The club was established in 2004 when a group, led by Jon Bon Jovi, secured the rights to an AFL franchise in Philadelphia.

Graziani returned in week 12 against the New Orleans VooDoo and led the team to its highest scoring output in its short franchise history, winning 78–34.

In the playoffs, they defeated the Orlando Predators 41–26, then traveled to Atlanta to take on the Georgia Force in the Divisional Round, but lost 65–39.

He played well enough that when Graziani was healthy once more, the coaching staff decided to allow D'Orazio to keep the starting job.

Bon Jovi would then form another ownership group with members of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment five years later seeking to purchase the National Football League's Buffalo Bills; the Bon Jovi consortium was outbid by Terry and Kim Pegula.

[4][5] That offer was accepted, as the Soul returned in 2011 playing all their home games at the then-recently renamed Wells Fargo Center.

[12] In September 2014, New Orleans Saints wide receiver Marques Colston bought a share of the team; Jaworski remained the majority owner.

[13] In August 2015, additional pieces of the team were sold to Colston's Saints teammate, Philadelphia native Jahri Evans, and to former Eagles coach Dick Vermeil.

In the playoffs, they first defeated the Tampa Bay Storm, then the Jacksonville Sharks, to claim the American Conference Championship.

In ArenaBowl XXIX, they defeated the National Conference Champion Arizona Rattlers 56–42 to claim their second AFL Championship.

[15][16] On July 20, 2023, new AFL commissioner Lee Hutton stated to The Philadelphia Inquirer that the Soul would be revived with the new league with former co-owner Ron Jaworski expected to return, if not as an owner, then as a consultant.

[1] Jaworski stated in November that, for "no particular reason," he would not be involved with the traveling team bearing the Soul's name, and that Hutton's previous claim was untrue.

He also revealed that the team would play their 2024 home schedule at CURE Insurance Arena in Trenton, New Jersey.

[19] Starting quarterback Joe Mancuso was among those who had left the team, with his agent accusing the league of misrepresenting itself and housing the team in a Super 8 Motel in a decrepit part of the city instead of the promised apartments; Mancuso immediately returned to the Indoor Football League following the fiasco.

[20][21] In May of 2024, General Manager Kelly Logan announced via the "TAKE THE 8 COUNT" YouTube channel that the team will cease operations for the rest of the 2024 season.

[23] As members of the East Division, the Soul and Power met twice a year, with each team hosting one home game.

The Gladiators announced that they would not play the 2018 or 2019 seasons due to renovations on Quicken Loans Arena that required it to close during the basketball off-season.

Philadelphia hosted the defending champions in the American Conference championship, which the Soul ran away with 89–34 to advance to the ArenaBowl.

In the 2016 AFL playoffs, the Soul got revenge, defeating the Sharks in the American Conference Championship game, advancing to ArenaBowl XXIX.

The Jacksonville Sharks left the AFL for the National Arena League after the 2016 season, ending the Soul-Sharks rivalry.

The Soul logo appeared on a 2008 episode of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia entitled "Dennis Reynolds: An Erotic Life".

Ashton Kutcher's character, Colt Bennett, wore a Soul T-shirt in season 1 episode 4 of The Ranch.

On a Season 5 punishment of Impractical Jokers, Joe Gatto has to shoot his own clothes into the crowd at a Soul game.

Prior to the start of the 2019 season, the AFL partnered with Phenom Elite to provide uniforms for the league.