ArenaBowl XXXII
ArenaBowl XXXII was the championship game of the 2019 Arena Football League season. The game took place on August 11, 2019, with kickoff at 8:00 p.m. EDT on ESPN2. It featured the winners of the two semifinals, the No. 1 seed Albany Empire and the No. 3 seed Philadelphia Soul. AFL Commissioner Randall Boe also confirmed that the league's expansion plans for next season would be unveiled during the game; however, these plans were pushed back to several weeks after the game after Boe said that negotiations for the two new teams would not be finished in  time. The league ultimately filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on November 27 of that year, making the game the final one in the league's history. Venue. As the higher seed, the No. 1 Albany Empire hosted ArenaBowl XXXII at the Times Union Center. Teams. Albany Empire. The Empire, led by head coach Rob Keefe, finished the regular season 10–2 and earned the No. 1 seed for the second straight season. They defeated No. 4 Baltimore home and away in the semifinal to advance to their first ArenaBowl. Philadelphia Soul. The Soul, led by head coach Clint Dolezel, finished the  regular season 7–5 and earned the No. 3 seed for the second straight season. They defeated No. 2 Washington home and away in the semifinal to advance to their sixth ArenaBowl; they are 3–2 in previous appearances. Series record. The all-time series between the Empire and the Soul dates back to the Empire's inaugural game on April 14, 2018. Entering the game, Albany led the series 4–3.