A Rollercoaster Debut: Arena Football One Delivers on Action & Drama

After two franchises folded before the league kicked off, doubts have risen, but the quality on the field shows us that we should probably stick around

Starting a new sports league is difficult. There are so many moving parts to ensure that teams are in place, players are set up for success, and that fans can easily attend and watch the games. There are mistakes and triumphs along the way, and it does better to relish the good as opposed to fixating on the bad. Arena Football One (AF1) is proof of this and has had a topsy turvy week as it kicked off its inaugural season.

The good news is that the opening game between SW Kansas and Nashville was incredibly entertaining and was delivered with high quality on EvergreenNOW, the league’s official streaming partner. The bad news is that two franchises, the Orlando Predators and Arizona Bandits, have pulled out of the league’s inaugural season.

The exits of Orlando and Arizona join a rollercoaster offseason of franchise activity that has seen Wilkes-Barre/Scranton pull out, while Stockton and Monterrey have delayed their admission into the league until 2026. And yet, despite all this turmoil that has flooded comment sections about the league, in its opening game the product felt like it was in a good place and headed in the right…