National Gridiron League (United States)
Sport | Indoor football |
---|---|
Founded | 2017 |
Founder | Joe E. McClendon, III |
President | Joe E. McClendon, III |
No. of teams | 12 |
Country | United States |
Official website | www.nationalgridiron.com |
The National Gridiron League (NGL) was a proposed gridiron football league. In 2021, after three years of postponed seasons, the organization has rebranded as the United Football League.[1]
Prior to the postponed 2019 season, the league logo used was a near copy of the former United Football League, while many of the team names and logos are also copies of former football teams. League chairman Joe E. McClendon III said that those trademarks had expired and it makes good business sense to recycle them in an attempt to capture the already existing fan-bases.[2]
A number of cases in the past have raised questions about whether this is a legitimate league or a scam[3] and the United Football Players Association had warned prospective players from signing with the league.[4] In 2021, players were told that their accommodations would be covered, only to find that they were responsible for the bills after staying several nights at a hotel in Fort Wayne, leading to a physical altercation with a player and Joe McClendon over the issue.[5]
History
National Gridiron League (2018–2021)
Initially the league announced that it had planned to start play as an indoor football league in spring 2019, with 12 teams aligned in two divisions[6] starting on March 30, 2019, and conclude with the inaugural Gridiron Bowl game on August 10, 2019, in Biloxi, Mississippi.[7] However, the league pushed back the announced start of the inaugural season to May 2019 amid reports the league had not had finalized leases for many of its teams.[8][9][10]
By April 2, team coaches informed the players the season was canceled as the league was not going to be able to honor their original contracts and that none of the team staff or coaches had ever been paid.[11][12] League chairman Joe McClendon announced the following day that league had postponed its inaugural season to 2020 citing organizational changes in personnel and the suspension of operations of the Alliance of American Football.[13] Its personnel later sued the league over their claims of non-payment for their work.[14]
The league continued pursuits of a 2020 season including announcing player signings and scheduled Organized Team Activities (OTAs) for January 24–26, 2020.[15] However, all OTAs were canceled the evening of January 24 after players had started arriving.[16] The league then announced that teams would be allowed to play outdoors.[17] The 2020 season was postponed amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.[18]
The league originally announced a 2021 schedule with all games to be held outdoors as a traditional spring league.[19] On January 31, 2021, the league announced it would play all games at single location, without confirming the site,[20] with a planned start date of April 10.[21] It was pushed back again to May 1 with the season to take place in Fort Wayne, Indiana, at an unannounced venue.[22][23] As of April 2021, no venue in Fort Wayne was ever secured.[24]
On April 10, 2021, Joe McClendon and several others showed up to protest at the Glenbrook Square mall in Fort Wayne claiming the city is not holding up to the agreed deal to aid the players in providing hotel accommodations.[25] The players had been told the city would cover the costs of their hotel bills, but had been given notice to evacuate their rooms the morning of April 10 when the rates had not been paid. The city of Fort Wayne responded that they had never made any commitments or arrangements with the league at all, they had only had a few meetings with McClendon to point him where to look for community engagement, venues, and lodging.[26] On April 12, the city then stated they would have no further discussion for a partnership with the league.[27]
On the evening of April 12, McClendon met with the players in the hotel conference room where they were staying and told them the Fort Wayne event was cancelled and they would not be getting any aid in paying for the rooms from the city or the league. A player then physically attacked McClendon over being stranded in the city and frauded out of the tryout fees, travel, and accommodation rates. McClendon insisted there would still be a 2021 season, but in a different city and claims the league must play this year due to taking out a PPP loan that must be used.[5][24] He also stated that when Visit Fort Wayne, the city's visitor bureau, had contacted him about having the season in the city, that they would provide lodging in the city. Visit Fort Wayne countered with saying they had only agreed to find rooms for the players, not pay for them, but that they would advocate with the local hotels for lower rates.[24]
Rebrand
In August 2021, a new website was created under the name United Football League (UFL), stating it is a continuation of two former leagues of the same name (the UFL from the 1960s and the unrelated UFL that operated from 2009 to 2012) and that it had purchased the teams from the now-defunct NGL.[28] However, the new league is a rebrand of the same organization behind the NGL, including still having occasional references to itself as the National Gridiron League within the new website left over the web address move.[1][29] It originally proposed a 2022 season with many of the 11 of the 12 teams from the NGL, but the season was postponed to 2023 with 14 proposed teams.[30]
Teams
Announced 2019 teams
As of February 21, 2019. Cities in italics were locations identified by the league website, but no leases for an arena were confirmed to have been signed in the listed location.[31] Since the postponement, all arena references on the league website have been removed and most coaches have either been changed or moved on to other leagues.
