In 1993, unhappy with the other choices in professional football, a small renegade group of players organized a new league, originally called "MCZFL" (Museum of Comparative Zoology Football League--so named because the field was in front of said museum in Cambridge.) The budding league initially used a small spongy green ball and the rules changed from game to game. Most games were played during the day, during the week. In January of 1994 the first MCZ Super Bowl was played, to little fanfare.
During the 1994 season the league expanded to include Friday late afternoon games on a field on Francis Ave. in Cambridge, although Super Bowl II was played at the original Oxford St. location. Super Bowl II was the first to have the now traditional tailgating postgame party. During the '94 season the league experimented in different balls, using at first a small vinyl ball and then a leather ball; smaller sized than the current regulation ball.
The league flourished through the next couple of seasons at the Oxford St. location, finally adapting the standard size ball, codifying the rules, while developing some of the traditions that make the league unique. The first MVP awards were given out and the game recap tradition was begun. Super Bowl IV was a stunning success, with the first ever halftime parade and an end zone celebration dance contest.
By 1997 it was clear that the league had outgrown its surroundings on Oxford St. The fifth season opened with much fanfare to a new location, Conway Park in Somerville, and a new name, OFL (or "Our Football League" - sometimes pronounced "Awful", but other times pronounced "Offal", like "Guts"). The '97 season was extremely successful, culminating in the largest Super Bowl yet. All previous attendance records were shattered.
The 1998 season, the league's sixth, began with controversy as the city of Somerville refused to pay for a new stadium and the league moved back to Cambridge where it has flourished since.