Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report
by Dan Krieger
December 27, 2021 - XFL (XFL)
BASEBALL
Minor League Baseball: The Staten Island (NY) Yankees, Tri-City ValleyCats (Troy, NY), Salem-Keizer (OR) Volcanoes and Norwich (CT) Sea Unicorns, four teams that lost their affiliations with Major League Baseball (MLB) prior to the 2021 season due to the restructuring of Minor League Baseball, have filed a civil complaint challenging MLB's antitrust exemption and argue the MLB overstepped its bounds when eliminating 40 teams as part of the restructuring. The Salem-Keizer Volcanoes team was dropped when its short-season Class-A Northwest League became a high Class-A league, so the team formed the Mavericks Independent Baseball League for the 2021 season. Staten Island, Tri-City and Norwich had been part of the affiliated short-season New York-Penn League that was eliminated as part of the restructuring. The Staten Island Yankees folded and a new Staten Island independent Atlantic League team will start play in 2022. The Tri-City ValleyCats joined the independent Frontier League for its 2021 season, while the Norwich Sea Unicorns moved to the Futures Collegiate Baseball League for the 2021 season.
Independence League Baseball: The new summer-collegiate Independence League, which was formed when seven teams left the summer-collegiate Expedition League after the 2021 season, announced the addition of a new team called the North Platte (NE) Plainsmen for the league's inaugural 2022 season.
Southern Shores Professional Baseball League: After completing a short inaugural 2021 season with four teams, the independent SSPBL plans to have eight teams in 2022 with games to be held in Myrtle Beach (SC), Greensboro (NC), Charlotte (NC) and Red Springs/Fayetteville (NC). The league lists the Carolina Yankees and Myrtle Beach Rams for Myrtle Beach; the Greensboro Raptors and Burlington Royals for Greensboro; the Charlotte Mighty Tigers and Carolina Dragons for Charlotte; and the Robeson Grays and Tar Heel Kings for Red Springs (NC).
BASKETBALL
Athletes Unlimited - Basketball: The organization known as Athletes Unlimited announced last month the launch of a new four-team women's professional basketball league that will play its inaugural five-week season at one location in Las Vegas from January 26 through February 26, 2022. The league will include various U.S. and international players along with former and current Women's National Basketball Association players. The league will follow the same format as similar Athletes Unlimited women's leagues that have been established in the sports of softball, volleyball and lacrosse.
Florida Basketball Association: A new team called the Lakeland Royals is organizing and hopes to be part of the league's 2022 season. The FBA season typically runs from March through July.
National Basketball Association Gatorade League (G-League): The NBA G-League, which just completed its Showcase Cup portion of the 2021-22 season earlier this week, announced it will delay the start of its regular season from December 27, 2021 until to January 5, 2022 due to the holidays and so teams can replenish their rosters after experiencing numerous NBA call-ups.
Official Basketball Association: As the semi-pro OBA finish its 2021 Fall season with playoffs next week, the league announced its 2022 Spring/Summer season will have teams aligned in North, South, Central, East, Independent and Alternate divisions. Some of the new teams to be added for the next season include the Wake County (NC) Wolverines, St. Paul (MN) Panthers, Quad City United (Davenport, IA), Omaha Cuttaz, Rockford (IL) Redblacks, Baldwin County (AL) Hoopers and Mississippi C-Hawks.
FOOTBALL
National Arena League: The NAL announced its 2022 season schedule will feature six teams each playing 12 games from April 23 through July 30, 2022. The league operated with six teams last season, but the Jersey Flight (Trenton) did not return and the San Antonio Gunslingers were added as a 2022 expansion team. The five returning teams include Albany (NY) Empire, Carolina Cobras (Greensboro, NC), Columbus (GA) Lions, Jacksonville Sharks and Orlando Predators.
XFL: As the XFL prepares for a return in the spring of 2023, the league stated it will be announcing its broadcast partners and some new teams and locations within the next month or two. San Antonio and Orlando have been mentioned as proposed new cities, along with possible teams in Canada and Mexico.
HOCKEY
Federal Prospects Hockey League: The FPHL held its second of three 2021-22 neutral-site regular-season games in Biloxi (MS) last weekend to gauge interest in a potential future FPHL team. The game between the Columbus (GA) River Dragons and the Carolina Thunderbirds (Winston-Salem, NC) drew a league record 7,288 fans for an FPHL game. The third Biloxi game is scheduled for December 30.
