The start date of "AFL" depends on the specific AFL being referred to, as there are two well-known leagues with this abbreviation:
- The American Football League (AFL) was founded in 1959 and began play in 1960 as a rival to the National Football League (NFL).
- The Australian Football League (AFL), originally called the Victorian Football League (VFL), was founded in 1896, with its inaugural season in 1897. It changed its name to the Australian Football League in 1990 after expanding beyond Victoria.
If the question is about Australian football's AFL, the league begins historically in 1897 as the VFL. If the question is about American football's AFL, it started in 1960 for gameplay after being founded in 1959.
