How close was the Alliance of American Football (AAF) to having a presence in a video game? Pretty damn close, actually.
In an interview with Sports Gamers Online, Axis Football lead developer and owner Danny Jugan said that Axis Games had been talking with AAF majority investor Tom Dundon about licensing the league into series.
“I can share that I was talking personally with Tom Dundon,” said Jugan. “He and I texted back and forth and talked on the phone a few times, and we were this close to a licensing deal with the AAF right before it fell apart.”
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For those that may not remember the short-lived league, the AAF was a spring football league that featured eight teams across the United States. Despite kicking off with plenty of fanfare and ratings success, the AAF quickly collapsed under its own weight before the inaugural season even finished.
“We were really excited about just the opportunity to be able to bring an officially licensed product [to the game], but it was not meant to be,” he said.
Though the licensing deal with the AAF didn’t work out, Jugan did state that the team at Axis Games is open to licensing deals — whether it be the XFL or a different league — as long as the agreement makes sense for all parties involved.
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