American Ice Football is The Future Of Michigan Sports Dominance

I may have found the next big thing in American sports, and it has the potential to be the new signature sport for the State of Michigan. It combines everything we’re good at – football, hockey, fighting, and running on ice. 

When you watch it, you could have sworn it was something that was created in America. In fact, it's literally called “American Ice Football.” However, this event was purely a German concoction.

Get our free mobile app

Yes, Ice Football. It's not a joke, it's not some made up sport you'd only see in the X-Games, or on ESPN 8 "The Ocho."

American Ice Football is a very real thing, and it has been growing in popularity across Germany. They really did take all the best elements of American football, and combine them with the best elements of hockey, complete with fights, penalty boxes, cheerleaders, and mascots!

When Was This American Ice Football Tournament

Two weeks before Super Bowl LVIII, a tournament of four teams was put together in Germany, filled with former American Rules Football players, celebrities, hockey players, and other athletes from all over Germany. It even included Evil Jared of the Bloodhound Gang.

And the team names were great, too...

• Northcoast Naughties
• Eastie Boys
• Southcoast Smoothies
• Westside Wessis

And it seems congratulations goes go the Westside Wessis for winning the event.

What are the Rules for American Ice Football?

The rink looks very similar to an Arena Football field, but laid out on an ice rink. The walls along the side of the "field" are still up, and players can utilize them when carrying the ball.

Each team has eight players on the ice at a time, and it seems (from watching the videos), that standard Arena League Football rules apply... but on ice. And just to be clear, the players aren't wearing skates. They're wearing regular shoes, which makes it EVEN funnier.

After that, we really have no idea what the official rules are that would be any different from Arena League. Also, none of us in the office speak German, so we just had to go off vibes from watching the games.

This looks like a ton of fun, and the Germans really nailed it. So when this inevitably does come to the states, Michigan has to be a shoe-in for a team.