The Canton Legends were a professional indoor football team based out of

Canton, Ohio Canton () is a city in Stark County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, eighth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 70,872 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Canton–Massillo ...

. They were a charter member of the

American Indoor Football Association American Indoor Football (AIF) is a professional indoor football league, one of the several regional professional indoor football leagues in North America. The AIFL began as a regional league with six franchises on the East Coast of the United ...

, which played their first season under the name Atlantic Indoor Football League, and their second season as the American Indoor Football League. They played their home games at

Canton Memorial Civic Center The Canton Memorial Civic Center is a multi-purpose arena located in Canton, Ohio, United States. Built in 1951, previous sports teams that have played at the center include the Canton Legends indoor football team, Canton Invaders indoor socc ...

. The team name is in reference to the

Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional football (gridiron), professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, 1963, the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of profes ...

, since Canton is where the building is located. During their inaugural season, the Legends ended up at a mediocre 3–7, just beating the Raleigh Rebels for 4th Place in the league. Since the league only had six teams, everyone (including the Legends) made the playoffs. They won the opening round against the Rebels, but their season ended when they lost to the

Erie Freeze The Erie Freeze was an American indoor football team based in Erie, Pennsylvania. They were an original member of the American Indoor Football League in 2005, and advanced to the first AIFL Championship Game. When the league was reorganized in ...

in the semifinals.

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

Super Bowl winning Head Coach

Nick Sirianni Nicholas John Sirianni ( ; born June 15, 1981) is an American professional football coach who is the head coach for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the offensive coordinator for the Indianap ...

played for the Legends in 2005. On Saturday, May 6, 2006, the Legends won 54–41 against the

Huntington Heroes The Huntington Heroes were a professional indoor football franchise and member of the American Indoor Football Association (AIFA). The Heroes played their home games during their inaugural 2006 season at the Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse in Hun ...

on the road, but not without controversy. The Legends were in violation for having an illegal roster, for they added some players to their rosters illegally. At first the AIFL awarded the win to Huntington; later Canton got the win, but had to pay an $800 fine for its action

Despite that little controversy, the Legends eventually managed to win the AIFL's ultimate title for 2006, beating the

Rome Renegades The National Indoor Football League (NIFL) was a professional indoor football league in the United States. For their first six years, the league had teams in markets not covered by either the Arena Football League or its developmental league, ...

61–40. The Legends also held an AIFA record for longest winning streak (12 games), beginning on May 6, 2006, against the Huntington Heroes (the same Heroes game mentioned above) at

Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse The Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse was an 8,500-seat (6,500 for basketball) multi-purpose arena in Huntington, West Virginia. It was built in 1950. Prior to the completion of the Huntington Civic Center (now known as Marshall Health Network Arena ...

, and ending on March 11, 2007, with a 39–36 loss to the

Lakeland Thunderbolts The Lakeland Thunderbolts were a professional indoor American football, indoor football team. They were a member of the American Indoor Football Association (AIFA). They played their home games at the Lakeland Center. History The Lakeland Thu ...

at the Lakeland Center. (The

Baltimore Mariners The Baltimore Mariners were an indoor football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The team was a member of American Indoor Football. The team was founded when the American Indoor Football Association expelled the Baltimore Blackbirds for negot ...

later broke this record in 2010.) The Legends are also the last of the six charter AIFL teams to fold, ceasing operations only four seasons after its debut. (Johnstown and Erie folded in 2007 and the other three teams folded in 2006.)

Season-by-season

, - , colspan="6" align="center" , Canton Legends (AIFL) , - , 2005 , , 3 , , 7 , , 0 , , 4th League , , Won Round 1 (

Raleigh Raleigh ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most populous city in the state (after Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte) ...

)
Lost League Semifinals (

Erie Erie is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in Pennsylvania and the most populous in Northwestern Pennsylvania with a population of 94,831 ...

) , - , 2006 , , 10 , , 4 , , 0 , , 2nd Northern , , Won Round 1 (

)
Won Northern Division Championship (

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...

)
Won American Bowl II (

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

) , - , colspan="6" align="center" , Canton Legends (AIFA) , - , 2007 , , 10 , , 4 , , 0 , , 2nd Northern , , Won Round 1 ( Huntington)
Lost NC Championship (

) , - , 2008 , , 3 , , 11 , , 0 , , 4th EC Northern , , , - !Totals , , 31 , , 28 , , 0 , colspan="2", (including playoffs)

Entire 2006 Season Schedule

2007 Season Schedule

2008 Season Schedule

External links

Official Site of the Canton Legends

Canton Leatherheads(Legends fan club) website

Around the Turf, a Canton Legends fan blog

Legends' 2005 Stats

Legends' 2006 Season & Results

Legends' 2007 Season

Legends' 2008 Season
{dead link, date=November 2016 , bot=InternetArchiveBot , fix-attempted=yes American Indoor Football Association teams American Indoor Football League teams Sports in Canton, Ohio 2005 establishments in Ohio 2008 disestablishments in Ohio American football teams established in 2005 Defunct American football teams in Ohio American football teams disestablished in 2008 American football teams in Ohio