|
Barrage Controlled by League; Travelling Team in 2008
|
|
Topic Started: Monday Dec 17 2007, 08:10 PM (310 Views)
|
|
WeatherManNX01
|
Monday Dec 17 2007, 08:10 PM
Post #1
|
The Yanks are coming!
- Posts:
- 14,858
- Group:
- Commissioner
- Member
- #4
- Joined:
- December 9, 2005
- NFL Team
- New England Patriots
- NBA Team
- Boston Celtics
- NHL Team
- Boston Bruins
- MLS Team
- New England Revolution
- NCAA Team
- Penn State Nittany Lions
|
From Inside Lacrosse:
- Quote:
-
The bell on the Philadelphia Barrage, the most successful franchise in the history of Major League Lacrosse, appears to have struck midnight.
According to sources close to the situation, the Barrage, whose future as an organization has been in doubt since taking home a second consecutive (third overall) league championship in late August, is on the brink of folding after seven years of MLL play, the last four of which were spent in Philadelphia.
“I don’t think there’s going to be a Philadelphia Barrage next season, but that’s just one guy’s opinion,” said one source. “Logic would dictate that if there isn’t [a team next season], there would be a dispersal draft, but that’s still just a hunch.”
Full article.
Damn. For a startup league from 2001, they have been very stable. The Barrage have moved from Bridgeport to Philadelphia, and the Bayhawks have moved from Baltimore to Washington, and the league expanded from six teams to ten teams a few years ago. No team has ever folded in the league's seven years of existence. To have a team fold...to have an original team fold...it's not something you want to see. I hope that the league can operate the team until they can find a buyer.
|
|
|
| |
|
WeatherManNX01
|
Wednesday Jan 9 2008, 10:35 PM
Post #2
|
The Yanks are coming!
- Posts:
- 14,858
- Group:
- Commissioner
- Member
- #4
- Joined:
- December 9, 2005
- NFL Team
- New England Patriots
- NBA Team
- Boston Celtics
- NHL Team
- Boston Bruins
- MLS Team
- New England Revolution
- NCAA Team
- Penn State Nittany Lions
|
From Inside Lacrosse:
- Quote:
-
Things seem to be looking up for the Philadelphia Barrage as members of the team say that dispersal looks unlikely, as had been previously reported. While there is still no official word on the future of the Barrage in Philadelphia, there are a few updates to share on the situation:
The Players’ Council, an organization comprised of two members from each team and spearheaded by Long Island’s Chris Massey, has a regularly scheduled conference call with MLL officials, likely including Commissioner Dave Gross, Tuesday night. While there are a number of issues to discuss with training camp starting in April, Philly rep Joe Ceglia anticipates his team’s situation will be a point of discussion.
The rumored Jan. 1 deadline for the Barrage’s dispersal has come and gone with the team in tact, and a number of players believe their threat to sit out next season if the Barrage did not play together pressured the League to more vigorously pursue alternatives like finding new ownership or take control of the team.
Full article.
Well, things are looking up, even if still a bit dark.
|
|
|
| |
|
WeatherManNX01
|
Thursday Jan 10 2008, 05:36 PM
Post #3
|
The Yanks are coming!
- Posts:
- 14,858
- Group:
- Commissioner
- Member
- #4
- Joined:
- December 9, 2005
- NFL Team
- New England Patriots
- NBA Team
- Boston Celtics
- NHL Team
- Boston Bruins
- MLS Team
- New England Revolution
- NCAA Team
- Penn State Nittany Lions
|
Here's an interesting blog entry from Inside Lacrosse:
- Quote:
-
As much as many players on the Barrage and some people here in our office think that the potential contraction of the defending champions would be extremely detrimental to the league’s future, this might actually be a positive development for the MLL.
Whether the Barrage relocate to another city (for the second time since ’03) or fold completely, the decision in Philadelphia should be viewed as a perfectly natural obstacle for a growing professional sports league to face.
Just look at one of the league’s contemporaries, Major League Soccer.
MLS, often seen as a model for the MLL to expand upon, experienced similar circumstances at almost exactly the same point in their young league’s lifespan.
After their initial season in 1996, the league enjoyed modest, but stable success – adding two expansion teams in 1998.
Five years in, however, the MLS hit a bump in the road with two teams in Florida.
In 2001, the league said sayonara to the Tampa Bay Mutiny and the Miami Fusion (anyone remember them?), which folded following a league decision to contract unprofitable teams.
But the league stayed determined, fighting through a series of team relocations, and peddled their product aggressively, adding four clubs from the 2004 season through 2007: Real Salt Lake, Chivas USA, Houston Dynamo, and Toronto FC.
Now they’re poised to add Seattle to the docket for 2009, which will expand the MLS to 15 teams.
By contrast, the MLL, already seven years in, has only relocated two teams, contracted none, and added four new squads – all in 2006 – that have enhanced the league’s geographic reach.
In order to add more teams in the future, it might behoove the league – and unsatisfied owners - to emulate the MLS and deal swiftly with franchises that have been losing money and failing to draw fans, even if that team is the defending champion.
Full entry.
I've often thought that MLS has had the best business model for a start-up sports league, one that leagues such as MLL needs to follow and even NLL and AFL to a degree.
|
|
|
| |
|
WeatherManNX01
|
Friday Jan 11 2008, 04:10 PM
Post #4
|
The Yanks are coming!
- Posts:
- 14,858
- Group:
- Commissioner
- Member
- #4
- Joined:
- December 9, 2005
- NFL Team
- New England Patriots
- NBA Team
- Boston Celtics
- NHL Team
- Boston Bruins
- MLS Team
- New England Revolution
- NCAA Team
- Penn State Nittany Lions
|
Major League Lacrosse has taken over the operations of the Barrage, who will play at least four "home" games as league promotionals in other markets.
