Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report

by Dan Krieger
Published on March 26, 2012 under Ultimate Indoor Football League (UIFL)

North American League: Several NAL Northern Division teams have announced their 2012 schedules and it looks like the NAL will again have ten teams for its upcoming 2012 season with a four-team Northern Division and a six-team Southern Division consisting of all Texas-based teams. The Maui Na Koa Ikaika is the only returning team from the 2011 five-team Northern Division, as the Calgary Vipers, Chico Outlaws, Edmonton Capitals, and Lake County Fielders will not return for 2012. The 2011 Yuma Scorpions were renamed the Panthers under new ownership and moved to the Northern Division. The expansion San Rafael (CA) Pacifics and the Fullerton (CA) Flyers complete the division. The Flyers are the former Orange County Flyers team that sat out the 2011 season. The Southern Division includes the returning Edinburg Roadrunners, McAllen Thunder, San Angelo Colts, and Rio Grande Valley WhiteWings (Harlingen), along with the expansion Abilene Prairie Dogs and the Fort Worth Cats, which were part of the 2011 American Association. There will be no inter-divisional games during the season.

Northwest League: The city of Hillsboro (OR), just west of Portland, is considering construction of a new ballpark for a team in the short-season Class-A Northwest League. Over the past few months, nearby Milwaukie (OR), just south of Portland, has been working on ballpark construction plans for a Northwest League team. Clark County (WA) officials recently voted down an admissions tax that would have helped fund a proposed new ballpark in Vancouver (WA), just north of Portland. The league's Yakima (WA) Bears have been mentioned as a potential relocation candidate to the Portland area.

Indy Baseball League: The proposed new IBL has decided to push its start back a year until the summer of 2013. In addition to a previously announced team for the Detroit area, the league now plans to place teams in Marion (OH) and Muncie (IN).

Freedom Pro Baseball League: The new FPBL's proposed Montezuma Federals team has reached an agreement to play home games at Yavapai College in Prescott (AZ) when the league starts play this May.

Sunbelt Baseball League: The new Arizona-based Sun Belt Summer League plans to start play in 2012 and will include the Bisbee Ironmen, the Bisbee-Douglas 9, and four Tucson-based teams. The league hopes to be part of the summer-collegiate National Baseball Congress annual tournament.

BASKETBALL

Florida Basketball Association: The new FBA has announced the schedule for its inaugural 2012 season that will run from early May to early July. The league will consist of six teams called the Florida Flight (Orlando), Heartland Prowl (Avon Park), Miami Stars, Palm Beach Titans (West Palm Beach), Panama City Dream, and Tampa Bay Rebels. The Miami Stars will be a travel-only team in 2012, but will try to play a full schedule in 2013. The Florida Flight played in the 2011 Continental Basketball League (CBL), while the Miami Stars and Palm Beach Titans were at one time listed as proposed CBL teams. The Panama City Dream and Heartland Prowl had previous affiliations with the American Basketball Association.

American Basketball Association: The ABA has announced two new teams called the Lakewood (WA) Panthers and the Carolina Destiny, based in Wilmington (NC), will be part of the 2012-13 season. Lakewood, which is located near Tacoma (WA), will be added to the Pacific Northwest Division. The ABA had a previous Wilmington-based team called the Wilmington Sea Dawgs that was part of the 2006-07 season, but that team left the next season for the Premier Basketball League.

Women's United States Basketball Association: The WUSBA now plans on having 32 teams when it starts play in November 2015. The league recently added a sixth division called the Midwest Division and realigned some of its proposed teams. Teams called the San Diego Aces and Utah Summit, along with a yet-to-be-named team in Detroit have also been added to the league lineup.

National Basketball Association Development League: The Dakota Wizards of the NBA D-League will be meeting next week with city officials to discuss the team's future in Bismarck (ND). When the Golden State Warriors purchased the team last June, they announced the team would remain in Bismarck for 2011-12, but they planned to evaluate whether to relocate the Wizards.

FOOTBALL

Continental Indoor Football League: The Dayton Silverbacks of the CIFL have undergone another ownership change after one of its owners recently left the team. It appears as though new funding sources will be needed to keep the team alive for the remainder of the 2012 season.

