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{{Short description|American seven-man gridiron football league}}
{{Infobox sports league
| title           = A7FL
| current_season  =
| logo            = A7FL Primary Logo.png
| pixels          = 275px
| caption         =
| formerly        =
| last_season     =
| upcoming_season =
| sport           = [[American football]]
| founded         = 2014
| replaced        =
| owner           =
| ceo             = Sener Korkusuz
| coo             =
| director        =
| president       = Ryan DePaul
| commissioner    =
| fame            =
| motto           = "The Game America Wants"<ref name="alt">{{cite news|last1=Engstrom|first1=Tim|title=League offers football without pads, helmets|url=http://www.albertleatribune.com/2014/08/league-offers-football-without-pads-helmets/|accessdate=August 5, 2014|work=Albert Lea Tribune|date=July 30, 2016}}</ref>
| inaugural       = 2015
| teams           = 22
| singles         =
| country         = {{USA}}
| venue           =
| confed          =
| folded          =
| champion        = Las Vegas Insomniacs (2nd title)
| champ_season    = 2024
| most_champs     =
| most successful club = Paterson U (3 titles)
| classification  = [[Semi-professional]]
| qualification   =
| tv              = [[DAZN]]<br>[[Stadium (sports network)]]<br>[[FITE TV]]
| sponsor         = [[Cricket Wireless]]
| related_comps   =
| founder         =
| levels          =
| promotion       =
| relegation      =
| domestic_cup    =
| website         = [https://www.a7fl.com/ A7FL.com]
| footnotes       =
}}
The '''American 7s Football League''' ('''A7FL''') is a [[Semi-professional sports|semi-professional]] [[Sports league|league]] in the United States which plays a seven-man version of [[gridiron football]] called American 7s Football. Launched in 2015, its games are played without [[football helmet]]s or other protective equipment.<ref name="thinkprogress">{{cite news|last1=Gibbs|first1=Lindsay|title=Can This New Football League Be The Savior The Sport Needs?|url=https://thinkprogress.org/can-this-new-football-league-be-the-savior-the-sport-needs-10800c1f022#.jhk4y15b4|accessdate=September 10, 2016|work=Think Progress|date=March 31, 2016}}</ref> The A7FL is the only organized level of competition in American 7s football.{{Citation needed|date=January 2023}}
League players are not paid during the season and most of them are primarily amateurs.<ref>{{cite web|title=A7FL Frequently Asked Questions|url=https://www.a7fl.com/faq/|work=A7FL|date=14 April 2024 }}</ref><ref name="SI">{{cite web|title=No Helmets, No Pads, Full-Contact Tackle Football: Meet the Men of the A7FL|url=https://www.si.com/nfl/2018/04/04/helmetless-tackle-football-no-pads-full-contact-a7fl|work=SI.com|date=4 April 2018 }}</ref> Instead cash prizes are awarded to division and national champs (divided among the roster of roughly 25 players).<ref>{{cite web|title='Professional backyard football': A7FL takes pay to play on the gridiron to next level|url=https://www.northjersey.com/story/sports/2021/07/16/a-7-fl-elevates-professional-backyard-football-crown-champ-nj/7990046002/|work=NorthJersey.com}}</ref> For the 2022 season the prize pool was $50,000.<ref>{{cite web|title=Why Has The American 7s Football League Succeeded While Other NFL Competitors Have Failed?|url=https://www.benzinga.com/general/sports/22/01/25012960/why-has-the-american-7s-football-league-succeeded-while-other-nfl-competitors-have-failed|work=Benzinga}}</ref>
==History==
Founded in 2014 with play commencing the following year, the A7FL plays a seven-game schedule running from March to May, with playoffs running from June to July.<ref name="forbes">{{cite news|last1=Lariviere|first1=David|title=Safety-First Football League To Launch Season Next Saturday|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidlariviere/2015/03/13/safety-first-football-league-to-launch-season-next-saturday/#44b4a673174b|accessdate=July 30, 2016|work=[[Forbes]]|date=March 13, 2015}}</ref> It can trace it history to a [[New York metropolitan area]] league called '''Town Beef''' that started in 2008 and played 11-on-11 full-contact football with no helmets or pads.<ref name="SI"/>
