In a shocking development, the Iowa Rampage, a team in the Arena Football League (AFL), has announced that it will be discontinuing operations. This news has sent ripples through the league and casts doubt on the success of its reboot. The team owners, Trevor Burdett and Mike Taliaferro, cited a lack of support from AFL Commissioner Lee Hutton and the league as a whole as the reason for their decision.
In their press release on Thursday, the owners accused the AFL of failing to fulfill promises made to them, including delayed delivery of football equipment, jerseys, and camp gear. They also blamed the NFL Network for backing out of televising games, which they say had a significant impact on the team’s operations. Despite expressing their disappointment in these developments, they felt they had no other choice but to discontinue operations immediately due to the lack of promised support from the league.
The Rampage’s departure from the AFL leaves the league with 15 franchises. The future of the Arena Football League remains uncertain as this event highlights potential challenges facing its revival efforts. The owners hope that their decision will serve as a wake-up call for those involved in rebooting the league and encourage them to work harder to support its success.