United Indoor Football League: The Western PA Wildcatz, a team from the semi-pro Western Pennsylvania Indoor Football League, took the place of the UIFL's Huntington Hammer in a scheduled league game against the Cincinnati Commandos. The team was billed as the Huntington Wildcatz. The Huntington Hammer played in the 2011 Ultimate Indoor Football League, but dropped out after that league was taken over by the UIFL. The UIFL then placed a fill-in team called the Huntington Hammer on the 2012 schedule for four road games.

American Indoor Football: A team called the Chattanooga Generals has reportedly joined the AIF and will play four exhibition games in 2012 against current AIF teams. The Generals will be based in East Ridge (TN) and the team plans on becoming a full league member in 2013. A proposed East Ridge-based team called the Tennessee Rail Runners had been announced for the 2012 season of the Ultimate Indoor Football League, but that team disappeared when the UIFL was sold and became the United Indoor Football League.

American Professional Football League: The semi-pro indoor APFL has started its 2012 season and expanded to eight full-schedule teams. These include the Council Bluffs (IA) Express, Kansas Koyotes (Topeka), Mid-Missouri Outlaws (Sedalia), Sioux City (IA) Bandits, Springfield (MO) WolfPack, along with three expansion teams called the Cheyenne (WY) Warriors, Colorado Lightning (Monument/Denver), and Oklahoma Defenders (Tulsa). Last season's Iowa Blackhawks team came under new ownership and was renamed the Council Bluffs Express. Two provisional teams from last season called the Florida Scorpions and Kansas City Matadors did not return for 2012.

HOCKEY

Central Hockey League: The ownership of the CHL's Dayton Gems has stated that unless additional investors are found for the franchise, the team will not operate next season. The league's Fort Wayne Komets and Evansville IceMen franchises are reportedly considering a move to the ECHL for next season.

North American Hockey League: It looks as though some of the Tier-II junior-level NAHL teams that planned to sit out the 2012-13 season will be returning. The Dawson Creek Rage could not gain entry into the Alberta Junior Hockey League and the Wenatchee Wild will have to wait until 2013-14 to move to the British Columbia Hockey League, so both of those teams will be back in the NAHL. The Fresno Monsters and Michigan Warriors will also return. Either the St. Louis Bandits or the Springfield (MO) Junior Blues could be moving to Johnstown (PA) for next season.

United States Hockey League: The Indiana Ice (Indianapolis) of the Tier-I USHL will have to look for a new home arena after the 2011-12 season. The team's home at the Pepsi Coliseum will be undergoing a two-year renovation project.

SOCCER

Major League Soccer: As the MLS searches for potential expansion markets in the Southeast, league representatives are expected to visit the Cary/Raleigh (NC) area next month. Similar visits were made to Miami and Orlando as the league looks to add a 20th team. Atlanta, Minneapolis, and New York City were also under consideration for an expansion franchise.

Canadian Soccer League: After playing its inaugural season in the 2011 CSL, the Ottawa-based Capital City FC has announced it will not return to the CSL for the 2012 season.

Women's Premier Soccer League - Elite League: The New York Fury has replaced the Aztec MA club for the inaugural 2012 season of the WPSL Elite League. The Aztec MA was to be based outside of Boston, but apparently ran into scheduling conflicts. The New York Fury was the semi-pro feeder team to the Philadelphia Independence of the 2011 Women's Professional Soccer. With the addition of New York, the WPSL Elite League was able to remain at eight teams for its upcoming 2012 season.

Dan Krieger is the creator of the "leagueology almanac" known as "Leagues, Teams & Nicknames", which tracks the changes in league alignments, franchise movements and team nicknames in today's sports world. The latest 2010-11 edition is available at http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/leagues-teams-nicknames-the-leagueology-almanac-2010-11/15228513. Dan can be contacted at dankrieger@leaguesteamsnicknames.com.

Ultimate Indoor Football League Stories from March 26, 2012

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• Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report - OSC Original by Dan Krieger

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer(s), and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.