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

Canton, Ohio Canton () is a city in and the county seat of Stark County, Ohio. It is located approximately south of Cleveland and south of Akron in Northeast Ohio. The city lies on the edge of Ohio's extensive Amish country, particularly in Holmes and ...

. They were a charter member of the American Indoor Football Association, 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 soccer ...

. The team name is in reference to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, 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 The Raleigh Rebels were a professional indoor football team based out of Raleigh, North Carolina. They played their home games at the Dorton Arena and were members of the American Indoor Football League (AIFL). During the team's inaugural season ...

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 in the semifinals. On Saturday, May 6, 2006, the Legends won 54–41 against the Huntington Heroes 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 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 Mountain Health Arena) in 1976 ...

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

Lakeland Center The RP Funding Center (formerly the Lakeland Civic Center and the Lakeland Center) is a multipurpose entertainment complex in Lakeland, Florida, comprising a convention center, arena and theater. Currently, it is home to the Florida Tropics S ...

. (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 negotia ...

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)
Lost League Semifinals ( Erie) , - , 2006 , , 10 , , 4 , , 0 , , 2nd Northern , , Won Round 1 ( Erie)
Won Northern Division Championship ( Reading)
Won American Bowl II ( Rome) , - , colspan="6" align="center" , Canton Legends (AIFA) , - , 2007 , , 10 , , 4 , , 0 , , 2nd Northern , , Won Round 1 ( Huntington)
Lost NC Championship ( Reading) , - , 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