The league was formed in 2019 and began competition in 2020, comprising all eight members of the former Portage Trail Conference Metro Division.
A previous Metro Athletic Conference existed primarily in Mahoning, Trumbull, and Columbiana Counties until 2014.
[6] The current Metro Athletic Conference was established in April 2019 after the superintendents of all eight school districts that made up the Portage Trail Conference (PTC) Metro Division voted to move forward with establishing a new league separate from the PTC to begin play in August 2020.
Reasons given for leaving the PTC included concerns over officiating, scheduling, and league operations, along with the desire for a third-party commissioner and more educational opportunities.
[11] For football this would mean one inter-school scrimmage followed by a modified 6-game regular season with every team qualifying for the state playoffs.