Applications are now open for new clubs wanting to play competitive adult kitted football in 2017. Any new club interested or group thinking of establishing a new club should contact the IAFA by 30th September 2016.
Teams playing competitive for the first time get placed in IAFL2, which is the third tier of football in this country, behind the Shamrock Bowl Conference and IAFL1 Divisions. IAFL2 is very much development focused – allowing newly established teams, who typically have smaller squads of mostly new players – get competitive game time against teams at a similar level of development before moving onto IAFL1. It also allows new team managements get experience of running a season in a learning environment. Typically new teams spend up to two years in IAFL2 before joining the more established teams in IAFL1.
The IAFL2 season runs from late March to August, during which time each team plays at least 6 competitive fixtures.
The application timetable is that teams who contact IAFA this month will be given an application form which can be used as a checklist by them to establish what they currently have in place and what they need. IAFA will liaise with them and advise them through the process. A final decision on which teams will progress onto playing will be made before the end of 2016.
Prospective new teams need not be fully established at the moment – applicants who are still considering whether to set up a new team should make contact even if they are unsure if they will be able to play in 2017.
Applicants should send the following information via the enquiries form on this website:
Team Name (can be working name at present – permanent name can come later).
Contact details for team representative (name, address, phone, email).
Team Location (town, city, county etc.).