New York Yankees (1936 AFL)


The New York Yankees of the second American Football League was the second professional American football team competing under that name. It is unrelated to the Yankees of the first AFL, the Yankees of the third AFL, the Yankees of the American Association and the Yankees of the All-America Football Conference. The Yankees played their home games in Yankee Stadium and Triborough Stadium in New York, New York. Jack McBride was the team’s head coach throughout its existence; Yankees' president James Bush served as president of the second American Football League in 1936.
Formed by signing National Football League players, primarily New York Giants, the 1936 Yankees battled the Boston Shamrocks and the Cleveland Rams for the league title. New York Giants-turned-Yankees also included end Les Borden and back Stu Clancy. The 1937 edition of the Yankees was never truly in the running as league newcomers Los Angeles Bulldogs were the only AFL team with a winning record as Los Angeles dominated the league with an unbeaten, untied 8-0-0 record.
While there was no "official" all-AFL team declared for the 1936 season, guard Alex Drobnitch was the sole Yankee to be named to the All-League team in 1937. Other Yankees stars include Dean Nesmith, Charlie Segal, Al Rose, and Irv "King Kong" Klein.
The complete domination of the AFL by the Bulldogs decimated attendance in Yankee Stadium as LA played the second half of its season on the American West Coast. With all the AFL clubs deeply in the red, the second American Football League – and the Yankees – closed up shop at the end of the 1937 season.

YearWLTFinishHead Coach
19365323rd Jack McBride
19372313rd Jack McBride

Link to AFL III Yankees?

Some sources indicate the Yankees of the third American Football League a continuation of the 1936-1937 Yankees, citing a common head coach and the continuing existences of two other AFL II teams, the Cincinnati Bengals and the Los Angeles Bulldogs. While circumstantial evidence hints at the Yankees having a similar continuation, there is no record of any Yankees games played in 1938 and 1939, and the 1940 Yankees team had different ownership/management from its 1937 namesakes, aside from their common head coach. They had a center, Henry Bogacki who played on the team.