Hello ISFL!
I hope the offseason has been an enjoyable experience for everyone! I’d definitely call it a success from the head office perspective: we had some amazing events, a successful prospect bowl, and everything went as smoothly as it can! Most importantly, through our Charity Event, we managed to raise a total of $1,788.50 for the NAACP. I’m so proud of what this community is able to accomplish together! Our sister league, PBE, has also raised over $1,200 for the same cause. Thank you again to all those that donated, put up items for auction, and supported us throughout the event. If you won an auction and have not yet talked to the person offering it, please get in touch with them to redeem your prize.
Now let’s get into some of our other exciting updates!
NEW DEPARTMENT
In this year’s rules summit, one of the exciting proposals to pass was the implementation of a new budget system to track contracts and the ISFL cap! I’ve been working with a phenomenal crew to run a beta of the new system, and I’m feeling great about it thus far. Our team reviews posted contracts, inputs them into the master page, and the new sheet displays each team’s contracts in a uniform and streamlined way. Ultimately this new process should help us catch anything off in contracts earlier as well as helping those who assemble our Free Agents list each season. It’ll also make sure you can see team’s senddowns easily, so watch for that, mock draft fanatics! We’ll be continuing the beta this season to prepare the department for a full rollout next offseason. If you are interested in working in the Budget Department, feel free to reach out to me!
NEW FORUMS
As you’re aware, we’ve switched forums. Our transition has gone about as smoothly as we could have hoped for! Thank you so much to Exilizer for setting everything up! Additionally, thank you to everyone who has helped us troubleshoot. We appreciate your patience as we continue to finetune the user experience.
NEW TEAMS (Yes, Expansion)
Coming off of yet another successful recruitment with r/nfl and consistent growth and retention as a league, Head Office has been talking about expansion. This is something on the minds of many, as we can see through recent rule proposals brought to the table. Looking over the numbers, we have come to the conclusion that expansion is sorely needed for the league and are ready to proceed with it for S25. We want to ensure the best possible experience for every user in the league, and that starts with making sure there are enough spots on ISFL rosters for our members.
Teams start with 8 Protection Slots and gain an additional protection slot after a player is claimed in the expansion draft. Protection Slots can also be used as FA passes which allow the re-signing of Free Agents to that team. Teams are not able to re-sign players until the season officially starts, meaning those teams seeking to re-sign a player post regression, they will need to use an FA pass. 2 players may be taken from any one team (barring Expansion GMs, see below)
S24 draftees will be automatically protected.
GM players are not required to be taken in the expansion draft, but will count as 0.5 of a player taken. As such, if a team loses 1 expansion GM, they still will lose 2 players through the expansion draft, but if a team loses 2 expansion GMs, only one other player will be able to be taken from that team in the expansion draft.
Expansion teams will receive the 1st and 2nd picks each round in the S25 draft. One team will be given 1OA in the expansion draft while the other receives the higher pick in the S25 draft.
Expansion GMs will be granted permission to speak with UNPROTECTED players from other teams. Protection lists will be due immediately following the trade deadline. Talking to protected players will be treated as tampering and prosecuted as such. Likewise, teams encouraging players to mislead expansion teams or to sabotage them for their own gain will be handled on a case by case basis.
The above outline is subject to change or modification as HO continues to work to provide a fair and balanced experience for all parties within expansion.
If you are interested in making a bid for an expansion team, please send me or another member of Head Office the following:
- Your name and the name of your Co-GM if you have one at this time (Please remember if you want to ask someone to apply with you that you must contact their current GM first to avoid any potential tampering snafus)
- Your preferred team location and branding (international applications are HIGHLY encouraged)
- Why you should be entrusted with a brand new franchise
- What sets you apart from other potential applicants.
TL;DR
-The ISFL is good at raising money. Go NAACP! Please collect on your won auction items.
-New forum is cool, thanks exi and everyone else, we’re still working on improvements!
-EXPANSION! 2 new teams, 8 initial protections, 2* losses per team, if you’re applying, actually go back and read the above, silly goose.
Best,
ISFL Commissioner