5 sports leagues that vanished
Two Alliance of American Football teams line up before a snap. (Photo by Mary Holt/Icon Sportswire)
March 16th, 2020
Sports leagues across the world have suspended or canceled their seasons, as the novel coronavirus COVID-19 infects every facet of life as we all know it. As the effects of this pandemic spread, it has become increasingly apparent commissioners have made the right decisions for the well being of all involved.
As sports go dark and we all sit in our homes waiting for improved conditions, let’s take a look at five leagues that shuttered and never turned the lights back on.
Blue Ridge League
This minor league baseball league existed from 1915-1918, and then from 1918-1920. The league was a small band of teams from West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Maryland and was classified as the lowest of minor-league divisions in professional baseball.
The league had to cancel its 1919 season because of a flu pandemic, and successfully rebooted the next year. It went on to run operations for the next 10 years.
Arena Football League
The league that gave us short fields, lots of action, and zero weather conditions to worry about finally ended its fun run in 2019.
The league was founded in 1986 and most notably gave us Kurt Warner, the former quarterback of the Des Moines Barnstormers. After he had success with the St Louis Rams and led the “Greatest Show on Turf,” Warner credited part of his success to the action he experienced within the Arena League.
The league had a notable number of dual-threat quarterbacks find success and offered an exciting alternative to traditional NFL play.
Alliance of American Football
In 2018 a number of former NFL executives and coaches attempted to start a league that could capitalize on football frenzy following the NFL’s Super Bowl. Started by Charlie Ebersol, son of former NBC executive and XFL co-founder Dick Ebersol, the AAF attempted to offer high-quality play in the image of the NFL product mainstream America is accustomed to.
While the league successfully managed to recruit well-recognized names both for the sidelines and the field, it had to close its doors just eight weeks into its inaugural season, as teams were unable to pay their players and fans failed to support the product.
USFL
From 1983-1986, the NFL faced a competitor to its standing as the premier and exclusive league for quality football. The USFL had quality play and signed three straight Heisman trophy winners, but when it attempted to take the NFL, at the urging of Donald Trump, by filing antitrust lawsuits and playing its games in the fall, it was awarded only $3 and proved unable to take on the established NFL.
It ended up losing $163 million dollars.
📺 Watch the USFL on ESPN and win a Corvette! #USFL pic.twitter.com/8GHUx0lb3t
— 80s Football Cards 🏈 🙌 (@80sFootballCard) February 25, 2020
ABA
The American Basketball Association is the most successful league that no longer exists. It completed a merger with the National Basketball Association and brought many of its pieces, players, and rules.
While teams like the Nets, Nuggets, Pacers, and Spurs all came from the ABA, the most significant contribution the league added to the game was the three-point line. As three-point shooting continues to proliferate across today’s NBA, the ABA’s creative rule addition is one that forever defines its legacy and cements its place as a foundational contributor to the game.