The Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA), formerly the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL), is a professional[1][2]ultimate disc league that consists of 24 teams divided between the South, Central, East, and West divisions. The UFA is located in North America. Each UFA season has 12 regular season games which run from April to July. Following the conclusion of the regular season, the top three teams from every division advance to the playoffs, a single elimination tournament that culminates in a final four style showcase known as the UFA Championship Weekend,[3] which is contested in late August over two days.
The UFA was founded in 2012 as the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL),[4] before renaming itself the Ultimate Frisbee Association for the 2024 season.[5]
The New York Empire hold the most championships with 3 titles. The reigning league champions are the Minnesota Wind Chill, who defeated the Carolina Flyers by a score of 17-16 in the 2024 UFA Championship Game.
History
Founding and history
The UFA was founded by Josh Moore in 2012 as the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL).[4]
Inaugural season
The first AUDL game was won by the Connecticut Constitution on April 14, 2012, over the Rhode Island Rampage by a score of 29 to 23, and the first goal was scored by Brent Anderson of the Constitution.[6][failed verification] The first championship was held on August 11, 2012, and was won by the Philadelphia Spinners by a score of 29 to 22 over the Indianapolis AlleyCats.
In the first season, the league consisted of eight teams broken into the Eastern and Western conferences. Jonathan "Goose" Helton of the AlleyCats was named league MVP for the inaugural season. Helton, alongside Evan Boucher, Cameron Brock, Rob Dulabon, Dave Hochholter, John Korber, and Jake Rainwater were named to the first All-AUDL Team.[7]
2012 lawsuit
In May 2012, the AUDL announced its plans for expansion for the following season, including franchises in New Jersey, New York, and Boston. Owners of the Connecticut Constitution and Rhode Island Rampage contended that the Boston and New York franchises impinged upon their Territory Licensing Agreements, which specified a non-compete radius of 100 miles. Separately, the league compensated the Philadelphia Spinners for the encroachment of the New Jersey and New York franchises. Negotiations between the Constitution, the Rampage, and the league reached an impasse in early June and the franchises' owners threatened legal action. The league preemptively sued the owners on June 17. As negotiations wore on, the league (at least twice) offered various settlements to the owners of the Constitution and the Rampage, but those offers were rejected. On July 5, the Constitution suspended team operations due to legal fees, missing two games. The league then fined the team the maximum fine of $10,000 per game, which Constitution owner Bryan Ricci called "severe and excessive" and refused to pay. Both the Constitution and Rampage had games cancelled near the end of the season.[8] The Constitution would have earned a playoff berth but were disqualified due to their unpaid fines and the Rampage advanced in their place, losing to the Philadelphia Spinners in the Division final.
In December 2012, the league and team owners reached a settlement. Details of the settlement are unknown due to a non-disclosure agreement.[9] Neither the Rampage nor the Connecticut Constitution returned to the AUDL in 2013.
In 2014, the league expanded to 17 teams, including the introduction of the West Division.[12] The league also reached a multi-year broadcasting deal with ESPN3 that covered 14 regular season games, a playoff game, and the Championship Weekend.[13]
In 2015, the league expanded to 25 teams. The new expansion teams consisted of the Pittsburgh Thunderbirds, Ottawa Outlaws, Los Angeles Aviators, San Diego Growlers, Jacksonville Cannons, Nashville NightWatch, Raleigh Flyers, Atlanta Hustle, and Charlotte Express. In March 2015, the Salt Lake Lions announced that they would be suspending operations for the entire 2015 season; leaving the West Conference with only 6 teams. In October 2015, the AUDL announced that the Lions franchise had been bought back by the league, making that hiatus permanent. In the same announcement, the league welcomed the Austin Sol and Dallas Roughnecks to the South Division.[14] Shortly thereafter, the AUDL announced that the Rochester Dragons franchise was also being contracted and that the league was again hoping to start a franchise in the Boston area.[15]
Also in 2015, the Raleigh Flyers of the AUDL signed the first ever female professional ultimate player, Jessi Jones, to play in their game against the Nashville Nightwatch. Jones, who was a team USA U-23 player in 2013, was signed as part of "Women's Ultimate Day".[16][17]
In September 2016, the Cincinnati Revolution and the Charlotte Express announced they would be ceasing operations.[18]
In the 2017 season, Jesse Shofner was selected to the roster for the Nashville Nightwatch, which made her the first female player to make a full season AUDL roster.[17] Shofner subsequently scored two goals in the Nightwatch's first game of the 2017 season, making her the first woman to do so in any AUDL game.[19]
Before the 2018 season, the Vancouver Riptide announced they would be leaving Vancouver.
