The teams in the league were the Coaldale Big Green, Wilkes-Barre Barons, Shenandoah Yellow Jackets, Gilberton Cadamounts, and Pottsville Maroons.
In the years following World War I, the coal mining towns of eastern Pennsylvania produced a number of outstanding football clubs.
An annual competition between the locals for the Curran Cup produced a game that was arguably the equal of that played by the fledgling National Football League.
The main reason for the league was to first put an end to teams raiding their opponents' rosters for big-name players.
Many of the teams spent a lot of money signing talented players and in order to play them, the managers and owners relied heavily of the number of people in attendance for both home and road games.
As a result of the meeting, a schedule was agreed upon of twelve set dates from the beginning of October until the end of November.
This move was also designed to allow non-league contests of natural rivals from nearby towns to take place at different intervals during and after the league's scheduled games.
Gilberton acquired three new star players just days before their season opener with the signings of Ben Shaw, Cecil Grigg, and Lou Smyth, all formerly of the NFL's Canton Bulldogs.
The teams further contended that if an eligible list is made and the club must be held to that, then the players get the upper hand on the management and can demand almost any price for a game.
Gildea was unable to make the other managers of the AFL agree with his ideas; as a result, the Coaldale team quit the newly formed league.
These improvements were made because most of the managers believed that their teams were worthy of the status of a major professional football league.
Giberton, which was led by future Pro Football Hall of Famer Fritz Pollard, finished second in the standings.