | Georgia
Connecticut | South Carolina | Orlando
West
North  | Central  | South
Salt Lake City | Iowa | San Diego
Dakota | St. Louis | Memphis
Nebraska | Oakland | San Antonio
Portland | Sacramento | Arkansas

## Players and coaches[edit]

The league plan to target "the best athletes" and "especially former college players", with schedule combine for prospective players in each of the league’s markets.[2]

The league "plans to hire up-and-coming coaches that are seeking an opportunity rather than hiring coaches with pro football experience".[2]

## Rules[edit]

According to the league website "there will be less penalties in order to speed up the pace and increase the excitement of the game".

## Business[edit]

The MLF aim is to attract families and to have affordable with an average price of $50 per game.[2]

In 2023 McClean claimed the league will consist of 20 league-owned teams "for at least the first two seasons before exploring sale options for buyers. We have at least a dozen potential highly-qualified financial buyers ...We want to develop the product, prove that we are the real deal, work out the kinks the first to second season to create the value. We are working on corporate sponsorships".[3]

### Legal issues[edit]

The MLF claims it had a trademark on the name "Major League Football" dating back to 2001 and they plan sending a cease and desist letter for trademark infringement to the Major League Football (MLFB).[7]

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b "Semi-Pro Major League Football Team Looking to Launch in 2022". xflnewshub.com.
2. ^ a b c d e f "New professional football league launching this fall, includes team from Sacramento". FOX40.
3. ^ a b c d "Pro football is coming to Sacramento this fall: What to know — and can it work?". Sacramento Bee.
4. ^ a b c "Professional football league that would include a Sacramento team postpones season". FOX40.
5. ^ "New pro football league looking to land franchise in Louisville". WDRB.
6. ^ "Teams". Major League Football.
7. ^ "New pro football league includes Sacramento among list of debut cities for fall games". The Sacramento Bee. 2022-08-03. Retrieved 2022-08-06.

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American football in the United States

History|

| Early|

* American Football Union
* Intercollegiate Football Association
* National Football League (1902)
* New York Pro Football League
* Ohio League
* Western Pennsylvania Professional Football Circuit
* World Series of Football (1902–03)

|

Modern|

| Major|

* All-America Football Conference
* American Football League (1926)
* American Football League
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* American Football League (1940)
* United States Football League
* World Football League

|

Minor|

* Alliance of American Football
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Professional|

| NFL|

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Other outdoor|

* American 7s Football League
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Indoor leagues|

* American Arena League
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Proposed leagues|

* American Patriot League
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Related topics|

* Researchers Association

College|

| NCAA|

| FBS|

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FCS|

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Other|

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* List of American football films
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Professional gridiron football leagues in North America

American football

| Major|

* National Football League (1920–present)

|

Other|

* American 7s Football League (2015-present)
* Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional (2016–present)
* XFL (2020, 2023–present)
* United States Football League (2022–present)

Defunct national|

* American Football League (1926)²
* American Football League (1936–1937)²
* American Football League (1940–1941)
* All-America Football Conference² (1945–1949)
* American Football League (1960–1969)¹
* Continental Football League (1965–1969)
* World Football League (1974–1975)
* United States Football League (1983–1985)
* World League of American Football/NFL Europe/NFL Europa³
* XFL (2001)
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Defunct regional|

* American Football Union (1886–1895)
* Western Pennsylvania Professional Football Circuit** (1890–1905)
* Ohio League² (1902–1919)
* New York Pro Football League² (1908–1919)
* National Football League (1902)
* Anthracite League² (1924)
* Eastern League of Professional Football (1926–1927)
* American Football League (1934)
* Midwest Football League (1935–1940)
* Dixie League³ (1936–1947)
* American Association (American football)³
* American Football League (1938–1939)
* Eastern Pennsylvania Football League (1938)
* Pacific Coast Professional Football League³ (1940–1948)
* American Football League (1944)
* American Football League (1946–1950)³
* American Football Conference (1959–1961)
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* Fútbol Americano de México (2019–2022)

* ¹ Merged into the NFL. All teams still active as members of the NFL's American Football Conference.
* ² Teams moved to NFL
* ³ Official NFL minor league; see also Association of Professional Football Leagues

Canadian football

| Major|

* Canadian Football League

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Predecessors|

* Direct
* Interprovincial Rugby Football Union
* Western Interprovincial Football Union
* Other
* Ontario Rugby Football Union
* Quebec Rugby Football Union

Junior|

* Atlantic Football League
* Canadian Junior Football League
* Quebec Junior Football League

Indoor football

| Current|

* American Indoor Football Alliance
* American West Football Conference
* Indoor Football League
* National Arena League

|

Defunct|

* AF2
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On hiatus|

* American Arena League
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* Arena Football League
* Fan Controlled Football

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