Will Columbus Destroyers return to Nationwide Arena with AFL relaunch?

Staff reports
·1 min read

The Arena Football League is relaunching in 2024 with 16 teams. What could that mean for Columbus?

There's certainly a history here.

The city played host to the AFL's Thunderbolts in 1991. Quarterback Major Harris and his teammates called the Expo Center home, but following one 0-10 season they relocated to Cleveland. Columbus also had an AFL team from 2004-2008 when the Destroyers played at Nationwide Arena. That iteration of the team made it to ArenaBowl XXI in 2007 before falling 55-33 to the San Jose SaberCats. In 2019, the Destroyers returned for one summer and went 1-11 under coach Matt Sauk.

After that, the league filed for bankruptcy.

Columbus Destroyers receiver Fabian Guerra runs back a kickoff for a touchdown against the Atlantic City Blackjacks on June 7, 2019.
Columbus Destroyers receiver Fabian Guerra runs back a kickoff for a touchdown against the Atlantic City Blackjacks on June 7, 2019.

The AFL has yet to share which 16 cities will be the sites for teams once the league kicks off again. It has been announced that the plan is to have teams play a 10-game regular season. There's also been a commissioner named. Lee A. Hutton III is a lawyer who has worked on NFL concussion litigation and NCAA name, image and likeness legal cases.

On social media, the AFL also asked NFL great Tom Brady if he'd like to consider coming out of retirement again. One can only assume the chances of that happening is less likely than the odds that central Ohio fans will once again get to enjoy football outside of the Ohio State season,

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Might Columbus get a Destroyers or Thunderbolts team with new AFL?