Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report
by Dan Krieger
February 28, 2011 - North American League (NAmL)
BASEBALL
North American League: The Schaumburg Flyers franchise, which was planning to be part of the inaugural 2011 season in the NAL, has been evicted from its home field due to unpaid back rent. The Flyers' ownership has been trying to sell the team and now has a March 6 deadline. The eviction allows Schaumburg to negotiate with another league, possibly the Frontier League, to place a team on the field.
Ultimate Baseball League: The city of Johnstown (PA) plans to sign an agreement for a UBL team to play in its Point Stadium in 2011. The proposed UBL, which is operated by a co-owner of the new Ultimate Indoor Football League, plans to start its inaugural season in June 2011. As of now, Canton (OH) has been the only other city announced for a UBL team.
American Association: Plans for a new ballpark to be built in Montgomery County (TX), about 40 miles north of Houston, for a proposed independent AA team have been delayed due to funding and other issues. The ballpark and the team were planning to be ready for the 2012 season, but this will be pushed back. The Ventura Sports Group, which owns the El Paso Diablos and Grand Prairie (TX) AirHogs in the AA, is involved in the Montgomery County project.
BASKETBALL
Women's United States Basketball Association: After failing to launch as planned last summer with 15 proposed new teams, the WUSBA plans to start up again in June 2011 with 20 teams split into 4 regional divisions called the Southern, Appalachian, Piedmont, and Atlantic. The league organizer had been planning a men's league known as the United States Basketball Association for a couple of years, but it also failed to start as planned in April 2010.
Women's Blue Chip Basketball League: The semi-pro WBCBL has over 50 teams listed for its upcoming 2011 season and has added several new teams to its regional divisions. Some of these include the Boston Bombers, and Hudson Valley Queenz in a New England division; the Lowcountry Fire and Winston-Salem Lady War Cats in the Atlantic; the Bayou Angels in the Gulf South; the Newberry (SC) Lady Panthers and Columbus (GA) Lady Wings in the South; the Austin Elite and OKC Game Time in the South West; the Detroit Black Hawks, Oakland-Macomb Run, Cincinnati Storm, and Cleveland Am Proers in the North East; Minnesota Ice in the North Central; and Brevard Flame, Central Florida Dream, and Florida Knighthawks in the Suncoast division.
National Basketball Association: The Sacramento Kings of the NBA asked the league for an extension on a March 1 deadline to inform the league if the franchise plans to relocate next season. The league has stated that the Kings have had discussions about a possible move to the Honda Center in Anaheim (CA).
American Basketball Association: The ABA recently updated is 2011 expansion team list that now includes the Lima (OH) Explosion, Conway (AR) Cyclones, Bluff City Reign (Memphis), Tre 4 Cheetahs (Winston-Salem area), Carolina Jaguars (Raleigh-Durham, NC), and Richmond Warriors.
FOOTBALL
Stars Football League: The new Detroit-based SFL is a proposed springtime professional league that plans to start play in 2011. The league currently has six teams listed for its inaugural season, but is also working to establish a West Coast team and a Las Vegas-based team for 2011.
Canadian Football League: The CFL plans to add a new Ottawa franchise to its East Division in 2013 and move the Winnipeg Blue Bombers to the West Division. The addition of Ottawa will create an uneven number of teams with a four-team East Division and a five-team West Division, so one team will have a bye each week. The league has been considering a tenth team based in Atlantic Canada with Moncton (New Brunswick) and Halifax (Nova Scotia) as leading candidates. As part of an event called "Touchdown Atlantic", the CFL held a 2010 regular-season game in Moncton and will return to Moncton with a regular-season game in 2011. The challenges for a potential tenth franchise will be developing a suitable ownership group and a stadium that meets league requirements.
Continental Indoor Football League: The CIFL has started its 2011 season with six franchises. The Chicago Knights (last season's Chicago Cardinals), Cincinnati Commandos, and Dayton Silverbacks (last season's Miami Valley Silverbacks) return from last season, while the league added the new Marion (OH) Blue Racers, Port Huron (MI) Predators, and the Indianapolis Enforcers travel team for 2011. Of the six teams from last season, the Fort Wayne FireHawks, Marion Mayhem, and Wisconsin Wolfpack did not return. The CIFL is entering its sixth season of play.
Independent Indoor Football Alliance: The semi-pro IIFA has made some changes to its team lineup for 2011 and is now up to eight teams. The Carrollton-based Dallas Americans team, which was a non-league team that planned to play one road game against each of the other seven IIFA teams, is now a full member of the league and will play at least three home games in 2011. The Longview-based East Texas Drillers team has been sold and renamed the East Texas Wranglers. Some of the IIFA teams will play games against the Reno Barons and San Jose Wolves of the dormant American Indoor Football Association - West in 2011.
