Professional Indoor Football Is Returning To La Crosse
August 6, 2009 - Indoor Football League (IFL)
La Crosse Spartans News Release
The La Crosse Spartans, an expansion professional football franchise, have signed a letter of intent to play within the Indoor Football League (IFL) beginning in March of 2010. The team is in discussion with the La Crosse Center to become its home-field venue.
"We are extremely excited to bring Professional Indoor Football back to the city of La Crosse," said Chris Kokalis, Spartans co-owner and general manager. "This is a great sports town and we look forward to becoming active members of the community. We are committed to building a long-term relationship with the city of La Crosse, local businesses, the Indoor Football League and football fans. We took a close look at several options regarding available leagues and were extremely impressed by the professionalism and stability of the IFL."
The Indoor Football League (www.goifl.com) is a 19-team league based out of Richmond, Virginia with franchises in 13 states (including Alaska). The league holds a 14-game regular season schedule that runs March through June. The IFL's playoffs culminate in August with the IFL United Bowl. In addition to a seven game home schedule, the Spartans will also host one pre-season game and a family night event.
The Spartans are co-owned by Wisconsin businessmen Chris Kokalis and Bob Sullivan. Kokalis has a lengthy resume within professional sports. He has held a variety of administrative, marketing and sales positions with teams such as the Minnesota Thunder, Milwaukee Rampage and Los Angeles Dodgers. Most recently, he served as General Manager of the Milwaukee Bonecrushers of the Continental Indoor Football League from October 2007 to April 2008. Sullivan has 32 years of business experience in sales, sales management and marketing in the United States and Canada. He is currently the Owner/President of RDS Print-Promo Solutions, a marketing firm that provides creative printing, apparel and promotional product solutions.
Kokalis and Sullivan are also in discussions with a potential local investor who is not being identified at this time.
Area football fans are likely to be very familiar with head coach Gilbert Brown, a Super Bowl Champion as a defensive lineman with the Green Bay Packers and a member of the team's hall of fame.
"Having the opportunity to become a part of a great community like La Crosse is an honor for me," said Brown. "I have always enjoyed my visits to the La Crosse area because it has some of the best football fans in the state. We have a lot of work to do to make sure that we put the best quality product on the field and bring a winning team to the community. I am up to the challenge. We have the opportunity to tap into local and regional talent and assist in the development of players working towards the chance to play in the NFL."
Brown is also the founder and philanthropist of the Gilbert Brown Foundation (www.gilbertbrownfoundation.org), a non-profit organization dedicated to providing youth with an environment that promotes structure and life-skills through team-building and acceptance of community diversity. The Gilbert Brown Foundation offers a free football camp for inner city youths, hosts a turkey giveaway, provides necessary school supplies for children, and donates coats and toys to children during the holidays. The foundation also sends footballs to America's troops serving overseas.
Indoor Football League Stories from August 6, 2009
- Indoor Football This Week - OSC Original by Danny Burnham
- Wisconsin team signs letter of intent to join IFL - IFL
- Wild Trainer Moves on to NFL - Wichita Wild
- Professional Indoor Football Is Returning To La Crosse - La Crosse Spartans
- SportsQuest IFL Indoor Football Team Season Tickets are Now on Sale - Richmond Revolution
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
