Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report
by Dan Krieger
April 15, 2024 - Canadian Premier League (CPL)
BASEBALL
Appalachian League: As the summer-collegiate Appy League's Bristol State Liners wait for a new ballpark to be built in Bristol (TN) to replace Devault Stadium in Bristol (VA), the team will be based in Greeneville (TN), home of the league's Greeneville Flyboys, for the 2024 season. The team will play home games in Greeneville and other Appy League ballparks along with some neutral-site games.
Atlantic League: The independent Atlantic League's Gastonia Baseball Club, which is replacing the terminated Gastonia (NC) Honey Hunters for the 2024 season, is soliciting potential permanent names for the team. The team will rebrand for the 2025 season and plans to hold six or seven "What If" games this season to obtain community input and test the response to some of these potential names.
American Association: The Lake Country DockHounds (Oconomowoc, WI) of the independent American Association will be renamed the Lake Country Flying Monkeys for a homestand (June 14-16) this season as the team celebrates the 85th anniversary of the "Wizard of Oz" movie.
Major League Baseball: Although Major League Baseball's Oakland Athletics announced the team will simply be called "The A's" or "The Athletics" when its starts playing in Sacramento next season, the team has filed trademarks for the "Sacramento A's" and "Sacramento Athletics". In preparation for the team's eventual move to Las Vegas in 2028, the team has also filed trademarks for the "Las Vegas A's", "Las Vegas Athletics" and the "Vegas Athletics".
Mid-America League: The Texarkana (TX) team in the new summer-collegiate MAL will be called the Texarkana Rhinos when the six-team league starts its inaugural season this summer.
Major League Baseball Draft League: The Trenton (NJ) Thunder will pay tribute to the golden retrievers that have served as bat dogs for the team for over ten seasons by being renamed the Trenton Goldens for two games in the 2024 season-a Bat Dog Celebration and a Bark in the Park Day.
BASKETBALL
East Coast Basketball League: The men's semi-pro ECBL has removed the Seven Cities Vets team, based in Norfolk (VA), for the remainder of the 2024 season for failing to meet league standards.
Women's American Basketball Association: The semi-pro WABA announced the addition of the Raleigh (NC) Aces team for the upcoming 2024 season.
FOOTBALL
American Arena League 2: The professional developmental AAL2 started its 2024 season last weekend and has posted schedules for 13 teams aligned in an eight-team East Division and a new five-team Texas-based West Division with teams playing six to eight games through June 7, 2024. Some of the teams' schedules include non-league games. Of the seven participating teams from last season, the returning Jersey Bearcats, Maryland Eagles, Western Maryland Warriors, and Steel City Stampede (Bethlehem, PA) will join the Carolina Predators, Peach State Cats (Suwanee, GA), Delaware Bullsharks (Wilmington), and Wheeling (WV) Miners in the East Division. The new West Division includes the Dallas Falcons, Austin Wolverines, Texas Hotshots (Dallas/Fort Worth), Waco Tornadoes, and West Texas Warriors (El Paso).
Canadian Football League: A group called the Atlantic Canada Moose Consortium wants to bring the CFL's tenth team to Charlotteville (Prince Edward Island) with an expansion team to be called the Atlantic Moose. The group is also proposing construction of a new 25,000-seat stadium for the team.
International Football Alliance: The proposed new outdoor minor professional IFA, which plans to start play in the spring of 2025 with ten teams based in Mexico and the United States, recently announced the Tampa Tornadoes as a member. Currently, the IFA lists names for seven of eight teams. The previously announced Raramuris de Ciudad Juarez (Chihuahua) team is now the Chihuahua Rebellion (Rebels). Other teams include the Tiburones de Cancun (Quintana Roo), Tequileros de Jalisco (Guadalajara), Las Vegas Kings, Dallas Pioneros, Alabama Beavers and yet-to-be-named Portland (OR).
HOCKEY
Greater Metro Hockey League: Canada's independent junior-level GMHL recently announced the Ottawa Valley Wolves (Ottawa) have been added as a 2024-25 expansion team. The team will play at the Sensplex, which is the practice facility of the National Hockey League's Ottawa Senators. The GMHL's other 2024-25 expansion team to be based in Wasaga Beach (Ontario) will be called the Wasaga River Dragons and will also be affiliated with the Columbus (GA) River Dragons of the minor professional Federal Prospects Hockey League. The Columbus River Dragons will also continue their affiliation that started in 2019 with the GMHL's Bradford Bulls.
National Collegiate Development Conference: The United States Premier Hockey League's Tier-II junior-level NCDC announced its Boston Junior Bruins team has sold its NCDC franchise to the new West Chester Wolves team that was recently added to the NCDC for the 2024-25 season. The Boston Junior Bruins will continue to operate teams in the USPHL's Tier-III Premier and Elite conferences.
National Hockey League: The owner of the National Basketball Association's Utah Jazz (Salt Lake City) is soliciting nicknames for a potential NHL team as part of an attempt to obtain a relocated or expansion team for Salt Lake City. Several reports indicate the NHL's Arizona Coyotes will be sold and relocated to Salt Lake City as soon as the 2024-25 season and play at the Jazz's home arena until a new hockey arena is built. With the departure of the Coyotes, their American Hockey League affiliate called the Tucson Roadrunners could possibly move to the Coyotes' current home at the 5,000-seat Mullett Arena in Tempe.
United States Premier Hockey League: A new team called the Ventura Vikings (California) will be added to the Pacific Division of the USPHL's Tier-III junior-level Premier Conference for the 2024-25 season.
SOCCER
Canadian Premier League: Canada's Division-2 professional CPL started its 2024 season this week with the same eight teams as last season and is again aligned in a single-table format. Each team will play a 28-game schedule through October 19, 2024. Teams include the Atletico Ottawa ("Ottleti"), Cavalry FC "Cavs" (Calgary), Forge FC "The Hammers" (Hamilton), Halifax Wanderers (HFX Wanderers), Pacific FC "Tridents" (Langford, British Columbia), Valour FC (Winnipeg), Vancouver FC "Eagles" and the York United FC "The Nine Stripes" (Greater Toronto Area). The league reports several groups are interested in joining but it will probably remain at eight teams in 2025 and consider expansion for the 2026 season.
Project 8 League: The group called Project 8 Sports, which is trying to develop the first Canadian women's professional soccer league for a start in April 2025, announced the Atlantic Women's Football Club (AWFC) of Halifax (Nova Scotia) has joined as a fourth member. Previously announced cities were Vancouver, Toronto and Calgary. The league has applications from two other cities and those will be considered at a meeting next month.
USL Super League (United Soccer League): The Brooklyn Football Club (Brooklyn FC), which recently announced a men's team called the Brooklyn FC, which will start play in the 2025 season of the Division-II USL Championship, announced its women's team will also take the Brooklyn FC name when that team starts play in the new eight-team Division-I professional USL Super League starting in August 2024. Six of the eight Super League teams have announced names, while teams in Dallas/Fort Worth and Washington (DC) are expected to announce their names in the near future.
OTHER
Major League Quadball: The MLQ, formerly known as Major League Quidditch, recently posted its 2024 season schedule that will feature 15 teams from the United States and Canada aligned in a five-team East, South and North divisions. The league had 16 teams last season but the North Division's Rochester Whiteout team is sitting out the 2024 season. Various events are scheduled from June 1 through August 3, 2024, followed by a Championship event (August 17-19).
Dan Krieger is the creator of the Weekly Sports League & Franchise Report, which has been tracking the changes in the sports world's leagues, teams, and nicknames since April 2007.
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Canadian Premier League Stories from April 15, 2024
- 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.
