American Professional Football League
 |
|
| Sport | Indoor football |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2003 |
| Ceased | 2013 |
| Director | Ted Adams |
| President | Ralph Adams |
| Country | United States |
| Last champion(s) |
Sioux City Bandits |
| Most titles | Kansas Koyotes (6) |
| Related competitions |
Champions Professional Indoor Football League Continental Indoor Football League Indoor Football League Ultimate Indoor Football League |
| Official website | [1] |
The American Professional Football League (APFL) was an indoor football league that was founded in 2003. After the 2012 season, most of the teams left to start the Champions Professional Indoor Football League. It was a member of the Indoor Professional Football League. The league consisted of professional and semi-professional teams, with a few core teams that play a full 10 game schedule and other teams that play partial schedules. At the end of each season, the playoffs are contested between the league's core teams. The first few years of league play were dominated by the Kansas Koyotes, but in recent years the league has gained parity and more stable members resulting in the first championship won by another team, the Iowa Blackhawks in 2009, and the first championship game contested by two teams other than the Koyotes, when the Iowa Blackhawks defended their championship against the Mid-Missouri Outlaws in 2010 APFL season.
a. St. Joseph Storm was suspended from the league before the 2006 season began. Kansas City Thunderstorm and Columbia Outlaws played in their place.
b. This team only played road games and a reduced schedule.
* = forfeit
Early in 2003, the APFL started as a regional league with the Kansas Koyotes, Missouri Minutemen, St. Joseph Explorers, and Chillicothe Lumberjacks. However, the Lumberjacks didn't make it to opening day and as a result the league played on with three teams while Chillicothe was replaced on the schedule. The Koyotes went undefeated in the league's first season and won the championship game in a rout against Missouri, their 4th victory over the Minutemen that season.
Kansas and Missouri returned and the league added the Iowa Blackhawks and Texas Thunder. The Colorado Stars and Wisconsin Locomotives were originally scheduled to compete, but neither played a down of football in the APFL. The Blackhawks were previously the River City Redemption, who had competed in an exhibition match against the Koyotes the season before. Texas only played a partial schedule. The Koyotes and Minutemen both made it back to the championship, and the Koyotes rolled to a second championship and undefeated season.
The 2005 season saw the addition of the Kansas Storm, Nebraska Bears, and Wichita Aviators. The Thunder did not return and the league played with six teams. The league saw an increase in competition with these new teams and an improved team in Iowa. The Koyotes again captured the #1 seed and an undefeated regular season but had to win more close games than the previous two seasons. The Minutemen, twice the APFL runner-up, did not even make the playoffs. Iowa hosted Wichita in the semi-final and won 50-42 to earn a berth in the championship game. In a thrilling final, the Koyotes almost saw the championship slip away when the Blackhawks took a late lead. Jerry Lakin hit a game-winning field goal and Kansas completed their third consecutive undefeated season with a 26-24 win.
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Wikipedia