List of leagues of American football

This is a list of current and defunct leagues of American football and Canadian football.

List of current leagues in North America
Professional outdoor leagues:
 * 🇨🇦 Canadian Football League, 1958-
 * Originally Canadian Football Council (1956-1958) in the Canadian Rugby Union (1891-1960)


 * 🇺🇸 National Football League, 1920-
 * Originally American Professional Football Conference, American Professional Football Association (1920-1921)


 * 🇺🇸 United Football League, 2009-

Professional arena/indoor leagues: Semi-professional leagues:
 * 🇺🇸 Arena Football League, 1987-
 * 🇺🇸 American Professional Football League, 2003-
 * 🇺🇸 Continental Indoor Football League, 2006-
 * 🇺🇸 Southern Indoor Football League 2008-
 * 🇺🇸 Indoor Football League, 2009-
 * 🇨🇦 All-american football league, 2009-
 * 🇺🇸 Empire Football League, 1969-
 * 🇺🇸 Mid Continental Football League, 1992-
 * 🇺🇸 New England Football League, 1994-
 * 🇺🇸 🇨🇦 North American Football League, 1996-
 * 🇨🇦 Alberta Football League, 1996-
 * 🇨🇦 Maritime Football League, 1996-
 * 🇺🇸 Northeastern Football Alliance, 1997-
 * 🇺🇸 Rocky Mountain Football League, 1997-
 * 🇺🇸 Central Football League, 1999-
 * 🇺🇸 Southern States Football League, 2001-
 * 🇺🇸 Minor League Football Association, 2003-
 * 🇺🇸 Oklahoma Metro Football League, 2007-
 * 🇺🇸 Florida Football Alliance, 2007-
 * 🇺🇸 BNEFF, aka Big Northeast Football Federation 2007-
 * 🇺🇸 FSFL, aka Five Star Football League 2010-

Collegiate and amateur leagues:
 * 🇨🇦 Canadian Junior Football League, 1890-
 * 🇺🇸 National Collegiate Athletic Association, 1906-
 * 🇺🇸 National Junior College Athletic Association, 1938-
 * 🇺🇸 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, 1940-
 * 🇨🇦 National Capital Amateur Football Association, 1955-
 * 🇨🇦 Canadian Interuniversity Sport, 1961-
 * 🇨🇦 Quebec Junior Football League, 1970-
 * 🇨🇦 Canadian Colleges Athletic Association, 1974-

Women's leagues:
 * 🇺🇸 Women's Professional Football League, 1999-2007
 * 🇺🇸 National Women's Football Association, 2000-2008
 * 🇺🇸 Independent Women's Football League, 2000-
 * 🇺🇸 Women's Football League, 2002-2007
 * 🇺🇸 Lingerie Football League, 2009-
 * 🇺🇸 Women's Football Alliance, 2009-

Future leagues in the United States
Outdoor professional leagues: Indoor professional leagues:
 * 🇺🇸 All American Football League, indefinitely suspended since 2008
 * 🇺🇸 New United States Football League, slated to start spring 2012
 * 🇺🇸 Ultimate Football League, slated to start winter 2013
 * 🇺🇸 Southern united football league, slated to start winter 2012
 * 🇺🇸 Ultimate Indoor Football League, slated to start spring 2011

Historical leagues in United States
Major outdoor leagues:
 * 🇺🇸 National Football League (1902) and the World Series of Pro Football, 1902–1903
 * 🇺🇸 Ohio League, 1903-19196
 * 🇺🇸 New York Pro Football League, 1916-19206
 * 🇺🇸 All-America Football Conference, 1946-19491
 * 🇺🇸 American Football League, 1926, 1936-1937, 1940-1941, and 1960-19692 (all unrelated, four separate leagues)
 * 🇺🇸 World Football League, 1974–1975
 * 🇺🇸 United States Football League, 1983–1985
 * 🇺🇸 XFL, 2001

Minor outdoor leagues
 * 🇺🇸 American Football League, 1934
 * 🇺🇸 Midwest Football League, 1935–1937, became American Professional Football Association in 1938, American Football League in 1939
 * 🇺🇸 Dixie League, 1936-1947 - originally South Atlantic Football Association
 * 🇺🇸 American Association 1936-1941/American Football League 1946-19503
 * 🇺🇸 American Football League, 1938-19394
 * 🇺🇸 Pacific Coast Professional Football League, 1940–1948
 * 🇺🇸 American Football League, 19445
 * 🇺🇸 Unnamed professional league, (1945)
 * 🇺🇸 United Football League, 1961–1964
 * 🇺🇸 Atlantic Coast Football League, 1962–1971, 1973
 * 🇺🇸 Continental Football League, 1965–1969
 * 🇺🇸 North American Football League, 1965–1966
 * 🇺🇸 Seaboard Football League, 1971–1974
 * 🇺🇸 American Football Association, 1977–1982
 * 🇺🇸 International Football League, 1984
 * 🇺🇸 Professional Spring Football League, 1992
 * 🇺🇸 Regional Football League, 1999
 * 🇺🇸 International Football Federation, 2000
 * 🇺🇸 Spring Football League, 2000


 * 1: Two teams now in NFL
 * 2: Agreed to merger with the NFL in 1966, with merger completed in 1970
 * 3: American Association suspended operations for duration of U.S. involvement in World War II; in 1946 the AA was renamed American Football League
 * 4: Known as the American Professional Football Association in 1938; renamed American Football League in 1939; dissolution after 1939 season caused by formation of 1940-1941 AFL major league
 * 5: Merged with PCPFL in 1945
 * 6: Informal league, direct predecessor to the NFL

