Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report
by Dan Krieger
December 26, 2012 - Lone Star Football League (LSFL)
BASEBALL
American West Baseball League: The proposed new AWBL, which plans to start play in the summer of 2013, announced it signed a letter of intent with an individual who will operate an AWBL team in a yet-to-be-named northern California location starting in 2014. This is conditioned on approval of a feasibility study and construction of a ballpark.
Texas League: Business leaders in San Antonio, which is home to the San Antonio Missions team in the Double-A Texas League, are looking to build a new downtown stadium to Triple-A standards that could be expanded into a Major League Baseball stadium in the future.
Atlantic Baseball League: The group trying to bring an independent ABL team to Malden (MA), near Boston, has signed a lease on a major land parcel that will be used to build a proposed new ballpark. Other smaller parcels of land will need to be obtained and the 2015 season is projected for ballpark completion.
Pecos League: The independent Pecos League reports a team called the Carlsbad (NM) Bats could be added to its 2013 Southern Division if a proposed team (Pecos Bills) in West Texas does not play.
Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League: The Watertown Wizards team in the summer-collegiate PGCBL has changed its name to the Watertown Rams. The owner of the league's Oneonta Outlaws sold its PGCBL team and will operate a team called the Saratoga Phillies in the 2013 New England Collegiate Baseball League. The Outlaws owner also sold the Oneonta Outlaws brand to a buyer who plans to operate a new Oneonta Outlaws team in the 2013 New York Collegiate Baseball League.
Sunkist Winter League: An organization called International Performance Baseball will operate the SWL from January 8-29, 2013 based out of the Palm Bay (FL) Regional Sports Complex. This winter instructional league will assess and evaluate players for the 2013 independent baseball leagues.
BASKETBALL
Independent Basketball Association: The IBA and the Premier Basketball League have announced a merger as the IBA-PBL for the 2013 season that will start in March. The leagues will combine teams and have a united front office run by the head of the IBA. The combined league listed 19 teams that will be part of either a Midwest or East division with several others teams to be announced. The IBA started play in 2011 and has completed a 2011-12 winter season, a 2012 spring season, and is finishing its 2012-13 winter season that ends next month. The PBL has been around for the past five seasons (2008-12) playing a January through March schedule, but previously announced its 2013 season would start in March.
American Basketball Association: The ABA has announced a new team called the New York Jamm, based in Westchester County, will join the league for the 2013-14 season.
American Basketball League: The proposed new 12-team ABL, which plans to start its 24-game regular season in January 2013 with teams in Florida and Texas, has changed the Central Texas Revolution (San Marcos) to the South Texas Revolution (Laredo).
Bikini Basketball Association: The proposed Chicago Desire team in the new eight-team BBA has been disbanded and replaced by a team called the Chicago Crave. The BBA plans to start play in 2013.
FOOTBALL
Stars Football League: The springtime SFL has released its 2013 schedule that will have five Florida-based teams each playing four games in April and May. The Daytona Beach Racers, Fort Lauderdale Barracudas and Fort Myers Swampdogs, which were the only teams in the league's 2012 shortened season, will be joined by the Miami Ironmen and Fort Pierce Orange. The Fort Pierce Orange and a team called the Port St. Lucie Ironmen were announced for 2012, but never played. The SFL will be attempting its third season in 2013.
Lone Star Football League: The Texas-based indoor LSFL has released its 2013 schedule with only five teams for its second season. The West Texas Roughnecks (Midland/Odessa) and the proposed new McAllen Toros are missing. The Roughnecks' owner put the team up for sale after the season. The Toros will sit out the 2013 season and could start in 2014. The Roughnecks started as the Odessa Roughnecks in the first season of the Intense Football League in 2004; switched to the National Indoor Football League for 2005; moved back to a restarted Intense Football League for three seasons (2006-08); moved to the Indoor Football League in 2007 as part of the merger of the Intense Football League and United Indoor Football; changed its name to the West Texas Roughnecks before the 2010 season; and left the IFL for the first season of the LSFL in 2012. The McAllen Toros team was announced as a new LSFL franchise soon after the league's Rio Grande Valley Magic, based in nearby Hidalgo, folded after the 2012 season.
National Canadian Arena Football League: The proposed new NCAFL has changed its name to the Global Indoor Football League. The NCAFL was planning to start an indoor league with a proposed start in 2014 with all teams based in Canada.
Sugar N Spice Football League: The Texas-based SSFL, which is a lingerie-style women's indoor football league that played a short inaugural season with five teams in 2012, now lists two new teams called the Houston Venus and South Padre Pirates for the 2013 season.