Before the 2019 season, the Nashville Nightwatch and the San Francisco FlameThrowers announced they would be ceasing operations.
On December 4, 2019, the league announced that a new Boston franchise (later named the Boston Glory) would join the league for the 2020 season, its first expansion since 2016.[20] That same day, the league announced a divisional realignment plan that saw the Midwest renamed the Central, the dissolution of the South into a combo South-East Atlantic Division, and the two Texas teams moving to the West division, among other moves.[21]
Due to COVID-related travel restrictions, in the 2021 season the three Canadian teams played in an independent series, the Canada Cup. The 19 U.S. teams competed in three divisions: Atlantic, Central, and West. The Boston Glory and the New York Empire moved from the East Division, which did not exist in 2021, to the Atlantic Division.[23]
In December 2021, the league announced three new franchises, the Colorado Summit, Salt Lake Shred, and Portland Nitro.[24][25] With the addition of these teams the divisions were realigned, with a new South division in place of the Atlantic division.[26] Also in December 2021, the Dallas Roughnecks announced that they were rebranding as the Dallas Legion.[27] In February 2022, the San Jose Spiders announced a move to nearby Oakland.[28]
After the 2022 season, the league announced the addition of the Houston Havoc, and the departure of the Tampa Bay Cannons and Ottawa Outlaws.[29][30]
After the 2024 season, the Portland Nitro changed their name to the Oregon Steel.[31]
2024 rebranding
On January 17, 2024 the league announced it was rebranding the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA). The league partnered with Sport Dimension Inc. (SDI), owner of the Wham-O brand family which includes the Frisbee trademark to license the name for use across the league. Multiple new logos were designed as part of the league's new brand identity. In 2024 the UFA announced it would be streaming the "Super Series", top weekly games for free, live on YouTube. The season culminated with the 13th Championship Weekend, August 23–24, at Zions Bank Stadium in Salt Lake City, Utah.
The UFA features a number of rule changes from the traditional set of rules laid out and established by USA Ultimate (USAU) and the WFDF.
The field area is expanded to 53+1⁄3 yards wide and 80 yards long with 20-yard end zones (the same size as an American football field, but with the end zones taking up twice as much of the field as in American football). Games are timed with four-quarters of 12 minutes each, including a 15-minute halftime. If the score is tied, a five-minute overtime period is played. If the score remains tied after overtime, a second overtime is played in which the first team to score wins.
Notable changes from the USAU format include the use of referees, a drop in the stall count from 10 seconds to 7, a ten-yard penalty for travelling when catching the disc, no prohibition of double-teams, and a yardage penalty for travelling when throwing the disc.[32] There are also other infractions, such as too much physicality, that result in 10- or 20-yard penalties depending on the severity of the infraction. While different from the USAU and WFDF rules, many of these changes were also seen in the MLU.
Teams
The UFA consists of 24 teams divided into four divisions. During the regular season, each team is allowed an unlimited number of players on its roster; only 20 of these may be active/rostered (eligible to play) on game days.[33]
Every UFA team is based in North America.
The 24 teams are organized into four geographic divisions with a varying number of teams in each.
The Philadelphia Spinners were a professional ultimate team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They were founded in 2012 by Katrel Kelly and David Fitzgerald as a team in the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL), but then moved to Major League Ultimate (MLU) in 2013. They played in the MLU until the league was suspended in 2016. The team played in various stadiums throughout the Greater Philadelphia region.
The Detroit Mechanix are an American professional ultimate frisbee team based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The Mechanix compete in the formerly titled American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL), now known as the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA) as a member team of the league's Central Division. The Mechanix began play in 2012 as one of the eight charter teams of the AUDL. The team is owned by Brent Steepe and was founded in 2010.
Major League Ultimate (MLU) was a North American semi-professional Ultimate league from 2013 to 2016. It was composed of eight member teams, seven in the United States and one in Canada. It was formed in 2012, and began its inaugural season in April 2013.
The New York Empire is an ultimate team in the Ultimate Frisbee Association based in New York City. The team is in the East Division of the league, and won its first title in 2019, its second in 2022 and its third title in 2023. The Empire played its first season in 2013.