The league primarily attracts semi-professional football players seeking opportunities to stay in shape during spring.<ref>{{cite news|title=Football helmets are creating more problems than they solve|url=http://www.sportingnews.com/nfl/news/nfl-concussions-football-helmets-risk-taking-behavior-brain-injury-helmetless-tackling-technique-lawsuit/15srtbuzodfbk10tkmhxm8ayr7|accessdate=July 30, 2016|work=[[The Sporting News]]|date=May 28, 2015}}</ref>  In 2016, the league participated in a safety study led by the [[New Jersey Institute of Technology]].<ref name="FR">{{cite news|title=Foot Ricain met the CEO of American 7's Football League.|url=http://footricain.net/foot-ricain-met-the-ceo-of-american-7s-football-league/|accessdate=August 21, 2016|agency=Foot Ricain|date=May 11, 2016|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20161025174702/http://footricain.net/foot-ricain-met-the-ceo-of-american-7s-football-league/|archivedate=October 25, 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref>
In 2023, the league had its first former NFL starter sign with a team, that being cornerback [[Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie]], who signed with the Tampa Nightcrawlers.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-05-21 |title=Tampa Nightcrawlers |url=https://www.a7fl.com/team/tampa-nightcrawlers/ |access-date=2023-06-02 |website=A7FL |language=en-US}}</ref>
==Differences from other leagues==
A7FL players play without pads or [[football helmet|helmets]] as part of what the league describes as an effort to reduce the potential of [[head injury|head injuries]] resulting from helmet-to-helmet contact.<ref name="forbes"/> League games also do not include [[kickoff (gridiron football)|kickoffs]], [[field goal]]s, or [[punt (gridiron football)|punts]], and, instead of the kickoff, implement a unique version of [[special teams]] called a 3-on-1 throw off (three 'throwing' players and one receiver). Games are played on narrow fields of 37 yards' width (34&nbsp;[[meter (unit)|m]], between one set of [[hash marks]] and the furthest sideline away) to accommodate fewer players on the field on each team.<ref name="forbes"/><ref>{{cite news|title=Football league throws away helmets and pads in the name of safety|url=http://wqad.com/2015/03/25/football-league-throws-away-helmets-and-pads-in-the-name-of-safety/|accessdate=July 30, 2016|work=[[WQAD-TV]]|date=March 25, 2015}}</ref> A7FL games are played between two seven-man teams; teams are, additionally, required to cap their rosters at 35 active players.<ref name="handbook">{{cite web|url=https://www.a7fl.com/rules|title=A7FL Rules|last=|first=|date=|website=a7fl.com|publisher=A7FL|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160804123440/http://www.a7fl.com/owners/teamowners_final_072016.pdf|archivedate=August 4, 2016|accessdate=July 30, 2016}}</ref>
==Teams==
Teams that participated in the 2024 season.<ref>{{cite web |title=A7FL Standings |url=https://www.a7fl.com/standings/ |access-date=11 May 2023 |website=www.a7fl.com}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|+
|-
! colspan="2" |Eastern Conference
|-
!Division
! Team
|-
| rowspan="7" |Northeast
| East Orange Renegades
|-
| Rahway Shnow Tribe
|-
| Paterson U
|-
| Silk City Animals
|-
| Trenton BIC
|-
|Baltimore Watchmen
|-
|DC Buzz
|-
| rowspan="3" |Florida
|Tampa Nightcrawlers
|-
|O-Town Orange
|-
|Orlando Ghosts
|-
! colspan="2" |Western Conference
|-
!Division
!Team
|-
| rowspan="6" |Midwest
|Cin City Chaos
|-
|Covington Heist
|-
|Olentangy Volcanoes
|-
|QC Crush
|-
|Indianapolis Octane
|-
|Columbus Explorers
|-
| rowspan="6" |Nevada
|Las Vegas Insomniacs
|-
|Las Vegas Sickwidit
|-
|Vegas Force
|-
|Vegas Over the Top
|-
|Vegas Pit Bosses
|-
|Vegas Gold
|}
== Championship results ==
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!Season
!Date
! colspan="2" |Champions
! colspan="2" |Runners-Up
!Site
|-
|2015
|June 27, 2015
|Paterson U
|38
|Union City Chiefs
|6
|[[St. John Vianney High School (New Jersey)|St. John Vianney High School]]
