The 2017 United Bowl was the championship game of the

2017 Indoor Football League season The 2017 Indoor Football League season was the ninth season of the Indoor Football League (IFL). Playing with ten teams in two conferences spread across the midwestern and western United States, the league's regular season kicked off on February 16 ...

. It was played between the Intense Conference Champion

Arizona Rattlers The Arizona Rattlers are a professional indoor American football team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They are currently members of the Indoor Football League (IFL). The Rattlers were founded in 1992 as an expansion team in the Arena Football League ...

and the United Conference Champion

Sioux Falls Storm The Sioux Falls Storm are a professional indoor football team based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The Storm joined the original Indoor Football League as an expansion team in 1999 as the Sioux Falls Cobras, and first took the field for the 2000 ...

. The game was played at

Denny Sanford Premier Center The Denny Sanford Premier Center is an indoor arena in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The building is located at 1201 North West Avenue, and is connected to the Sioux Falls Arena and Sioux Falls Convention Center. The Aren ...

Sioux Falls, South Dakota Sioux Falls () is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the 130th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha County and also extends into Lincoln County to the south, which continues up ...

. The Rattlers won the game by a score of 50–41. This was the Sioux Falls Storm's seventh consecutive United Bowl appearance and first loss, snapping a 6-game championship streak. It was the Arizona Rattlers' first United Bowl appearance in their first season in the IFL after joining from the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...

Venue

The game was played at

, as the Sioux Falls Storm had the home field advantage by cause of having a better regular season record.

Background

Arizona Rattlers

On October 17, 2016, the Arizona Rattlers announced their move to the IFL from the

. They started on a 2-game losing streak heading into their first bye week before defeating the

Colorado Crush The Colorado Crush were an arena football team based in Denver, Colorado. They began play as a 2003 Arena Football League expansion team. The Crush played in the Central Division of the American Conference until the Arena Football League suspen ...

at home 71–29. The Rattlers finished the season with a conference best 12–4, including a season-ending 8 game win streak, earning the first seed in the Intense Conference. In the Intense Conference championship, they defeated the

Nebraska Danger The Nebraska Danger was a professional indoor football team based in Grand Island, Nebraska, and a member of the Indoor Football League (IFL). The team was founded in 2011 by Charlie Bosselman as an expansion member of the IFL. The Danger played ...

at home by a score of 62–36.

Sioux Falls Storm

In 2017, the Storm began the regular season with 8 straight wins, including a 40–29 victory over the Arizona Rattlers in week 1, before a 44–36 loss to the

Wichita Falls Nighthawks The Wichita Falls Nighthawks were a professional indoor American football team. They were based in Wichita Falls, Texas. The team was headquartered in Wichita Falls and played its home games at Kay Yeager Coliseum. The Nighthawks first joined the ...

. They finished the season with a 14–2 record, earning the top seed in the United Conference and the best record in the league, which they secured with a 45–24 victory over the

Iowa Barnstormers The Iowa Barnstormers are a professional indoor American football, indoor football team based in Des Moines, Iowa. They are currently members of the Indoor Football League (IFL). They play their home games at Wells Fargo Arena (Des Moines, Iowa) ...

in week 18. In the United Conference championship, they were victorious in their rematch against the Barnstormers by a score of 66–32.

Box score

References

{{Arizona Rattlers United Bowl

United Bowl United Bowl may refer to: * The championship game of the former United Indoor Football league from 2005 to 2008 * The championship game of the Indoor Football League, which acquired UIF, from 2009 to the present * The proposed name of the 2009 U ...

Arizona Rattlers Sioux Falls Storm Sports competitions in South Dakota