2020 teams
As of March 26, 2020.[37] No home venues were confirmed to have been signed in any listed locations although they were listed on the posted schedule.[38]
2021
Original outdoor venues were listed on the league ticket purchasing website,[50] but were not been confirmed by any of the venues themselves. Later plans were for a single-site season in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Division | Team | Location | Venue | Head coach | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Eastern Conference | ||||||
North | Indiana Blue Bombers | Fort Wayne, Indiana | Fred Zollner Memorial Stadium | Micheal Coleman[51] | ||
Louisville Firebirds[a] | Jeffersonville, Indiana | Jeffersonville High School | Devin Redd[53] | |||
Pittsburgh Pioneers | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | George K. Cupples Stadium | Quentin Jones[54] | |||
South | Atlanta Wildcats | Jonesboro, Georgia | Hines Ward Field at Tara Stadium | Julius Gant[55] | ||
Virginia Beach Destroyers | Virginia Beach, Virginia | Virginia Beach Sportsplex | Tim Medlin[56] | |||
Virginia Iron Horses | Salem, Virginia | Salem Football Stadium | Jermaine Hampton[57] | |||
Western Conference | ||||||
North | Arkansas Twisters | Little Rock, Arkansas | War Memorial Stadium | Ryan Yarborough[58] | ||
Kansas City Kapitals | North Kansas City, Missouri | North Kansas City High School | Adrian Perez[59] | |||
Saint Louis Stampede | Sauget, Illinois | GCS Ballpark | Vacant[60] | |||
South | Baton Rouge Redsticks | Baton Rouge, Louisiana | BREC Memorial Stadium | B. J. Cohen[61] | ||
Houston Bighorns | Webster, Texas | Challenger Columbia Stadium | Jerrian James[62] | |||
Mississippi Mudcats | Jackson, Mississippi | Smith–Wills Stadium | Christopher Parker[63] |
2022
Listed members of the United Football League as of September 18, 2021.[64] There were no listed venues for any of the teams.
Division | Team | Location |
---|---|---|
Central | Arkansas Twisters | Little Rock, Arkansas |
Baton Rouge Redsticks | Baton Rouge, Louisiana | |
Houston Bighorns | Houston, Texas | |
Mid-West | Chicago Blue Bombers[a] | Chicago, Illinois |
Kansas City Kapitals | Kansas City, Missouri | |
Saint Louis Stampede | St. Louis, Missouri | |
North | Pittsburgh Pioneers | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
Richmond Iron Horses[b] | Richmond, Virginia | |
Virginia Beach Destroyers | Virginia Beach, Virginia | |
South | Atlanta Wildcats | Atlanta, Georgia |
Birmingham Steeldawgs | Birmingham, Alabama | |
Mississippi Mudcats | Jackson, Mississippi |
2023
Listed members of the United Football League of February 28, 2022.[67] There are no listed venues for any of the teams.
Conference | Team | Location |
---|---|---|
Eastern | Atlanta Wildcats | Atlanta, Georgia |
Charlestown Pirates | Charleston, South Carolina | |
Louisville Firebirds | Louisville, Kentucky | |
Mississippi Mudcats | Jackson, Mississippi | |
Pittsburgh Pioneers | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | |
Richmond Iron Horses | Richmond, Virginia | |
Virginia Beach Destroyers | Virginia Beach, Virginia | |
Western | Arkansas Twisters | Little Rock, Arkansas |
Baton Rouge Redsticks | Baton Rouge, Louisiana | |
Chicago Blue Bombers | Chicago, Illinois | |
Houston Bighorns | Houston, Texas | |
Kansas City Kapitals | Kansas City, Missouri | |
Oklahoma City Wranglers | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | |
Saint Louis Stampede | St. Louis, Missouri |
Personnel
- Chairman and president: Joe E. McClendon, III
- Chief operating officer: Larry Barlow
- Director of football development: Eddie Brown (in 2019)
References
- ^ a b "Frequently Asked Questions". uflfootball.com. Archived from the original on August 28, 2021. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
Q. How many teams are there in the United Football League? A. The National Gridiron League is a collection of 12 franchises, broken down by two conferences.
- ^ "New Roanoke arena football league tells city leaders league is still on track". WSLS-TV. March 22, 2019.
- ^ "Reynolds: Players irritated by National Gridiron League's continued issues". Evansville Courier & Press. February 4, 2020.
- ^ "What We Know: NGL". UnitedPlayers.org. April 7, 2021.
- ^ a b "League pulls plug on bubble in city". The Journal Gazette. April 13, 2021.
- ^ "About Us". National Gridiron League. Retrieved June 25, 2018.
- ^ "Events". National Gridiron League. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
- ^ "Indiana Firebirds to play shorter schedule than originally planned". TristateHomepage.com. March 12, 2019.
- ^ "Will arena football actually come to Roanoke?". WSLS-TV. March 12, 2019.
- ^ "Arena football could return to region". The Citizens' Voice. March 2, 2019.
- ^ "Letter: Blue Bombers inaugural season canceled". WANE-TV. April 2, 2019.
- ^ "Blue Bombers coaches not paid a cent, amidst potential folding of NGL". WPTA. April 3, 2019.
