--- slug: afl title: AFL depth_tier: league side: UNIVERSAL category: Leagues source_id: "LGE-0002" created: 2026-05-12 updated: 2026-05-12 canonical: https://learningfootball.xyz/leagues/afl aliases: - American Football League - the AFL - AFL football --- # AFL ## Short Definition The American Football League (1960–1969)—the rival league that merged with the NFL in 1970, founding ten franchises still active in the NFL today. ## Definition The American Football League was a professional football organization that operated from 1960 to 1969, founded by Lamar Hunt after the NFL rejected his application for an expansion franchise. The AFL began with eight franchises—the Boston Patriots, Buffalo Bills, Dallas Texans, Denver Broncos, Houston Oilers, Los Angeles Chargers, New York Titans, and Oakland Raiders—and grew to ten teams before merging with the NFL effective with the 1970 season. The AFL's decade-long competition with the NFL forced changes that shaped professional football permanently. Bidding wars for college talent raised player salaries across both leagues and established the market dynamics that led to the NFLPA's formation and eventual collective bargaining. The AFL introduced the two-point conversion, put players' names on jerseys, and pursued a more pass-oriented, entertainment-focused style of play than the run-heavy NFL of the era. The AFL's competitive legitimacy was definitively established in Super Bowl III, when the New York Jets—led by Joe Namath's famous guarantee—defeated the heavily favored Baltimore Colts 16-7, proving AFL teams could beat NFL teams at the sport's highest level. The Kansas City Chiefs' victory in Super Bowl IV the following year, just before the merger took effect, confirmed the result was not an anomaly. The AFL-NFL merger of 1970 brought all ten AFL franchises into a restructured NFL, forming the AFC from the AFL teams plus three NFL franchises (the Baltimore Colts, Cleveland Browns, and Pittsburgh Steelers) that agreed to switch conferences. The AFL's legacy is the ten franchises now in the AFC that trace their founding to the rival league. ## Example "Without the AFL, there's no salary competition, no players' union with real leverage, no Joe Namath guarantee. The AFL didn't just compete with the NFL—it forced the NFL to become a better league." ## Common Confusion The AFL is not the same as the Arena Football League—both used the AFL abbreviation but refer to entirely different organizations from different eras. The American Football League that competed with the NFL (1960–1969) is the historically significant one; the Arena Football League was an indoor football variant founded in 1987. Context determines which AFL is being referenced. ## Related - nfl - nflpa - cba - super-bowl-sunday - kansas-city-chiefs - buffalo-bills - new-york-jets --- Source: https://learningfootball.xyz/leagues/afl