The Kentucky Horsemen (known as the Lexington Horsemen from 2003 to 2009) was an indoor football team based in Lexington, Kentucky. The team played its home games at Rupp Arena. The organization began as a 2003 expansion member of the National Indoor Football League, where they were successful. Following the 2004 season, where they defeated the Sioux Falls Storm to win Indoor Bowl IV, the Horsemen and other NIFL teams joined the new United Indoor Football (UIF) as a charter member, where they made the playoffs. They lost to the Sioux Falls Storm. They made the playoffs again in 2006 and advanced to United Bowl II where they lost to the Sioux Falls Storm. From 2008 to 2009, the Horsemen played in the AF2. The team announced intentions to compete in the new Arena Football League following the dissolution of the AF2, but instead ceased operations in October 2009.
During the 2007 season, the Horsemen finished with an 8âÂÂ7 regular season record and then advanced through the playoffs to United Bowl III. They faced the undefeated Sioux Falls Storm and lost the game 62âÂÂ59 after Collin Barber missed the potential game-tying field goal. The game was head coach Mike Zuckerman's final game.
The team's official mascot is Spike, a hero-like horseman.
On August 22, 2007, Horsemen owner Lennie House announced that the Horsemen had played their final game. He cited poor attendance and lowered revenue, a fate not unusual for UIF teams.
However, on October 16, 2007, House opted to remain in operations by announcing that he changed his mind and the Horsemen would be playing the 2008 season in arenafootball2, where they would have an in-state rivalry ("The War on I-64") with the Louisville Fire. The Horsemen adopted new jerseys that included a slight change in their blue color scheme.
The Horsemen saw numerous changes occur after the 2008 season. Most notably, ownership changed hands from the House family to the newly formed non-profit Horsemen Charitable Foundation. The foundation was spearheaded by former Horsemen general manager Brian Boehm in an effort to keep Central Kentucky from losing yet another professional sports team.
Just when they were about to play in the new Arena Football League in 2010, the team shut down operations due to financial situations. However, on the team's official website, a newly designed logo is shown with "Don't count us out yet!" underneath, possibly hinting at the team making a comeback.
|- | colspan="6" align="center" | Lexington Horsemen (NIFL) |- |2003 || 9 || 6 || 0 || 2nd Atlantic Eastern || Lost Round 1 (Ohio Valley 51âÂÂ42) |- |2004 || 10 || 4 || 0 || 1st Atlantic North || Won Round 1 (Atlantic City 54âÂÂ25)<br />Won Atlantic Semi-Final (Houma 70âÂÂ63)<br />Won Atlantic Conference Championship (Ohio Valley 35âÂÂ34)<br />Won Indoor Bowl IV (Sioux Falls 59âÂÂ38) |- | colspan="6" align="center" | Lexington Horsemen (UIF) |- |2005 || 11 || 4 || 0 || 1st South || Won Round 1 (Evansville 55âÂÂ50)<br />Lost Semifinals (Sioux Falls 62âÂÂ58) |- |2006 || 13 || 2 || 0 || 1st East || Won Semifinals (Rock River 47âÂÂ34)<br />Lost United Bowl II (Sioux Falls 72âÂÂ64) |- |2007 || 8 || 7 || 0 || 3rd East || Won Round 1 (River City 48âÂÂ33)<br />Won Eastern Championship (Bloomington 67âÂÂ49)<br />Lost United Bowl III (Sioux Falls 62âÂÂ59) |- | colspan="6" align="center" | Lexington Horsemen (af2) |- |2008 || 9 || 7 || 0 || 3rd AC Midwest || Lost AC Round 1 (Green Bay 65âÂÂ37) |- | colspan="6" align="center" | Kentucky Horsemen (af2) |- |2009 || 10 || 6 || 0 || 3rd AC South || Won AC Round 1 (South Georgia 66âÂÂ63)<br />Lost AC Semifinal (Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 82âÂÂ49) |- |Totals || 79 || 42 || 0 |colspan="2"| (including NIFL, UIF, & AF2 playoffs)