The USAFL National Championships is a tournament for Australian rules football in the United States.
Since 1997, the National Championships have been a large event featuring teams from the United States and Canada in four men's divisions and two women's divisions. The competition is organized and run by the United States Australian Football League.
History The first championships were held in Cincinnati in 1997, and they were won by the host Cincinnati Dockers. The Queen City would host the first three Nationals, with the 1998 edition welcoming 10 teams. The 2017 edition saw the largest turnout in the history of the carnival; 53 teams representing 42 clubs across North America took part, including a record 13 women's teams representing 27 USAFL and AFL Canada clubs.
The Denver Bulldogs have been the most successful club at Nationals, winning Men's Division 1 eight times, Women's Division 1 six times, and Men's Division 4 once. The Austin Crows have won the second most titles, picking up their fifth Men's D1 crown in 2021. The New York Magpies, San Diego Lions and Boston Demons are the only other multiple Men's D1 winners, each having won twice.
Canadian clubs were first invited to the USAFL Championships in 2006. The first Canadian champions were the Vancouver Cougars and Calgary Kookaburras in 2008. The Calgary Kangaroos have won four Division 2 premierships while the AFL Quebec Saints have won two.
In 2005, the first USAFL Women's championships were held and were won by the Atlanta Lady Kookaburras. The Lady Kookas took home the first three premierships until 2008, when their 19-game winning streak came to an end at the hands of the Calgary Kookaburras. The Denver Lady Bulldogs then won six consecutive titles from 2010 to 2015, winning 20 consecutive games in the process until losing to the Minnesota Freeze. Their string of premierships ended at the hands of the San Francisco Iron Maidens, who have since gone on to claim seven-in-a-row of their own from 2016 to 2023.
Format
The USAFL tournament seeding committee sets the divisions and seeding of all teams at least two weeks prior to the tournament. Teams are placed in divisions based on season performance, regional championships performance, previous Nationals’ performance, and team player availability. Teams are then seeded within each division, with teams that are geographically close together usually separated by pool to avoid matchups during the season repeating in the group stage. Clubs that aren't able to field full sides are combined with others to ensure that everyone is able to play.
The Men's Division 2 was created for the 1999 tournament, and has been used since 2001. Men's Division 3 was introduced in 2002, and Division 4 was added in 2007. A standalone reserves division was used in 2017, 2018, and 2021. A second women's division was created to accommodate combined teams in 2015, though the women's competition reverted to one division in 2021 due to reduced numbers as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Matches at Nationals are 40 minutes long, which is half the length of a typical full Australian football match. Usually, matches are played as two, twenty-minute halves with no time on. For the 2021 tournament this was changed to four, ten-minute quarters to allow for restrictions surrounding water runners as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Finals matches that are tied after forty minutes of play are decided by a five-minute extra time period, followed by golden point rules if the match is still tied.
Each team is guaranteed three games on the weekend, usually two on Saturday and one on Sunday. Each division's Grand Final is played on Sunday afternoon. The Men's Division 1 Grand Final is usually the final game played on the weekend; in 2025, however, the Women's Grand Final was the last to be played, in celebration of the 20th Anniversary of the women's division at Nationals.
The top three men's divisions and women's Division 1 are played as 18-a-side. All teams in Divisions One and men's Division Two must be single entity squads; they may not combine with other teams. Men's Division Three is played as 16-a-side if both teams agree. Division Four is played 14-a-side or 16-a-side, and women's Division two is played 14- or 16-a-side. As of 2017, in all divisions each team is permitted to dress a maximum of 24 players.
All Divisions are subject to the "50-50 Rule", which requires at least half of the players on the field at any one time to be "nationals" of the country that their team represents. Players of other origin are considered "non-nationals." Prior to 2009, the players were designated "Australian" and "non-Australian", with at least half of the players on the field needing to be "non-Australian."
In addition to premiership medals, awards are also given to outstanding players in each division. The Paul Roos Medal, named after the former AFL player and coach and former US Revolution coach, is awarded to each division's Best and Fairest. The Coopers Medal goes to the most consistent player in each division, while the Geoff Cann Medal goes to each of the Grand Final MVP's. The umpires of the Grand Final in each division are each awarded the Hayden Kennedy medal.
Locations The USAFL had previously attempted to keep Nationals in the Midwestern part of the United States in order to keep travel costs down for teams on the East and West coasts, and for all teams to be able to bring as many players as they can. At the league's 2014 annual general meeting, USAFL president Denis Ryan stated that he wanted to have the three regions, East, Central, and West, alternate hosting duties.
The 2020 Nationals tournament, originally scheduled for Ontario, California the weekend of October 10–11, was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Ontario would later host the 2022 Nationals.
