British Universities American Football League

British Universities American Football League
A Statement on the Relationship with
British Universities & Colleges Sport
British American Football Association

Foreword
British Universities & Colleges Sport is delighted to be working with Andy Fuller and
the BUAFL. Over the last eighteen months we have had many productive discussions
about the development of the game within the higher education sector which has led
to the formation of what we hope will be a long-term working partnership.
The remit of our new organisation will help us to engage more fully with national
governing bodies and ultimately to provide a greater sporting offer to our membership.
We look forward to working closely with the BUAFL over the next year with the aim
of continually looking for ways to improve on what is a very solid foundation for
the sport.
Mark Brian – Head of Sports Programmes, BUCS
I am absolutely delighted to announce the start of what we hope will prove to be a
long-term partnership with one of the most reputable and respected student sport
organisations in the world.
As we strive to further develop football across further and higher education I firmly
believe that in agreeing a partnership with BUCS we have taken the single most
important step to support us in achieving our aims.
I am grateful to all the staff at BUCS for the time and energies they have spent thus far
on this relationship and all of us at the BUAFL look forward to working closely with
them in the future.
Andy Fuller – Chief Executive, BUAFL
British American Football Association
BUAFL is the official university league of
the British American Football Association

About the BUAFL
Established in 2007, the British Universities American Football League is the largest
university competition for American football in Europe. Forty-two teams were founder
members with players drawn from over sixty institutions competing for the inaugural
BUAFL National Championship. A further three teams successfully completed their
Associate year meaning that for the kick-off of the 2008/09 season there will be forty-five
teams with their sights trained on reaching the Championship Game and emulating the
reigning champions – the Southampton Stags.
Whilst the BUAFL is relatively young, football in British universities dates back beyond
2007 with many of the BUAFL’s teams having histories which stretch back to the 1980s
when the sport first became popular in the UK.
BUAFL Facts:
• The BUAFL had 2,390 registered members in 2007/08
• The biggest team roster was that of the Sheffield Sabres 2007/08 with
89 people.
• The Southampton Stags claimed the inaugural BUAFL National
Championship by defeating the Staffordshire Stallions 54-20
• The annual XpLosION game at Birmingham University continually attracts the
biggest regular season attendance of any British university sport.
The BUAFL season
The BUAFL season operates in two distinct phases – a regular season and play-offs.
The BUAFL operates a conference-based regular season. There are four conferences, each
of which has two divisions. During the regular season each team will play eight games, four
at home and four away. Each team will play every other team in their division once and then
make up the remaining games against teams from the other division in their conference. All
games count towards a team’s final ranking within their own division.
British American Football Association
BUAFL is the official university league of
the British American Football Association

At the end of the regular season the top two teams from each division will go through to a
sixteen team play-offs which operates on a knock-out basis.
A further four teams, one from each conference; will go through to the semi-finals
of the BUAFL Challenge Trophy. These teams will have the best playing record outside
of the four teams that have qualified from their conference for the Championship Game
play-offs.
The BUAFL’s MVP Game, also popularly known as the ‘All Star game’ is the annual end of
season game between the best players from the conferences which constitute the League.
Historically this has always been a team representing the Northern Conference taking on a
team from the Southern Conference
With the BUAFL moving to a four conference format from the 2008/09 season the
MVP teams will become representative of two conferences and in 2009/10 there are plans
for a four team MVP series which will see four games over two days with each team
competing for the right to be named BUAFL MVP Series Champions.
The first MVP Game took place at the home of one of the newest members of the
League – Bucks New University, where the Northern MVP team ran out 12-7 victors over
the South.
British American Football Association
BUAFL is the official university league of
the British American Football Association

About BUCS
BUCS is the new national organisation for higher education sport in the UK. It brings
together experience and expertise from two former representative bodies – UCS (University
College Sport) and BUSA (British Universities Sports Association) – to provide a unified
voice for sport, fitness and physical activity on university campuses.
BUCS works with student athletes, athletic union staff and elected officers as well as
professional sporting staff, coaches and volunteers at 153 member institutions. It offers a
comprehensive, multi-sport competition structure and manages the development of services
and facilities for participative, grass-roots sport and healthy campuses through to highperformance,
elite athletes.
BUCS supports its member institutions to:
- Provide first-class facilities, programmes and services to all students, staff and related
communities
- Increase participation in physical activity and develop active and healthy campuses
- Deliver a world-class competition structure for more than 50 sports
- Provide high quality performance sport infrastructure to produce world-class athletes
- Lead innovative sports development
BUCS Facts:
• Over one in four students take part in regular physical activity
• 4,500 sports teams operate on campus, the most popular being
rugby, football and hockey
• 41% of university sports teams are female
• 170 Championship finals take place annually
• 55% of the Team GB medal take at the 2008 Olympics was by university students
and/or university alumni
• 67% of visits to university sporting facilities are from students, with 26% from
community users and 8% from staff
• BUCS members operate approximately £20bn worth of sporting facilities and
amenities, including 145 fitness suites, 541 tennis courts and 139 sports halls
• The first BUCS Championships in March 2008 attracted 5,000 athletes and
3,000 spectators to the city of Sheffield.
British American Football Association
BUAFL is the official university league of
the British American Football Association