Western States Hockey League: The junior-level WSHL held a three-day Las Vegas Showcase this past week featuring five of its six active teams that are part of the Provincial Division. Only the league's Edmonton Eagles team did not participate. A total of ten games were played at the Las Vegas Ice Center.
SOCCER
Major Arena Soccer League 3: The amateur-level MASL3 (M3), which is affiliated with the Major Arena Soccer League and MASL2, announced the Des Moines (IA) United has been added to the league's Heartland Conference for the 2022 season. Play started last weekend in the 2022 Heartland Conference season that will also include the Springfield (MO) Demize, Sunflower State FC (Kansas City) and Wichita Wings II. The league's new five-team Eastern Conference starts play next month with teams called the Baltimore Kings, Philadelphia Spartans, Fredericksburg (VA) Fire, Northern Virginia FC (Leesburg) and Skyline City CF (Frederick, MD), which was formerly the Western Ville 1892. A previously announced Eastern Conference team called the Virginia Marauders (Virginia Beach) will start in 2022-23. The 2022 MASL3 season also lists two Michigan-based teams called the Muskegon Risers II and Grand Rapids Wanderers that comprised an Eastern North Conference last season.
USL Championship (United Soccer League): The Division-II professional USL Championship announced its 2022 season schedule will feature 27 teams aligned in a 14-team Eastern Conference and a 13-team Western Conference. Each team will play a 34-game schedule from mid-March to mid-October. Last season, the league operated with 31 teams aligned in two regional divisions per conference. Sporting Kansas City II, Real Monarchs SLC and Tacoma Defiance, all affiliated with Major League Soccer teams, left for the new Division-III professional MLS NEXT Pro league starting in 2022. The Austin Bold came under new ownership and is planning a 2023 return in a new market; the Oklahoma City Energy FC is sitting out the 2022 season due to home field renovations; and the Charlotte Independence dropped down to the Division-III USL League One for the 2022 season. The USL Championship added Detroit City FC from the Division-III National Independent Soccer Association along with the expansion Monterey Bay FC (Seaside) for the 2022 season.
USL W-League (United Soccer League): The new women's pre-professional USL W-League announced the Miami Athletic Club, or Miami AC, has joined for the league's inaugural 2022 season and it will also start a 2022 men's team in the pre-professional USL League Two.
USL League One (United Soccer League): The Division-III professional USL League One announced its 2022 season schedule will feature 11 teams each playing a 30-game schedule from early April to mid-October 2022. The league operated with 12 teams in 2021, but four teams (North Texas SC, Toronto FC II, Fort Lauderdale CF and New England Revolution II) affiliated with Major League Soccer teams left to join the new Division-III MLS NEXT Pro league that will be starting in 2022. The USL League One added the Charlotte Independence from the Division-II USL Championship and expansion teams called the Central Valley Fuego (Fresno) and Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC (Windsor) for the 2022 season.
National Indoor Soccer League: The new NISL started its inaugural 2021-22 season this weekend with four teams that will each have a team in a men's division and a women's division. The teams include the Columbus (GA) Rapids, Fayetteville (NC) Fire, Memphis Americans and the Rome (GA) Gladiators travel-only team. Columbus, Fayetteville and Memphis will each play 12 home and 8 road games, while Rome will play only 12 road games. The NISL regular season will run until the first week of April 2022.
OTHER
Athletes Unlimited ¬" Softball: The organization known as Athletes Unlimited announced it will return with a third season of its five-week women's professional softball league that will run from July 29 to August 28, 2022 with all games again played at Parkway Bank Sports Complex in Rosemont (IL). The Athletes Unlimited also announced a new two-week competition called AUX Softball will be held at a yet-to-be-announced city in June 2022 with 42 athletes playing 18 games.
Athletes Unlimited ¬" Volleyball: The organization known as Athletes Unlimited announced it will return with a second season of its four-team women's professional volleyball league that will start a five-week season in mid-March 2022. All games will again be played at the Fair Park Coliseum in Dallas.
Dan Krieger is the creator of the Weekly Sports League & Franchise Report, which has been tracking changes in the sports world's leagues, teams and nicknames since April 2007.
XFL Stories from December 27, 2021
- 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.
