Tag: arena football league

Ja’Quain Blakely set for Nashville Kats’ debut

Former Vol defensive lineman Ja’Quain Blakely is set for his Nashville Kats’ debut.

The Arena Football League will return on Saturday after not fielding a season since 2019.

Nashville will also return to competition for a third stint in 2024. The Kats will play at Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee.

Former Vol defensive lineman Ja’Quain Blakely is on roster for the Kats in 2024.

Blakely played for the Vols from 2017-24. He appeared in 50 games, including 10 starts, at Tennessee, while recording 44 tackles, seven tackles for a loss, 3.5 sacks and three pass deflections.

The 6-foot-1, 270-pound defensive lineman went to Tennessee from Colquitt County High School in Norman Park, Georgia.

Nashville’s first game is slated for Saturday against Minnesota. Kickoff between the Kats and Myth is slated for 8:30 p.m. EDT at Nashville Municipal Auditorium.

The Arena Football League is returning in 2024 to these 16 cities

The Arena Football League is back. Is it coming to your town?

After a four-year hiatus, the Arena Football League is attempting a comeback, per Sports Illustrated.

The indoor football league will be heading to 16 cities across the United States starting April 2024, with stops ranging from Orlando, Florida, to Everett, Washington.

The football organization announced all locations where AFL teams will be stationed this week, and the league promised that more cities will be added to widen the competitive pool in the future.

The AFL has been on-and-off since 1987 and will restart next year under new ownership.

“The first edition of the AFL launched in 1987 and ran through 2008 before internal issues forced the league to cancel its ’09 season,” SI‘s Nick Selbe reported. “The league relaunched in ’10 but filed for bankruptcy after the ’19 season. New ownership took over and announced in February of this year that play would resume in ’24.”

Is your town about to welcome the AFL back for its 2024 relaunch?

You can see the full list of 16 cities below.

WATCH: AFL files for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, ceasing operations

The Arena Football League announced Wednesday that it is ceasing all operations and has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.

The Arena Football League announced Wednesday that it is ceasing all operations and has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.

The announcement comes after the AFL suspended all local operations in October.

The AFL was founded in 1987 and launched the careers of some well-known NFL names included Pro Football Hall of Famer Kurt Warner, former Washington Redskins head coach Jay Gruden and current Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy.

The league had dwindled down to a mere six teams during its 2019 season — Albany, Atlantic City, Baltimore, Columbus, Philadelphia, and Washington.

“We simply weren’t able to raise the capital necessary to grow the League, resolve the substantial legacy liabilities and make it financially viable,” league commissioner Randall Boe said in a statement. “We’re all disappointed that we couldn’t find a way to move forward, and we wanted to thank our fans, our players, coaches, everyone who loved Arena League Football.”

USA Today reports that the league was mostly hurt by a lawsuit filed by one of its insurance carriers.