United Zero-G Football League

Created by Mayterial Droz on Saturday August 18th, 2018 @ 15:00 hours

The Game

The game of Zero-G Football is played in teams consisting of a total of 37 players. It is a mixed sport allowing any gender to compete on equal footing. Only 11 players are allowed on the field at any one time. The field is 100 meters long, in between the endzones, the endzones themselves adding another 10 meters on either side. The arena is 20 meters high, allowing for movement along the Z axis. Play always begins on the ground level, referred to as the zero-plane. The game is a full contact ball sport that takes most of its elements from American Football. Within the arena there is no out of bounds, the walls and ceiling are all fair game and while the ball starts on the zero plane players are allowed to start their play anywhere behind the perimeter (or in front of it if playing on defense). When a player touches the zero plane, the ceiling or wall with anything other than the soles of their feel or the palms of their hands they are considered down. The next play begins from that point. The attacking team has four attempts to cross ten meters, if they do not make it ten meters the ball forfeited to the other team. There are unlimited substitutions, allowing for great specialisation among the players.

The Competition

The league is divided into two divisions. During the season, which last for six months, each team plays the other teams in their division twice and the teams from the other division once, home field advantage for those games is determined prior to the season. The highest ranking team after the regular season progresses automatically to the divisional championship game. Numbers two and three compete against each other before the winner for the match faces off against the number one seed. The winners for the two division championships face off and compete for the Ad Astra Trophy.

Alpha Division	Beta Division
Terra Phoenix	Mars Rovers
Armstrong Lakers	New Berlin Apollo
Utopia Pioneers	Paris Revolution
Neptune Tridents	Jupiter Hurricanes
Kuiper’s Plutonians	Venus Valkyries
Kohath-Seredi Comets	Alpha Centauri Trailblazers
Bolarus Sharks	Coridan Delvers
Ferasa Ferals	Lan’Tor Bulls
Manev Binaries	Galartha Stormriders

Teams

(ordered by founding date)
1. Terra Phoenix
Located in Montana on Earth the team is named after Zephram Cochrane’s famous space craft. One of the founding franchises of the League and early dynasties. Even though one of the other founding teams is also from Earth their greatest rivals are the Mars Rovers.

2. Mars Rovers

3. Armstrong Lakers

4. Paris Revolution
When the league was started it was immediately apparent that one of the Franchises should be placed in the capital city of United Earth and the Federation. A naming-competition was held, The name Revolution won out in the end, over other contenders like Eiffels or Legionnaires.

5. Neptune Tridents

6. Jupiter Hurricanes

7. Utopia Pioneers
After not being able to get a team together in time for the inaugural season the Utopia Pioneers applied for membership a year later. With one extra year of preparation and a strong scouting team they took the league by storm.

8. New Berlin Apollo
Luna had a huge fan base for Zero-G Football, most of the modern rules originating on the Earth’s moon. When the second Mars team joined in the second year another franchise was added to round out the number of teams, capitalising on the popularity of the sport on Luna, Apollo was an immediate commercial success. It would take them well over a decade to find any kind of success on the field, though. This resulted in strong image of gritty, underdog, fighting. Apart from the League Finals the game between Apollo and the Lakers, colloquially named the “Moon Bowl” is the best viewed sporting event in Zero-G Football.

9. Kuiper’s Plutonians

10. Venus Valkyries
Starting their organisational life as the Venus Vendetta the franchise felt a need to change their image and name after the tumultuous times in the early seventies. They reached into their own franchise history and changed the name to Valkyries, based on the nickname of a group of female defensive players active for the team in the early fifties.

11. Alpha Centauri Trailblazers

12. Kohath-Seredi Comets

13 Lor’Tan Bulls
One of the expansion teams when the league officially expanded beyond Sol, joining the league in 2361, the Andor based franchise has risen to popularity in recent years after winning back to back championships in ‘91 and ‘92. The team was named after the beasts native to the icy planet known for their stomping.

14. Ferasa Ferals
Some of the greatest names in Zero-G Football history were those of Caitians, it was only a matter of time before their homeworld would vie for a spot among the franchises. When in 2358 plans were announced to officially expand beyond the Sol system and it's closest neighbours they were among the first to put in a bid.

15. Coridan Delvers

16. Bolarus Sharks

17. Manev Binaries

18. Risa Stormriders

League History

The Sol League (2344 to 2350)
Founding members (2344) - Terra Phoenix, Armstrong Lakers, Mars Rovers, Paris Revolution, Neptune Tridents, Jupiter Hurricanes
2nd Year expansion (2345)
New Berlin Apollo and Utopia Pioneers
Expanding influence (2350)
Kuiper’s Plutonians, Venus Valkyries, Kohath-Seredi Comets and Alpha Centauri Trailblazers
Beyond Sol (2361) - United Zero-G Football League
Ferasa Ferals, Bolarus Sharks, Coridan Delvers, Risa Stormriders, Lan’Tor Bulls, Manev Binaries