Arena Football League ceases operations

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

"We're all disappointed that we couldn't find a way forward and we wanted to thank our fans, our players, coaches, everyone who loved the Arena Football League," commissioner Randall Boe said in a statement.

"We all love the game and tried very hard to make it successful, but we simply weren't able to raise the capital necessary to grow the league, resolve the substantial legacy liabilities and make it financially viable."

A number of NFLers formerly starred in the arena league, including Pro Football Hall of Famer Kurt Warner, former Washington Redskins head coach Jay Gruden, and current Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy.

Former team owners included Jon Bon Jovi and Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley of KISS.

The league featured just six teams in the 2019 season, as the Albany Empire won ArenaBowl XXXII in August.

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