HOCKEY
Central Hockey League: The owner of the Laredo Bucks in the CHL has expressed an interest in possibly moving to the Tier II Junior-A North American Hockey League for next season. The owner of the CHL's Corpus Christi IceRays made the move to the NAHL after the 2009-10 season. When the league's Amarillo Gorillas announced they would not return for the 2010-11 season, an NAHL team called the Amarillo Bulls moved into that market.
American Hockey League: A final location has yet to be selected for a new arena to be built in Allentown (PA) for the AHL affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers that is currently playing in Glens Falls (NY) as the Adirondack Phantoms. The arena is not expected to be ready until the 2013-14 season. The AHL's former Philadelphia Phantoms temporarily relocated to Glens Falls (NY) as the Adirondack Phantoms prior to the 2009-10 season, while waiting for completion of its new arena in Allentown
SOCCER
Major Indoor Soccer League: The MISL reports it has been in talks with investors in Wichita (KS) about having a team called the Wichita Wings in the 2011-12 season. The city had a longtime indoor soccer team called the Wichita Wings that folded in 2001.
Southern Premier Soccer League: The six-team SPSL is in its inaugural fall-winter 2010-11 season with teams playing a 20-game schedule. The SPSL wants to provide players a chance to compete on a year-round basis by having games from October to March. The league will play a spring-summer schedule in 2011 before the first full 40-game natural season begins in October 2011 and ends in April or May. The Rio Grande Valley Bravos team, which was dropped by the United Soccer Leagues Premier Development League after the 2010 season, has joined the SPSL as the Rio Grande Valley Ocelots. Teams called the Memphis Rogues and Santos FC plan to join for the 2011-12 season.
National Premier Soccer League: The men's elite-level NPSL plans to operate with 36 teams in 2011 with 26 teams returning from last season plus the addition of 10 new teams. The new teams include the Mass United FC Riders (Boston), Seacoast United (Hampton, NH), AC Crusaders (Egg Harbor, NJ), Buxmont Torch (Ottsville, PA), Georgia Revolution (Conyers), Knoxville (TN) Force, FC Hasenthal (Conejo Valley, CA), Rattlers FC (Lancaster, CA), SD Flash (San Diego), and Santa Ana (CA) Winds.
Women's Premier Soccer League: The WPSL, which is affiliated with the men's National Premier Soccer League, has announced a new Pensacola-based team called the Gulf Coast Texans will be part of the league's Sunshine Conference in 2011. The Texans are operated by the Dallas Texans Florida, which is the Florida Division of the Dallas Texans top youth soccer club. The ownership of two previously announced WPSL professional teams called the Bay Area Sol and the Orange County Sol has decided to give each team a new name. The Bay Area Sol is now the Bay Area Breeze and the Orange County Sol is now the Orange County Wave. The Los Angeles FC Chelsea has been renamed the Los Angeles Premier FC for the 2011 season.
Pacific Coast Soccer League: The PCSL has announced the teams for both its 2011 men's and women's divisions. The men's Premier Division and Reserve Division will each have seven teams, while the women's Premier Division will have ten teams and the women's Reserve Division will have nine teams.
OTHER
National Lacrosse League: The owner of the Calgary Roughnecks in the indoor NLL has stated that the team will need financial assistance to finish the current season. The owner had announced the team was up for sale at the beginning of this season. The Roughnecks entered the league for the 2001-02 season.
USA Rugby League: After announcing last month its initial plans for an inaugural 2011 season, the USARL now has seven teams ready to travel and not forfeit any games in 2011. Five of the teams-the Boston 13s, Jacksonville Axemen, New Haven Warriors, Philadelphia Fight, and Washington DC Slayers-came from last season's American National Rugby League (AMNRL). They join two other new teams called the Rhode Island Rebellion (Providence) and New Jersey Turnpike Titans. The Titans will be based at Rutgers University and the Rebellion was the former the New York Kodiaks club. Two other AMNRL teams called the Pittsburgh Sledgehammers, formerly the Pittsburgh Vipers, and the Alexandria Storm, formerly the Fairfax Eagles, will be "clubs under development" for the 2011 USARL. Another club called Oneida FC is based in Boston and will operate under the guidance of the Boston 13s. The USARL has been approached by other clubs called the Denver Wolverines, Utah Avalanche, Seattle Force, Orange County Outlaws, and Dallas Rugby League.
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 2009-10 edition is available at http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/leagues-teams-nicknames-2009-10/6534940. Dan can be contacted at dankrieger@leaguesteamsnicknames.com.
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North American League Stories from February 28, 2011
- Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report - OSC Original by Dan Krieger
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