Congratulations to the Arizona Rattlers, the 2026 Indoor Football League champions, who beat the Green Bay Blizzard 62-51 Sunday night at Tucson Arena.

Allow me to note that the Fishers Freight beat Arizona twice this season.

The first came April 5 at the Fishers Event Center, where the Freight rolled 63-42 over a Rattlers club led by reigning league MVP Max Meylor. Felix Harper threw three touchdowns; Dominic Roberto ran for three more.

The second came June 14 in Glendale. Arizona had been unbeaten at home and was an 8.5-point favorite. Fishers won 37-36, ending a five-game losing streak, when Rattlers kicker Mathew Cook’s 26-yard attempt sailed wide right as time expired.

Then the Freight missed the playoffs anyway.

Fishers finished 8-8, one win better than the 7-9 inaugural season in 2025, with most of those losses decided by a possession or less. It came down to the July 26 regular-season finale against Orlando at the Fishers Event Center — winner in, loser out. Orlando won.

The league, meanwhile, keeps growing. The IFL has announced four new franchises for 2027, which would push it to 18 teams. :  Savannah (Georgia), Arkansas,  Athens, Georgia –  owned by a group including Jerome Bettis, Brian Jordan and David Pollack, and Austin, Texas, announced during the IFL Cup championship broadcast, with league officials also hinting at a New Jersey team based at the American Dream mall. Commissioner Todd Tryon has said he eventually wants 24 teams.

Tryon has made clear he insists on two things from any new owner — the money required to run the franchise and the expertise to manage a professional sports operation.

There are hints of even more teams for 2027, but time is running out. Two clubs are suspended: Sioux Falls and Bay Area. It should be noted the league office is located in Sioux Falls.

The IFL also changed its television approach this season, taking over production of all games. Previously each franchise produced its own home telecasts. The league claims its Yahoo Sports streaming audience reached 6 million this year. That is major growth, if accurate.

Freight coach and general manager Dixie Wooten now goes to work building a competitive squad for 2027 — the franchise’s third season in Fishers, and the first with real expectations attached.