Note: There were three earlier and unrelated major American professional football leagues of the same name: One in 1926, one in 1936-1937 and one in 1940-1941. A minor league of the same name (also known as the APFA) existed in 1938-1939.

	Sport	American Professional Football
Founded	1959
First Season	1960
Last Season	1969
CEO - }} {{#if: | Inaugural season - }}	No. of teams	8 (1960-1965), 9 (1966-1967), 10 (1968-1969) - {{#if:>Singles entrants - }} {{#if: | Continent }} - - {{#if: | TV partner/s - }} {{#if: | Official website }}

The American Football League (AFL) was a professional football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when it merged with the National Football League (NFL). The AFL operated in direct competition with the more established National Football League throughout its existence. Initially viewed as inferior, the AFL began attracting top talent from colleges and the NFL by the mid-1960s, well before the Common Draft which began in 1967. In fact, even in its first year, 1960, the AFL signed half of the NFL's first-round draft choices, including All-American Billy Cannon, perennial All-Star Johnny Robinson, and Hall of Famer Ron Mix. In 1966, a merger between the two leagues was announced, but was not finalized until 1970. During its final two years of existence, the AFL won two upset victories over the NFL in Super Bowl III and IV, the former considered one of the biggest upsets in American sports history. When the merger took place all ten AFL franchises became part of the merged league's American Football Conference, while only the NFL retained its old name and logo. However, the NFL itself has licensed products (see External Links, below) which declare that the 1960-1969 American Football Legaue was "the genesis of modern pro football".