AAF in Danger of Folding

The Alliance of American Football, the newest professional football league that began their season a week after the Super Bowl, is close to folding, the majority owner of the AAF, Tom Dundon, told USA Today Sports.

The AAF, which was billed as a “minor league” of sorts for the NFL, cannot make an offer to any NFL players who are on a futures contract without the cooperation of the NFLPA. The difference in money might not be substantial, but it stands to reason that a player on a futures contract may rather be a starter in the AAF than fading away on a team’s practice squad with the chance to be cut always looming large.

The AAF was nearly unable to make their payroll as recently as last month, inspiring Dundon, who also owns the Carolina Hurricanes, to invest $250 million into the league. The league is just over halfway into its inagural season, with three games left to play in its 10-game schedule.

The AAF wouldn’t be the first football league to fail to survive in the NFL’s world, and it likely will not be the last. But the idea of a football minor league is certainly intriguing to diehard football fans, and maybe even to NFL execs in charge of player personnel. To see it fold would be a disappointment, but not a surprise.