Arena football returns to Saginaw in 2026
By Jacob Teets
A new arena football team is coming to Mid-Michigan in 2026. The Michigan Arsenal will call the Dow Event Center home this upcoming year and will be a member of the league Arena Football One. AF1 is bringing in the Arsenal as the league’s ninth team. They’ll be an expansion team for the upcoming season. Owner George Bradford has high expectations for the team and what they will bring to the city of Saginaw.
The decision to go with Saginaw was brought up to Bradford by Arsenal head coach Shawn Liotta after looking at multiple different cities and ultimately deciding on Saginaw.
“I had been looking at other arenas in Kalamazoo, Grand Rapids and Newport. I looked at Port Huron, Plymouth, looked at some other areas, and nothing seemed to fit. And then my coach brought to my attention, he said, ‘what about Saginaw?’ He’s played against the Sting before, and I said, ‘you know what, let me look into it.’
Bradford went on to explain how he came to his decision, saying “…I called and met with Kevin Murphy and his team, and I said, ‘this is exactly where I want the team to be’ and that’s how I kind of signed an agreement and going from there,” Bradford said.
He went into detail about how he is going to bring exposure to the team and get involved within the community.
“We can’t be successful without the community. The only way the community can know about us is if we’re involved, if we’re actually attending events, if we’re supporting the local businesses in the community. My plan is to hire and retain employees that are based in the Saginaw area,” said Bradford.
The Arsenal will look to do what the Saginaw Sting didn’t; make a home in Saginaw. The Sting played arena football at the Dow Event Center from 2008 to 2015 before suspending operations.
Bradford went into detail about how he plans to give back to the community and leave a lasting effect on the Saginaw area.
“I’ve established a nonprofit. When I was growing up in the inner city of Detroit, I didn’t have a lot of opportunities, but my parents were very, very strong on, you know, you’re going to college. And so, my commitment to this community is to try to help send kids to college. I’ve established a nonprofit organization. I’m going to try to provide scholarships to some of these kids,” he continues “… It’s my way of giving back to the community just to help kids finish college. I think that’s really, really important,” Bradford expressed.
The inaugural season for the Arsenal will begin sometime in the spring of 2026, and the team will look to make a lasting impact both on the field and in the community.
