IFL vs. CIFL (PART 1)

Rockford, IL - Last Saturday night marked a historical and innovative night for the Ironman Football League as it formed a team of 30 great players to take on the Rock River Raptors of the CIFL for an exhibition game. This marks the first time in a long time that a semi-pro football league played an organized game against a professional football team.

The Rock River Raptors is an arena team that plays seven-man football and is a member of the Continental Indoor Football League (CIFL). The CIFL is a professional developmental indoor football league designed to deliver fast-paced, action-packed football to markets where it can be enjoyed by fans that would otherwise not have a professional indoor football team. They are a fan-friendly league, committed to making the fan experience second-to-none.

The CIFL and the Rock River Raptors were impressed with the Ironman Football League’s growth and advancement in maintaining a professionally minded league that offers quality stadium venues and high competition. So, when the opportunity came for the two organizations to team up and put together an exhibition game, both sides readily agreed. This was just another step in the right direction for the IFL as it continually proves to be innovatively ahead of its competition.

The exhibition game was a success for both organizations regardless of the score, as the game was a hard-hitting affair that later had several individuals from the Raptors organization saying the IFL team played very physical. Both the Rock River Raptors and the Ironman Football League will begin talks soon for another game to be played next year, and both plan to make it a bigger event.

The IFL’s team ended up losing the game partly because it was a huge difference playing seven man football on a fifty yard field, but it also gained the respect of the Raptors and the CIFL. Despite the strange setting, the talent and resilience of the Ironman Football League shined through as several of its players were asked by the Raptors to try out for the team next season. Man for man, the IFL players could hang with anybody, but playing a strange seven man game and a crafty veteran team who knew all the tricks was too much to overcome. All in all, the game was a good one that had fans on both sides standing and cheering.