- ^ "Arkansas Twisters return pushed back to 2020". KATV. April 3, 2019.
- ^ "Former Indiana Firebirds president Jim Riggs sues National Gridiron League in federal court". Evansville Courier & Press. June 25, 2019.
- ^ "OTAS NEXT ON TAP FOR TEAMS". NGL. December 20, 2019.
- ^ a b "National Gridiron League, Evansville indoor football team leave players stranded". Evansville Courier & Press. January 31, 2020.
- ^ "NGL APPROVES TEAMS TO PLAY IN OUTDOOR VENUES". NGL. February 28, 2020.
- ^ "NGL TO DELAY 2020 START DUE TO HEALTH CONCERNS". NGL. March 12, 2020.
- ^ "NEW SEASON, NEW OUTLOOK". NGL. October 8, 2020.
- ^ "LEAGUE TO PLAY 2021 IN BUBBLE". NGL. January 31, 2021.
- ^ "LEAGUE SETS 2021 BUBBLE SCHEDULE". NGL. February 2, 2021.
- ^ "UPDATED: LEAGUE SETS 2021 BUBBLE SCHEDULE". NGL. March 8, 2021.
- ^ "FORT WAYNE TO HOST 2021 SEASON". NGL. March 6, 2021.
- ^ a b c "Football league founder "clears the air" after season in Fort Wayne ends before it begins". WANE.com. April 14, 2021.
- ^ "Football league protests at Fort Wayne mall over supposed deal with city". WANE.com. April 10, 2021.
- ^ "City of Fort Wayne says it made no commitments to football league". WANE.com. April 12, 2021.
- ^ "Players left stranded in Fort Wayne after National Gridiron League cancels season". WANE.com. April 12, 2021.
- ^ "About Us". uflfootball.com. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
- ^ "The NGL has Completed its Rebranding into the UFL". xflnewshub.com. August 21, 2021.
- ^ "About Us". uflfootball.com. Retrieved February 28, 2022.
- ^ "Indoor football team still hasn't returned lease agreement". The Journal Gazette. October 17, 2018.
- ^ "Coliseum OKs indoor football". The Journal Gazette. December 6, 2018. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
- ^ "Arkansas Twisters to be part of National Gridiron League, play games at Verizon Arena". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. January 31, 2019.
- ^ "Indoor arena football team coming to Topeka in 2019". WIBW. June 21, 2018.
- ^ "Pat Pimmel Facebook post on March, 24, 2019". Facebook. March 24, 2019.
- ^ Gibson, Raegan (February 19, 2019). "Beaumont to welcome arena football, Bighorns team to Ford Park". KBMT. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
- ^ "Teams". NGL. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
- ^ "2020 schedule". NGL. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
- ^ "Indiana Firebirds moving to Dayton". TriStateHomepage.com. February 28, 2020. Retrieved August 27, 2020.
- ^ "Dayton Firebirds – Stats". NGL. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
- ^ "Indiana Blue Bombers– Stats". NGL. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
- ^ "Pittsburgh Pioneers – Stats". NGL. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
- ^ "Atlanta Wildcats – Stats". NGL. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
- ^ a b "Virginia Beach Destroyers – Stats". NGL. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
- ^ "Kansas City Kapitals – Stats". NGL. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
- ^ "Saint Louis Stampede – Stats". NGL. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
- ^ "Baton Rouge Redsticks – Stats". NGL. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
- ^ "Houston Bighorns – Stats". NGL. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
- ^ "Mississippi Mudcats – Stats". NGL. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
- ^ "National Gridiron League Ticketing". NGL. Retrieved December 31, 2020.
- ^ "Indiana Blue Bombers– Stats". NGL. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
- ^ "Teams". NGL. Retrieved August 27, 2020.
- ^ "Louisville Firebirds – Stats". NGL. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
- ^ "Pittsburgh Pioneers – Stats". NGL. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
- ^ "Atlanta Wildcats – Stats". NGL. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
- ^ "Virginia Beach Destroyers – Stats". NGL. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
- ^ "Virginia Iron Horses – Stats". NGL. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
- ^ "Arkansas Twisters – Stats". NGL. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
- ^ "Kansas City Kapitals – Stats". NGL. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
- ^ "Saint Louis Stampede – Stats". NGL. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
- ^ "Baton Rouge Redsticks – Stats". NGL. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
- ^ "Houston Bighorns – Stats". NGL. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
- ^ "Mississippi Mudcats – Stats". NGL. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
- ^ "Stats - United Football League". United Football League. Archived from the original on September 18, 2021. Retrieved September 18, 2021.
- ^ "CHICAGO BLUE BOMBERS TO JOIN THE UFL". United Football League. August 19, 2021.
- ^ "RICHMOND IRON HORSES TO JOIN THE UFL". United Football League. September 16, 2021.
- ^ "Stats - United Football League". United Football League. Retrieved February 28, 2022.
External links
- NGL website
- UFL Football Rebranded name