The final AF1 Fan Zone Power Rankings are officially in.
After fifteen weeks of voting, debate, upsets, record-breaking performances, and dramatic shifts in momentum, the regular season has reached its conclusion. While the final rankings provide a snapshot of where teams stand entering the postseason, they also tell the story of how the 2026 season unfolded.
Some teams spent the year exactly where everyone expected. Others climbed, fell, or completely reinvented themselves along the way.
Final AF1 Fan Zone Power Rankings
Nashville Finishes on Top
The season began with Albany holding the No. 1 position and carrying the weight of championship expectations.
For ten weeks, the Firebirds never relinquished the top spot.
Then Nashville changed the conversation.
The Kats steadily closed the gap throughout the season before finally overtaking Albany in Week 10. From that point forward, Nashville never looked back, eventually securing the AF1’s No. 1 playoff seed and finishing the regular season as the unanimous No. 1 team in the final rankings.
Their victories over Albany, including the memorable 78-69 shootout in Week 11 and the 57-54 thriller that secured the top seed in Week 14, cemented their place atop the league.
Albany’s Long Run
Even though they finish second, Albany’s season should not be overlooked.
The Firebirds opened the year as the unanimous favorite and spent the first ten weeks of the season ranked No. 1. Along the way, they established an arena football regular-season winning streak that reached 20 games dating back to 2025.
For much of the season, Albany was the standard against which every other team was measured.
Only Nashville ultimately proved capable of taking that crown.
Washington’s Remarkable Turnaround
No team’s season was more difficult to evaluate than Washington’s.
The Wolfpack opened the year near the bottom of the rankings and spent multiple weeks occupying last place. In Week 3, they were the unanimous No. 9 team in the AF1.
Then everything changed.
Washington rattled off key victories, scored a franchise-record 79 points against Oregon, and steadily climbed the rankings. By the end of the season, the Wolfpack had risen all the way to No. 5 and secured the sixth and final playoff berth.
No team climbed farther from its lowest point during the season.
Minnesota’s Steady Climb
No team better embodied consistency than the Minnesota Monsters.
The expansion franchise entered the season with questions surrounding how quickly it could compete at the highest level. Those questions did not last long.
Beginning in Week 3, Minnesota occupied a spot in the top four every single week. While the Monsters rarely made dramatic jumps in the rankings, they consistently positioned themselves among the league’s contenders before finally climbing to No. 3 late in the season.
Their dominant 60-8 victory over Kentucky in Week 13 served as the defining moment of their regular season and helped secure their highest ranking of the year.
For an expansion team, a third-place finish is an impressive achievement.
Michigan’s Battle-Tested Rise
Few teams improved more over the course of the season than the Michigan Arsenal.
Early in the year, Michigan struggled to gain traction while navigating one of the league’s toughest schedules. The Arsenal faced members of the eventual top four repeatedly and often found themselves on the wrong side of close games.
Instead of fading, Michigan grew stronger.
The turning point came late in the season with victories over Albany, Minnesota, and Washington, followed by a record-setting 86-74 victory over Oceanside. By season’s end, the Arsenal had climbed to No. 4 and firmly established themselves as a legitimate postseason threat.
Kentucky’s Late-Season Slide
For much of the season, Kentucky looked like a lock to finish among the league’s elite.
The Barrels spent weeks ranked No. 2 or No. 3 and remained part of the stable top tier that defined much of the season.
Then the season’s biggest downturn arrived.
A combination of losses and significant roster turnover led to a dramatic late-season slide. Kentucky fell from a top-three team to No. 7 in the final rankings, one of the largest drops experienced by any team all season.
Despite the fall, the Barrels remain capable of changing the narrative once the postseason begins.
Beaumont’s late season surge
The Beaumont Renegades spent much of the season hovering near the bottom half of the rankings, but their persistence paid off.
The Renegades remained competitive throughout the year and closed the season with one of their strongest stretches, including a convincing victory over Kentucky that helped them move ahead of the Barrels in the final rankings.
Despite a strong finish to the season and a climb to No. 6 in the final rankings, Beaumont came up just short of a playoff berth. The Renegades spent much of the year battling for position near the middle of the standings and closed the season playing some of their best football, but Washington ultimately claimed the league’s final postseason spot.
Oceanside’s Roller-Coaster Season
No team produced more entertaining results than Oceanside.
The franchise spent most of the year near the bottom of the rankings, but the Bombers/Stealth consistently proved capable of challenging higher-ranked opponents. Several close losses prevented them from making a significant move up the board, yet they remained one of the league’s most dangerous offensive teams.
Their season culminated with a rebrand and back-to-back games against Michigan including a 86-74 shootout that set a new AF1 record for combined points in a game, breaking the mark established only three weeks earlier by Nashville and Albany.
The Oregon Chapter
No review of the 2026 season would be complete without acknowledging Oregon.
Oregon’s season ended prematurely following the franchise’s termination during the regular season. While the Lightning never found their footing on the field, their departure still reshaped the league landscape during the second half of the season.
Final Thoughts
Looking back, the defining story of the 2026 AF1 season was change.
Albany opened the year as the unquestioned favorite. Nashville finished it as the league’s top team.
Minnesota emerged as one of the league’s biggest expansion success stories. Michigan transformed from a dangerous underdog into a legitimate contender. Washington rose from unanimous last place to the postseason, while Beaumont’s late playoff push came up just short.
Now the rankings are finished.
What happens next will be decided on the field.
The postseason has arrived.
Official AF1 Fan Zone weekly power rankings data