|-
|2016
|June 24, 2016
|Trenton BIC
|32
|Union City Chiefs
|26
|[[St. John Vianney High School (New Jersey)|St. John Vianney High School]]
|-
|2017
|July 9, 2017
|Union City Chiefs
|28
|PA Immortalz
|26
|[[Palisades Credit Union Park]]
|-
|2018
|July 8, 2018
|Baltimore Gators
|28
|Baltimore Vikings
|14
|[[Baltimore|Baltimore, MD]]
|-
|2019
|July 14, 2019
|PA Immortalz
|25
|Paterson U
|19
|[[Sylvester Land Memorial Field]]
|-
|2020
|August 23, 2020
|Paterson U
|49
|Old Bridge Hawks
|7
|[[St. John Vianney High School (New Jersey)|St. John Vianney High School]]
|-
|2021
|July 18, 2021
|Paterson U
|47
|Trenton BIC
|41
|[[Asbury Park High School]]
|-
|2022
|July 10, 2022
|Trenton BIC
|32
|Paterson U
|30
|[[Asbury Park High School]]
|-
|2023
|July 23, 2023
|Las Vegas Insomniacs
|50
|Tampa Nightcrawlers
|46
|Anderson Auto Group Fieldhouse
|-
|2024
|July 21, 2024
|Las Vegas Insomniacs
|31
|Trenton BIC
|30
|[[Asbury Park High School]]
|}
==Media coverage==
[[Eleven Sports Network]] acquired the exclusive United States and international rights to broadcast the A7FL 2017 Championship on July 9, 2017, played at [[Palisades Credit Union Park]]. Through Eleven Sports Network's distribution with [[DirecTV]], [[Verizon FiOS]], and [[AT&T uVerse]] the A7FL 2017 Championship was to be accessible by over 70 million homes worldwide.<ref name="2017pressrelease">{{cite press release|title=A7FL 2017 Championship Announced|url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/a7fl-2017-championship-announced-300476429.html|website=prnewswire.com|publisher=A7FL|accessdate=June 20, 2017}}</ref> In 2018, [[Eleven Sports Network]] acquired the exclusive United States and international rights to broadcast a 21-game package including the playoffs and championship, and in 2019, the non-exclusive U.S. and international rights to the playoffs and championship.
In 2019, [[Twitch (service)|Twitch]] acquired the exclusive United States and international rights to a 21-game package of the season including the playoffs and championship. In 2020, A7FL again partnered with Eleven Sports Network for the exclusive United States and international rights of the season, including the playoffs and championship.  For 2021, [[FITE TV]] acquired the United States and international rights to the A7FL's season including the playoffs and championship. Starting in 2022, select Games of the Week -- including the playoffs and championship - were broadcast on [[Stadium (sports network)]], YouTube, [[DAZN]], and A7FL.tv.
==Organization==
The CEO of the A7FL is Sener Korkusuz<ref name="tmz"/> and its president is Ryan DePaul.<ref name="forbes"/>
In 2019, [[Ultimate Fighting Championship|UFC]] co-founder [[David Isaacs (UFC Cofounder)|David Isaacs]] joined the A7FL to serve as chairman of the advisory board. Isaacs said, "Removing equipment to make any sport safer seems counterintuitive and we faced similar issues when we launched the UFC and created the sport of [[mixed martial arts]]. With the A7FL, football can be safer but still thrilling full-contact competition. I can't wait to get started."
Athletes playing in the A7FL are required to sign a player injury waiver and be 18 years of age or older.<ref name="tmz">{{cite news|title=A7FL Tackle Football League|url=http://www.tmz.com/2016/08/16/a7fl-football-nfl/|accessdate=August 21, 2016|work=[[TMZ]]|date=August 16, 2016}}</ref>
Once expanded to 32 teams, the league will be structured around eight groups divided into two conferences &ndash; the east and west.  The teams play each other twice &ndash; in the regional stages during the regular season &ndash; with the top two teams going forward to a divisional championship.  The winners of the divisional championships will play each other to decide the winner of the championship.<ref name="handbook"/>
==See also==
* [[Rugby sevens]]
==References==
{{reflist|30em}}
{{American football in the United States}}
{{Professional American football leagues}}
[[Category:American football leagues in the United States]]
[[Category:Sports leagues established in 2015]]
[[Category:2015 establishments in the United States]]