The Arena Football League season is over, not that the remaining teams have disbanded, and the championship game is being played at the Mall.
I think it’s fitting that these relics from the 80s and 90s are coming together. The image makes me feel uncomfortable Arena football games being played in locations other than arenas.
The Billings Outlaws defeated the Albany Firebirds 46-41 at the American Dream Mall in New Jersey to win the 33rd AFL Championship.
The season ended with eight teams. There were probably twice as many teams at the start of the season. Teams started disappearing almost as soon as the season started. Eventually, former NFL coach Jeff Fisher became the interim commissioner and put the teams together.
The bigger question is whether there will be another season, which Fisher suggested in comments to the league’s website that there will be one.
“This game had all the hallmarks of a true championship showdown – intense action, fast-paced play, high scoring and incredible passion,” Fisher said of the title match. “This is the level of competition you expect to see at every AFL game. For the next season.”
Perhaps the most encouraging development was the fact that the AFL found a television partner for the final games, which will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network. The league was on the brink of collapse after its deal with the NFL Network fell apart when the season began, so it’s kind of amazing they made it to the finish line.
But it’s not as amazing as seeing the finish line just a stone’s throw away.
