Atlantic Football League
 | |
| Sport | Canadian football |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2009 |
| First season | 2009 |
| Commissioner | Larry Wisniewski |
| No. of teams | 4 teams |
| Country | Canada |
| Most recent champion(s) | UNBF Red Bombers |
| Most titles | UNBF Red Bombers (4) Holland Hurricanes (4) |
| Official website | atlanticfootball.co |
The Atlantic Football League (AFL) is an amateur club-level Canadian football league that features four teams based in Atlantic Canada. The league is for players aged 18-24 that either attend universities without U Sports football programs or for players in the area.[1][2] Since member teams operate as club teams (and not varsity teams), they do not receive funding from their universities. Some players eventually join U Sports programs and all Canadian players are eligible to join Canadian Football League teams.
On June 9, 2020, the league announced that they had cancelled the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada.[3]
Season structure
There are currently four teams in league and each team plays six games with each team hosting the other once. All teams currently qualify for the playoffs with the top two seeds hosting the lower two. The winners of these games then qualify for the league championship game, the Moosehead Cup.
Teams
Active teams
| Team | City | Stadium | Founded (Lineage) | Moosehead Cups |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dalhousie Tigers | Halifax, Nova Scotia | Wickwire Field | 2010 (1947–76) | 2 |
| Holland Hurricanes | Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island | MacAdam Field | 2010 | 4 |
| UNBF Red Bombers | Fredericton, New Brunswick | BMO Centre | 2009 (1949–80) | 3 |
| UNBSJ Seawolves | Saint John, New Brunswick | Canada Games Stadium | 2009 (2005–08) | 1 |
Defunct teams
| Team | City | Stadium | Existence | Moosehead Cups |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moncton Jr. Mustangs | Moncton, New Brunswick | Rocky Stone Field | 2009–10 | 0 |
Championships
| Game | Date | Winning Team | Score | Losing Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | November 21, 2009 | UNBF Red Bombers | 3–1 | UNBSJ Seawolves |
| 2nd | November 20, 2010 | UNBSJ Seawolves | 40–6 | Dalhousie Tigers |
| 3rd | November 19, 2011 | Holland Hurricanes | 28–0 | UNBF Red Bombers |
| 4th | November 3, 2012 | UNBF Red Bombers | 14–7 | Holland Hurricanes |
| 5th | November 2, 2013 | Holland Hurricanes | 20–12 | UNBSJ Seawolves |
| 6th | November 1, 2014 | Holland Hurricanes | 31–15 | UNBSJ Seawolves |
| 7th | November 7, 2015 | Holland Hurricanes | 32–24 | Dalhousie Tigers |
| 8th | November 5, 2016 | Dalhousie Tigers | 29–11 | Holland Hurricanes |
| 9th | November 4, 2017 | UNBF Red Bombers | 39–35 | Dalhousie Tigers |
| 10th | November 3, 2018 | Dalhousie Tigers | 27–3 | Holland Hurricanes |
| 11th | November 2, 2019 | UNBF Red Bombers | 29–26 | Holland Hurricanes |
References
- ^ Atlantic Football League (AFL) expands by 2 teams
- ^ New football league kicks off in N.B.
- ^ "Atlantic Football League Cancels 2020 Season". Atlantic Football League. June 9, 2020.
- ^ "Atlantic Football League". Archived from the original on 2017-02-22. Retrieved 2017-02-22.
- ^ Atlantic Football League Schedule