Women’s American football actually has its roots in the feminist movements of the 1960’s. The status quo in some sports was believed to perpetuate outdated, restricted ideas about gender roles and identity. However, efforts to organize a counterpart to male football teams and leagues were often scattershot and didn’t last long. It was not until many years later that significant attempts were made again in the same field.

The Women’s Professional Football League was founded by two business partners named Carter Turner and Terry Sullivan in 1999. The league’s activities kicked off with an exhibition game between its two sole teams. Fortunately, the exhibition was successful enough to help attract more players and backers. At its peak, the league was to have about fifteen teams. Next was the relatively successful Barnstorming Tour in which the teams traveled to compete around the country.

The following year saw the League’s first official season in the fall. Unfortunately, this season was far from problem-free. On the one hand, not all of the league’s backers stood by their agreements. Furthermore, many players did not get their salaries, and the season was shortened, to boot. After this fiasco of a season, both of the league’s founders left. Methods for paying players as well as many other fundamental policies were all changed, and the seasons would then be in the summer, not the autumn.

Of course, it is no surprise that players in this league cannot support themselves solely by playing women’s American football. Financial, organizational, and logistical reasons preclude such a state of affairs. The technical term for the players’ status is “semi-professional.” However, within the league, players are referred to as professional athletes. Perhaps this terminology is more aspirational than factual.

Even so, the league managed to soldier on, attracting more players, until about 2007. At that time, the majority of the players left for other leagues in women’s American football. The Independent Women’s Football League and the National Women’s Football Association have benefited from this mass migration. As of this writing, the Women’s Professional Football League appears to be back where it started: floundering and small, with only two teams to its name. It is more or less disbanded, or at least stands at the brink.

Officially then, it appears that this league has been moribund since 2007. In other words, it has not been formally disbanded (at least not in a high-profile way) but it is inactive and has little or no authority. Given the league’s active, influential work in this division, it might be hoped that the league will somehow resurrect itself, especially if the economy significantly improves and charismatic players get enough attention. However, even if the league should eventually fade and expire, its achievement as the longest-running, most stable organization of its kind will not disappear. Its comparatively unstable, fly-by-night rivals and successors would be hard-pressed to do better. Another possible solution is for the various leagues to come to an agreement and unite, but disagreements between them are so difficult to resolve that the prospect seems highly unlikely.