FARGO — An entrepreneur from Florida plans to fill the void of professional football in North Dakota by bringing a brand-new football league to the Red River Valley this fall.
North Dakota is one of 24 markets slated to have a team playing in the newly formed Major League Football organization, planning to launch in September.
Major League Football commissioner Adam McLean says the idea is to play on Sundays in markets that do not have NFL teams. The league has been in the works for years, pushing back its start date on several occasions.
While some teams, like the one planned for Little Rock, Ark., already have a stadium and mascot lined up, the league has not secured a stadium or investors in North Dakota.
"Don't judge a book by its cover. They don't know what I'm capable of. I don't give up. It's freaking game time and, man, we're going to make this happen," McLean said.
McLean says fans can purchase ownership shares in the team, and the league's website says tryouts will take place July 26-27.
"We have a team," McLean said about MLF's plans for North Dakota. "We want you guys to want Major League Football to come there as bad as we want to come there. It's gotta be both ways. So, the way it's going now, I don't want to say 100%."
McLean admits finding stadiums to play in is the biggest hurdle, although a potential Major League Football team in North Dakota does not have coaches or players yet either.
"I tell everyone this is about the fans, you know, giving them something exciting to cheer for on Sundays and that's their own team that they're wearing the North Dakota team to the to the mall or out to dinner, wherever the case they may go."
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The league is aiming for the team to play at either the Alerus Center in Grand Forks or the FargoDome in Fargo. Both venues told WDAY they communicated with McLean, but do not have any agreements in place.
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