Key Questions re: BUAFL relationship with BUCS
Will there be Championship points awarded this season?
The relationship at this stage is purely strategic. As such, no team will be eligible for points
which contribute to an institution’s overall BUCS Championship ranking.
Will there be points awarded in the 2009/10 season?
We are working towards Championship sport status for the kick-off of the 2009/10 season
and as such, award points based upon a team’s BUAFL Championship performance.
For the start of the 2009/10 season will the BUAFL mandate a split for those teams who
are comprised of players from a number of institutions?
There will be no mandate of a split for multi-institutional teams for the start of the 2009/10
season. It is in the best interests of both the BUAFL and BUCS to have a stable football
programme and there has not been sufficient research undertaken to establish the effect that
such a mandate would have.
How will points be shared in the future?
The BUAFL and BUCS are currently reviewing how points might be allocated based upon
the current make up of teams.
What will happen with regards to the BUAFL’s current player eligibility criteria?
For the 2008/09 season there will only be no or minor alterations to the BUAFL’s eligibility
criteria (these are currently being reviewed). Over the course of the next twelve months the
BUAFL and BUCS will review how the eligibility criteria should evolve.
Will the BUAFL move to a Premier League system like the one BUCS employs when it is
awarded Championship status?
At present the BUAFL is committed to retaining its current structure where there is divisional
parity. Nevertheless, the BUAFL and BUCS will continue to review the competition format
to establish what structure best services the needs of the sport, be it in terms of programme
viability, athlete development or other.
British American Football Association
BUAFL is the official university league of
the British American Football Association

Will the BUAFL be run by BUCS?
The BUAFL Management Board will retain the day to day management of the League with
input where appropriate from BUCS. The BUAFL’s Head of League Development Martin
Boffey, will maintain a regular dialogue with BUCS and will lead the bi-lateral relationship
from a BUAFL perspective.
Will the MVP Game be part of the BUCS Championships?
There are no plans at present for the MVP Game to become part of the BUCS Championships.
How will this relationship affect an international team for students?
The BUAFL is committed to supporting the work of the National Governing Body’s national
team programme and the development of athlete pathways into both the GB Lions team and
a student representational team. The formats for the student representational teams as
detailed in the Whole Sport Plan are aligned to current formats supported by BUCS.
At this time the relationship between the BUAFL and BUCS regarding international
representation will primarily be strategic and be focussed upon the transfer of knowledge
from BUCS to the staff of football’s national team programme to ensure that our student’s get
the best opportunities to showcase their talents.
Will Athletic Unions be charged extra as a consequence of this relationship?
There will be no additional costs to those outlined in the BUAFL’s League Application form
for Athletic Unions for the 2008/09 BUAFL season.
Will BUAFL fixtures have to take place on Wednesdays?
Whilst there is flexibility in the scheduling of BUAFL fixtures, the BUAFL anticipates that the
vast majority of games will take place on weekends.
Will there be a BUCS / BUAFL flag league or 5-a-side competition?
The BUAFL and BUCS are committed to ensuring that our energies are focussed upon the
successful development of the BUAFL’s competition as it currently stands. As a consequence
there are no plans for a modified format of the game having its own points scoring
Championship.However, the BUAFL is currently exploring the implementation of a five-onfive
competition to drive increased participation in the League and support the creation of
new teams.
British American Football Association
BUAFL is the official university league of
the British American Football Association

How will this announcement affect the relationship between the teams and their Athletic
Unions?
The impact of this announcement will vary from institution to institution. We anticipate very
little change in the relationships between Athletic Unions and teams for the forthcoming
season, in part because budgets will have been allocated and training and match locations set.
The BUAFL recognises that a lot more work needs to be put in by the League to support
the development of football programmes in universities, primarily in the way in which we
communicate with university staff and promote our game. As the BUAFL develops its
communications platforms and is more proactive with universities we expect the nature of
relationships to evolve anyway. This relationship just provides a further frame of reference
by which people can judge the merits of investing in football.
Can teams use the BUCS logo on their websites and / or apparel?
The BUAFL requests that teams do not use BUCS logos on their websites or on their
uniforms for the forthcoming season as the sport has not yet been awarded Championship
status.
Can teams access the Nike apparel deal through BUCS and if so, will there be access to
football uniforms?
BUCS have kindly given teams the opportunity to order clothing and equipment through
their online store. All orders have to comply with the ordering agreement which is specified
on the BUCS website and which Athletic Unions have been informed of. The BUAFL logo
embroidery guidelines will be available as a download from the BUAFL website.
With respect to football uniforms, the BUAFL and BUCS recognise that Nike is a
premium supplier of apparel to collegiate teams in the United States. At present the current
Nike / BUCS catalogue does not include football uniforms. As the relationship between the
BUAFL and BUCS develops this is an area we can explore further.
British American Football Association
BUAFL is the official university league of
the British American Football Association