Indoor leagues


 * 🇺🇸 American Indoor Football Association, 2005-2010
 * 🇺🇸 Arena Football League, 1987-2008 (assets acquired in December 2009 by Arena Football 1, which became the new Arena Football League)
 * 🇺🇸 Arenafootball2 (af2), 2000–2009 (assets also acquired in the same transaction noted above)
 * 🇺🇸 Professional Indoor Football League, 1998-2000 (Bought out by Af2 in 2001)
 * 🇺🇸 Indoor Football League, 1999-2000 (Bought out by Af2 in 2001;not related to the Indoor Football League that began play in 2009)
 * 🇺🇸 Indoor Professional Football League, 1999–2001
 * 🇺🇸 National Indoor Football League, 2001–2007
 * 🇺🇸 Intense Football League, 2004-2008 (merged into current incarnation of the Indoor Football League)
 * 🇺🇸 United Indoor Football, 2005-2008 (merged into current incarnation of the Indoor Football League)
 * 🇺🇸 Eastern Indoor Football League, 2007
 * 🇺🇸 World Indoor Football League, 2007

Women's leagues
 * 🇺🇸 Women's American Football League, formed 2001, became the AFWL in 2002
 * 🇺🇸 American Football Women's League (AFWL), 2002
 * 🇺🇸 Women's Football Association, 2002

List of current American Football minor and semi professional leagues outside of North America
Central and South America:
 * 🇦🇷 - FAA Football Americano Argentina
 * - CAFL Commonwealth American Football League
 * 🇧🇷 - AFAB Associação de Futebol Americano do Brasil
 * 🇧🇷 - LBFA Liga Brasileira de Futebol Americano
 * 🇲🇽 - OMFA Organizacion Mexicana de Futbol Americano - Professional
 * 🇲🇽 - ONEFA National Student Organization of American Football - Collegiate
 * - UFL Uruguay Football League
 * - FCFA Federación Costarricense de Futbol Americano

Europe:


 * - EFL European Football League
 * 🇦🇹 - AFL Austrian Football League
 * 🇧🇪 - BFL Belgian Football League
 * - CFL Croatian Football League
 * 🇨🇿 - CLAF Česká Liga Amerického Fotbalu
 * - DAFF Danish American Football Federation
 * 🇫🇮 - VL Vaahteraliiga
 * 🇫🇷 - Championnat Élite
 * 🇩🇪 - GFL German Football League
 * 🇭🇺 - MAFL Magyarországi Amerikai Futballcsapatok Ligája
 * 🇮🇪 - IAFL Irish American Football League
 * 🇮🇹 - IFL Italian Football League
 * 🇲🇩 - AFAM Associatia de Fotbal American
 * - AFBN American Football Bond Nederland
 * 🇳🇴 - NAFF Norway American Football Federation
 * 🇳🇴 - Southside Football League
 * 🇵🇱 - PLFA Polish American Football League
 * - LPFA Liga Portuguesa de Futebol Americano
 * 🇷🇴 - Romanian Championship of American Football
 * 🇷🇺 - UAFR Union of American Football of Russia
 * 🇸🇰 - SLAF Slovenská Liga Amerického Futbalu
 * - SNFL Slovenian National Football League
 * 🇷🇸 - NLS Nacionalna Liga Srbije
 * 🇪🇸 - LNFA Liga Nacional de Fútbol Americano
 * 🇸🇪 - Superserien
 * 🇨🇭 - NLA Nationalliga A - NSFL Non Professional Swiss Romand Americain Football League
 * 🇹🇷 - TAFL Turkish American Football League
 * 🇺🇦 - FAFU Federation American Football of Ukraine
 * - BAFACL BAFA Community Leagues, 2010-
 * - BUAFL British Universities American Football League, 2007-
 * 🇦🇹//🇭🇺/🇷🇸//🇸🇰 Central Europe/South-Eastern Europe - CEFL Central European Football League

Asia:
 * 🇮🇱 - Israeli Football League
 * 🇯🇵 - X-League, 1996-
 * 🇯🇵 - Tokyo Football League, 1977?-1991 (Became the UFL in 1991)
 * 🇯🇵 - Urban Football League, 1991-
 * 🇯🇵 - Japan Private Football Federation, 1978-
 * 🇰🇷 - KAFA Korea American Football Association
 * 🇰🇷 - SAFA Seoul American Football Association
 * 🇹🇭 - FAFA Flag and American Football Association

Oceania:
 * 🇦🇺 - ACT Gridiron
 * 🇦🇺 - NSW Gridiron Football League
 * 🇦🇺 - Gridiron Queensland
 * 🇦🇺 - South Australian Gridiron Association
 * 🇦🇺 - Gridiron Victoria
 * 🇦🇺 - Gridiron West
 * 🇳🇿 - New Zealand American Football Association
 * 🇳🇿 - Gridiron New Zealand
 * 🇳🇿 - American Football Wellington

List of defunct American football minor leagues around the world

 * 🇩🇪/🇳🇱/🇪🇸/🇬🇧 NFL Europa 1995-2007
 * 🇩🇪/🇬🇧/🇪🇸/🇺🇸/🇨🇦 World League of American Football, 1991–1992
 * 🇩🇪/🇳🇱//🇸🇪/🇫🇮/🇮🇹 Football League of Europe, 1994-1995
 * 🇮🇸 Icelandic Society for American Football, 1988–1991
 * - BAFL British American Football League, 1987-2010
 * - BCAFL British Collegiate American Football League, 1985–2007
 * /🇳🇱/🇮🇹/🇩🇪/🇪🇸/🇫🇮 International League of American Football - Intended to begin play in 1990, folded before first game