The Cincinnati Revolution were a professional ultimate disc team based in Cincinnati, Ohio who competed in the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL), now known as the Ultimate Frisbee Association, from 2012 to 2016. The Revolution played in the AUDL's Western Division in 2012 and in the Midwestern/Midwest Division from 2013 until their dissolution in 2016. They played their home games as the Bluegrass Revolution in 2012 at Henry Clay High School's Jack Bell Stadium in Lexington, Kentucky, and as the Cincinnati Revolution from 2013 to 2016 at the University of Cincinnati's Sheakley Athletics Center.
The Carolina Flyers, formerly the Raleigh Flyers, are a professional ultimate team from Durham, North Carolina playing in the South Division of the Ultimate Frisbee Association. The team was founded in 2015. From 2015 through 2018, the Flyers played most of their home games at Crusader Stadium on the campus of Cardinal Gibbons High School in Raleigh, with some home games at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary. In 2019, the team has played home games at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, and other venues. After the 2020 AUDL season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the team moved their home games to Durham County Stadium beginning in 2021. In 2022, the team announced that it was changing its name to the Carolina Flyers. The team had won the national title once in 2021.
The Madison Radicals are a semi-professional ultimate team that competes in the Central Division of the Ultimate Frisbee Association. The Radicals play their home games at Breese Stevens Field in downtown Madison. Since the team's inception in 2013, they have won five regular season divisional titles in eight seasons. After losing in the AUDL championship games in 2013 and 2015, the Radicals claimed its first championship in 2018. Madison also hosted AUDL Championship Weekends in 2016, 2018 and 2022, winning the championship in 2018.
The Minnesota Wind Chill are a professional ultimate team based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Wind Chill are a member of the Central Division of the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA). It is one of two teams in the UFA to represent a state rather than a specific city. They won their first UFA Championship in 2024, beating the Carolina Flyers 17-16.
The Oakland Spiders are a professional Ultimate Frisbee team based in Oakland, California. The Spiders are members of the West Division of the Ultimate Frisbee Association. The team was founded as the San Jose Spiders in 2014 when the league expanded to the West Coast, and played under that name until moving to Oakland in 2022. The Spiders won the National Championship in their first season and became the first team in the league's history to win consecutive titles when they defeated the Madison Radicals in the 2015 championship game.
The DC Breeze is an open professional ultimate team based in the District of Columbia, competing in the East Division of the American Ultimate Disc League. The team first played in the 2013 season. The Breeze play at Carlini Field.
The Atlanta Hustle is a professional ultimate frisbee franchise based out of Atlanta, Georgia, United States. They compete as one of 25 teams in the Ultimate Frisbee Association, playing in the league's South Division.
The Tampa Bay Cannons were a professional ultimate team in the South Division of the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL) based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Cannons were active from 2015 to 2022.
The Nashville NightWatch were a professional ultimate team from Nashville, Tennessee playing in the South Division of the American Ultimate Disc League. The team was founded in 2015 and folded after the 2018 season.
The Dallas Legion, formerly the Dallas Roughnecks, are a professional ultimate team that competes in the South Division of the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA). Founded in 2015, the team played their first year in the 2016 AUDL season, wherein they won the championship title.
The Los Angeles Aviators are a professional Ultimate team that competes in the West Division of the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL). The Aviators played their first season in 2015.
The San Diego Growlers are a professional ultimate team based in San Diego, California, that competes in the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA). The team plays its home games at Mission Bay High School. The Growlers began play in the 2015 season.
The Premier Ultimate League (PUL) is a professional women's ultimate league that formed in 2019. The mission of the PUL is "to achieve equity in the sport of ultimate by increasing accessibility to the sport for, and visibility of women, transgender, intersex, non-binary, genderqueer, and genderfluid people through high-quality competition, leadership experiences, and community partnerships". The league strives for gender, racial, and economic diversity in the sport of ultimate frisbee. PUL players are paid $40 per league game.
The Boston Glory is a professional ultimate team that plays in the East Division of the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA). The team was announced on December 4, 2019, and played its first season in 2021 owing to the Covid-related cancellation of the UFA 2020 season.
The Salt Lake Shred are a professional ultimate disc team based in Salt Lake City, Utah who compete in the Ultimate Frisbee Association's (UFA) West Division. They play their home games at Zions Bank Stadium, a soccer stadium in Herriman, Utah.
The Colorado Summit are a professional ultimate disc team based in Golden, Colorado who compete in the Ultimate Frisbee Association's (UFA) West Division. They play their home games at the Colorado School of Mines' Marv Kay Stadium.
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