+ USAFL Nationals host venues Year Date Host city Venue2026October 16-17Sarasota-Bradenton Metroplitan AreaPremier Sports Campus2025October 18-19Tucson, ArizonaKino Sports Complex 2024October 11-12Austin, TexasOnion Creek Sports Park 2023 October 14-15 Sarasota/Bradenton, Florida Premier Sports Campus. Lakewood Ranch 2022 October 11-12 Ontario, California2022 USAFL Nationals Silverlakes Sports Park, Norco 2021 October 16-17 Austin, Texas Onion Creek Sports Park 2020 Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic 2019 October 12-13 Sarasota/Bradenton, Florida Premier Sports Campus. Lakewood Ranch 2018 October 13-14 Racine, Wisconsin Soccer Complex of Racine, Franksville 2017 October 21-22 San Diego, California Surf Cup Sports Park, Del Mar 2016 October 15-16 Sarasota/Bradenton, Florida Premier Sports Campus. Lakewood Ranch 2015 October 17-18 Austin, Texas Onion Creek Sports Park 2014 October 11-12 Dublin, Ohio Daree Fields 2013 October 19-20 Austin, Texas Onion Creek Sports Park 2012 October 13-14 Mason, Ohio Heritage Oak Park 2011 October 7-8 Austin, Texas Onion Creek Sports Park 2010 October 10-11 Louisville, Kentucky Champions Park 2009 October 9-10 Mason, Ohio Heritage Oak Park 2008 October 11-12 Colorado Springs, Colorado United States Air Force Academy 2007 October 13-14 Louisville, Kentucky Champions Park 2006 October 7-8 Las Vegas, Nevada Star Nursery Field at Sam Boyd Stadium 2005 October 1-2 Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee Polo Fields, Merton 2004 October 9-10 Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta Polo Grounds 2003 October 4-5 Kansas City, Missouri 2002 Kansas City, Missouri 2001 October 17-18 Washington, DC Rosecroft Raceway, Fort Washington, Maryland 2000 October 14-15 Los Angeles, California 1999 Cincinnati, Ohio 1998 Cincinnati, Ohio 1997 Cincinnati, Ohio
Yearly Results
YearMen's USAFL Div 1 Grand FinalWomen's USAFL Div 1 Grand FinalPremierG.B (Total)Runner upG.B (Total)PremierG.B (Total)Runner upG.B (Total)1997Cincinnati Dockers (1) Nashville Kangaroos1998Boston Demons (1)15.7 (97)Golden Gate Roos1.1 (7)1999Boston Demons (2)4.2 (26)Golden Gate Roos3.2 (20)2000Denver Bulldogs (1)3.4 (22)San Diego Lions3.2 (20)2001San Diego Lions (1)10.4 (64)Boston Demons2.5 (17)2002Denver Bulldogs (2)8.1 (49)San Diego Lions 0.2 (2)2003Denver Bulldogs (3)8.5 (53)Boston Demons 1.3 (9)2004Denver Bulldogs (4)2.6 (18)New York Magpies1.1 (7)2005Denver Bulldogs (5)4.8 (32)Milwaukee Bombers1.1 (7)Atlanta Kookaburras (1)6.5 (41) Florida Fusion 2.1 (13)2006San Diego Lions (2)4.9 (33)Denver Bulldogs2.0 (12)Atlanta Kookaburras (2)3.10 (28) Pacific Coast Highwayers 0.0 (0)2007Denver Bulldogs (6)3.3 (21)San Diego Lions2.3 (15)Atlanta Kookaburras (3)7.7 (49)Arizona Hawks 0.0 (0)2008Vancouver Cougars (1)4.4 (28)Baltimore Washington Eagles2.0 (12)Calgary Kookaburras (1)4.3 (27)Atlanta Kookaburras 3.4 (22)2009Denver Bulldogs (7)2.5 (17)Seattle Grizzlies 2.2 (14)Milwaukee Bombers (1)8.3 (51)Calgary Kookaburras 1.5 (11)2010New York Magpies (1)4.4 (28)Denver Bulldogs1.1 (7)Denver Bulldogs (1)3.1 (19) Calgary/Montréal 2.6 (18)2011Denver Bulldogs (8)3.2 (20)Calgary Kangaroos0.5 (5)Denver Bulldogs (2)3.7 (25) New York/Montréal 0.1 (1)2012 VacatedDenver Bulldogs (3)3.4 (22) Boston/Baltimore-Washington 0.0 (0) 2013 Austin Crows (1)4.2 (26)Calgary Kangaroos4.1 (25)Denver Bulldogs (4)3.7 (25)San Francisco Iron Maidens 0.0 (0) 2014 New York Magpies (2)2.4 (16)Orange County Bombers2.1 (13)Denver Bulldogs (5)2.3 (15) San Francisco/Portland/Arizona 0.4 (4)2015Austin Crows (2)4.4 (28)Orange County Bombers2.4 (16)Denver Bulldogs (6)1stNew York Magpies2nd2016Austin Crows (3)6.3 (39)Golden Gate Roos2.1 (13)San Francisco Iron Maidens (1)1stDenver Bulldogs2nd2017Golden Gate Roos (1)6.4 (40)Los Angeles Dragons2.2 (14)San Francisco Iron Maidens (2)2.2 (14)Denver Bulldogs1.0 (6)2018Austin Crows (4)4.6 (30)Golden Gate Roos4.1 (25)San Francisco Iron Maidens (3)3.2 (20)Seattle Grizzlies0.0 (0)2019Austin Crows (5)8.3 (51)Denver Bulldogs1.2 (8)San Francisco Iron Maidens (4)2.2 (14)Seattle Grizzlies0.3 (3)2021Austin Crows (6)10.8 (68)New York Magpies2.2 (14)San Francisco Iron Maidens (5)5.4 (34)Denver Bulldogs2.5 (17)2022Austin Crows (7)6.3 (39)Denver Bulldogs2.4 (16)San Francisco Iron Maidens (6)6.4 (40)Minnesota Freeze1.1 (7)2023Austin Crows (8)5.3 (33)Denver Bulldogs2.4 (16)Golden Gate Iron Maidens (7)2.2 (14)Minnesota Freeze1.2 (8)2024Austin Crows (9)8.4 (52)Denver Bulldogs4.4 (28)Minnesota Freeze (1)6.6 (42)Golden Gate Iron Maidens2.0 (12)2025Austin Crows (10)9.4 (58)New York Magpies0.2 (2)Minnesota Freeze (2)2.1 (13)Denver Bulldogs1.1 (7)2026