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Arena Football Lingering

Arena Football League

The AFL2, which is a peg below the Arena Football League (AFL), has been playing out its 2009 season while the AFL scrapped its season due to financial issues.  Just last week, the AFL2 had a big announcement that its championship game will be held at the Las Vegas Orleans Arena.  The AFL2 is busy publishing press releases about securing deals, and the AFL is having its name dragged in the mud.  Things are not looking so good for the league that is supposed to be one step up (in talent and payment) from the AFL2.

At the end of May, the AFL seemed to be situated nicely.  Reports that Lynn Swann was behind a Pittsburgh expansion team and that the league expected growth over the next five years (to 24 total teams) seemed very promising for the AFL.  When I read this sentence in ProFootballTalk.com, I no longer felt all that confident:

[Chicago] Rush owner Alan Levin says time has already run out for the league to return next season because there are no players allocated.  Most coaching staffs, although not all, have disbanded.

The AFL already scrapped the 2009 season.  If it does not return for 2010, then I find it hard to believe that it will ever come back in its 2008 form.  This may aid the UFL’s growth, but will continue to leave many football players who wish to play professional ball, out of a job in 2010 and beyond.

By Darren Heitner

Darren Adam Heitner, Esq., is a preeminent sports attorney and the founder of Heitner Legal, P.L.L.C., a Fort Lauderdale-based law firm specializing in sports law, contract negotiations, intellectual property, and arbitration. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2010 and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, magna cum laude, from the University of Florida in 2007, where he was named Valedictorian of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Admitted to practice in the state bars of Florida, New York, and the District of Columbia, as well as multiple federal courts, Darren also serves as a certified arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association.

As an adjunct professor, Darren imparts his expertise through teaching Sports Law at the University of Florida Levin College of Law and Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) at the University of Miami School of Law in the Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law LL.M. program. His scholarly contributions include authoring several books published by the American Bar Association, such as How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know, and numerous articles in prominent publications like Forbes, Inc. Magazine, and Above the Law. His thought leadership in NIL has earned him recognition as one of the foremost experts by The Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY, and On3, and he has been lauded as a “power player in NIL deals” by Action Network and a “top sports trademark attorney” by Sportico.

Darren’s passion for sports law led him to establish Sports Agent Blog on December 31, 2005, initially titled “I Want To Be A Sports Agent.” The platform, created as a New Year’s resolution, has grown into a cornerstone of the sports agency community, offering in-depth analysis of industry trends, legal disputes, and agent-player dynamics. His commitment to the field is further evidenced by his representation of numerous athletes and sports agents, as well as his prior role as an Adjunct Professor at Indiana University Bloomington, where he developed and taught a course on Sport Agency Management from 2011 to 2014.

Darren’s contributions have been recognized with prestigious honors, including the University of Florida’s 40 Under 40 Award, the University of Florida Levin College of Law’s Outstanding Young Alumnus Award, and designation as the best lawyer in Fort Lauderdale by Fort Lauderdale Magazine. He remains an active voice in the sports law community, sharing insights through his weekly NIL newsletter and his X posts, engaging a broad audience on legal developments in sports.