Arena Football: Times Are Changing for the Better?

Well, I watched the Arena Football championship last weekend. Yeah, it was a good game, but I just wish Arena Football went back to the way it was. The AFL has gotten too big! I enjoyed it more when it was much simpler. I enjoyed it when they weren't trying to make it the next "Monday Night Football." Yes, some of you may like watching football on Monday nights, but this was very upsetting to a lot of us hardcore AFL fans. I live in the Orlando area and have been a season ticket holder for the Orlando Predators for the past six seasons.

One of the main reasons I enjoyed being a season ticket holder is that I knew the majority of the games were going to be on a Friday or Saturday night. It's great going to a game on a weekend night and not having to worry about getting up for work the next morning. But now that they've added Monday night games, us AFL ticket holders are being deprived of one or two "fun" nights per season. Who wants to go to a game and then have to get up at the crack of dawn the next morning for work? Heck, some of us can't get out of work in time to make it to kickoff on Monday night games! Not only that, but it can interfere with other plans, too. I was in a softball league that played on Monday nights, so when Orlando played its first Monday night game at home, I had to skip the football game! I couldn't skip the softball game . . . I was one of the captains. This whole Monday night thing really put a cramp in my style!

Now, lets get back to the championship game. This really bothers me. Why play the game at a neutral site? In years past, they have played the championship games at Las Vegas and New Orleans. The most recent was played in New Orleans. Now come on, how many people in New Orleans really care about the San Jose Sharks or Philadelphia Soul? The only people at that game that cared were the hardcore Philly fans that mooched free bus and plane tickets off of the owner, Bon Jovi! Yes, the NFL plays the Super Bowl at neutral sites, but that's a whole different story. The NFL can do that because every team has fans in every state, so it's more accepted. If the Dallas Cowboys play against the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl in a place like Miami or Los Angeles, then you will still have plenty of hardcore fans representing both teams in that area.

That's not the case with Arena Football. Most AFL teams don't have too many hardcore fans located outside their state. Seriously, how many hardcore Orlando Predators fan do you think are in California or Texas? I can't imagine there are too many! Therefore, majority of the people going to that game won't even care about the outcome. They are just going for something to do, or perhaps they are simply going to have the chance to be seen on TV! Yes, I know the AFL claims to be helping out Katrina victims by playing their championship in New Orleans, but come on, there are other ways to help out that city. AFL teams are now worth approximately $20 million per team, so why not just simply make some friendly donations to the city and pat yourself on the back? You don't need to bring the game to them. Other than the New Orleans Voo Doo fans, I would guess most of the people there could care less about that game, anyways!

So I say bring the championship back to the fans! Bring it back to the fans who have loved this game before all the hype. Bring it back to the people who have been buying season tickets for years and years. Lets do it like we used to. Bring the championship game to the team with the better record! If you go 15-1 during the regular season, and make your way to the championship, then by golly, you deserve to play the championship game at home! The team deserves it and the FANS deserve it!