Sports Bra Football League: The proposed new women's indoor SBFL plans to start play in May 2013 and currently lists nine teams. These include the Louisiana-based Baton Rouge Felines, Slidell Spiderbacks, Louisiana Starletts and New Orleans Lady Bobcats, along with the Texas-based Conroe Lady Sharks, Humble Lady Hurricanes, Missouri City Lady Hawks, Texas Lady Bulls and Texas Mighty Diamonds. The Texas Mighty Diamonds team was part of the Lady Arena Football League that started play in 2012 with four teams and did not complete its season. The Baton Rouge Felines team had been listed as a potential LAFL expansion team and the LAFL had a New Orleans team called the Lady Dollz.
Alliance Indoor Football League: The proposed new AIFL plans to start play in March 2013 with ten teams called the Chattahoochee Valley Vipers, Chattanooga Outlaws, Indianapolis Panthers, Kearney (NE) Hawks, Maryland Bucks (originally the Chesapeake Iron Eagles), Muncie Bandits (travel team), New York Wolves (originally the Sharks), West Virginia Wolfpack (originally the Wolves), Windy City Hitmen, and Wisconsin Knights. A team called the Kansas City Phantoms was announced as a 2014 expansion team.
HOCKEY
Federal Hockey League: The new league-operated New York Bluefins travel team, which replaced the defunct Cape Cod Bluefins franchise of Hyannis (MA), started play this past week. The Cape Cod Bluefins dropped out of the league earlier this month due to financial issues. That franchise started as the Broom County Barons (Binghamton, NY) in the league's 2010-11 season, but moved to Hyannis as the Cape Cod Barons during the season. After the season, the team was sold and renamed the Cape Cod Bluefins for the 2011-12 season.
Central Hockey League: The CHL took over operations of its Quad City Mallards (Moline, IL) franchise at the start of the 2012-13 season and claims to be committed to the market. The league will continue keep the Mallards in the league, even if it has to run the team next season while looking for new ownership.
North American Hockey League: The Tier-II junior-level NAHL has granted membership for a team in Richfield (MN), a suburb of Minneapolis/St. Paul for the 2013-14 season. The ownership group acquired the league's inactive New Mexico Mustangs team that was part of the league for two seasons (2010-12).
Greater Metro Hockey League: The independent junior-level GMHL, which has 15 Ontario-based teams this season, wants to add a team in Amherstburg (Ontario) for the 2013-14 season.
SOCCER
National Women's Soccer League: The Seattle-based team in the new eight-team women's pro soccer league to be operated by the United States Soccer Federation in 2013 will be called the Seattle Reign FC. The city had a women's pro basketball team by the same name in the fall-winter American Basketball League, which started in 1996 and folded midway through its third season in December 1998. The Seattle Sirens was rumored to have been under consideration as a team name. Other 2013 NWSL teams will include the Boston Breakers, Chicago Red Stars, FC Kansas City Blues, Portland Thorns, Sky Blue FC (New Jersey), Washington (DC) Spirit and the Western New York Flash (Buffalo/Rochester).
United Soccer Leagues - Premier Development League: The PDL will add a new team called the Reál Boston Rams for the 2013 season.
United Soccer Leagues - W-League: The Victoria (British Columbia) Highlanders announced the club will not field a team in the W-League for the 2013 season. The Highlanders joined the W-League for the 2011 season. The club will field a 2013 team in the Pacific Coast Soccer League women's Premier Division where it last played in 2010.
United Soccer Leagues - PRO: Major League Soccer is reportedly talking with the Division-III USL PRO league about integrating schedules with its MLS Reserve Division.
OTHER
American Ultimate Disc League: The AUDL's professional Ultimate Frisbee team based in New York City will be called the New York Empire and hopes to start play in the league's second season in 2013. The AUDL recently settled a dispute over the New York territory with one of its 2012 teams called the Connecticut Constitution (New Britain). The owner of the Constitution left to take on a management role with the competing Major League Ultimate, which plans to start play in 2013 and will have a New York team called the New York Rumble. The Constitution could stay in Connecticut as part of the MLU in 2013 or possibly take over the MLU's previously announced New York Rumble franchise.
Dan Krieger is the creator of the "The Leagueology Almanac 2011-12", which tracks the changes in league alignments, franchise movements and team nicknames in today's sports world. The publication is currently available at www.amazon.com.
Lone Star Football League Stories from December 26, 2012
- 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.