- Quote:
-
Inside Lacrosse has confirmed that Major League Lacrosse has taken control of the Philadelphia Barrage and will operate the team this summer, avoiding the dispersal draft that had worried team members late last month.
According to a memo sent out by the League Friday morning, the Barrage will play at least four, if not all of their scheduled home games outside of Philadelphia, likely in promotional markets across the United States.
The memo also said that MLL considers the Barrage’s continued operation “in the best interest of the League,” a point emphasized by Barrage players rallying for the team’s preservation.
[Commissioner David] Gross said Friday afternoon that decisions regarding the Barrage, including their front office and player personnel decisions, are currently under the control of the MLL, and no decision has been made as to who will ultimately operate the franchise. He added that the Barrage’s former management system has been replaced by the League, and that no player personnel decisions will be made until a general manager is put in place by the League.
Full article.
Great move. Glad that the team is not going to fold. And the promo games will allow them to gauge where the team might move to (should they decide to do so) under new ownership.
|
|
|
| |
|
WeatherManNX01
|
Monday Feb 18 2008, 03:16 PM
Post #5
|
The Yanks are coming!
- Posts:
- 14,858
- Group:
- Commissioner
- Member
- #4
- Joined:
- December 9, 2005
- NFL Team
- New England Patriots
- NBA Team
- Boston Celtics
- NHL Team
- Boston Bruins
- MLS Team
- New England Revolution
- NCAA Team
- Penn State Nittany Lions
|
From WRAL (Raleigh-Durham-Fayettville):
- Quote:
-
Major League Lacrosse will hold a regular-season game in Cary June 21 as a way to gauge whether the Triangle could support one of its franchises.
Gross said an MLL franchise usually needs to average more than 5,000 fans to be financially viable.
Philadelphia will play Rochester at WakeMed Soccer Park in the match.
North Carolina, he said, is a top target for the league. The Triangle includes prominent lacrosse programs at Duke and North Carolina and the youth leagues in the market are booming
Full article.
|
|
|
| |
|
WeatherManNX01
|
Saturday Apr 19 2008, 12:14 PM
Post #6
|
The Yanks are coming!
- Posts:
- 14,858
- Group:
- Commissioner
- Member
- #4
- Joined:
- December 9, 2005
- NFL Team
- New England Patriots
- NBA Team
- Boston Celtics
- NHL Team
- Boston Bruins
- MLS Team
- New England Revolution
- NCAA Team
- Penn State Nittany Lions
|
From MajorLeagueLacrosse.com:
- Quote:
-
Major League Lacrosse (MLL), the premier professional outdoor lacrosse league, today announced that the defending MLL Champion Philadelphia Barrage will face the Long Island Lizards in a regular season game to be held at Texas Stadium in Dallas on Sunday, May 25th at 7:00 PM, according to MLL Commissioner David Gross. The matchup, which takes place during the second week of the MLL season, is the first time that a Major League Lacrosse game has been played in the state of Texas.
“Major League Lacrosse is thrilled to be bringing professional lacrosse to Dallas. I wish to thank all of the individuals who have made this a reality, in particular Stephen and Jerry Jones of the Dallas Cowboys for all of the efforts that have been put forth in securing this great venue,” said Commissioner Gross. “Youth lacrosse has been growing by leaps and bounds in Texas and we’ve kept our eye on the area as we considered future expansion. We would love to someday place a franchise in Dallas.”
"Texas Stadium has a long history and tradition of hosting some of the top events in the world of sports beyond the realm of football and we are delighted to be able to host the best in Professional Lacrosse," added Stephen Jones, COO and Executive Vice President of the Dallas Cowboys. "What better place to host the MLL Champions Barrage, than Texas Stadium. In recent years I have become a big fan of lacrosse and our region stands as one of the fastest growing places for the sport in the country. I believe football fans and lacrosse fans alike will be thrilled to watch the exciting MLL action live."
Full article.
|
|
|
| |
|
WeatherManNX01
|
Saturday Apr 19 2008, 12:16 PM
Post #7
|
The Yanks are coming!
- Posts:
- 14,858
- Group:
- Commissioner
- Member
- #4
- Joined:
- December 9, 2005
- NFL Team
- New England Patriots
- NBA Team
- Boston Celtics
- NHL Team
- Boston Bruins
- MLS Team
- New England Revolution
- NCAA Team
- Penn State Nittany Lions
|
From MajorLeagueLacrosse.com:
- Quote:
-
Major League Lacrosse (MLL), the premier professional outdoor lacrosse league, announced today that the New Jersey Pride and the defending MLL Champion Philadelphia Barrage will play their final regular season game this summer at Hillsboro Stadium in Hillsboro, Oregon on Saturday, August 9th at 7:30 PM, as the grand finale event of MLL PDX.
MLL PDX, which kicks-off on Tuesday, August 5th, is a week-long event which will give lacrosse enthusiasts the opportunity to sharpen their own lacrosse skills with a series of clinics and tournaments taking place at various locations throughout the greater Portland area in the days leading up to the game between the Pride and the Barrage.
“We’re delighted to be bringing Major League Lacrosse back to the Pacific Northwest as part of MLL PDX,” says David Gross, Commissioner of Major League Lacrosse. “Back in 2004 when the MLL Wild West Tour stopped in Seattle, I remember that there was quite a contingent from the Portland area that traveled up for the game. It’s always been an area of interest for us and we’ve had a long standing relationship with both Brian Silcott and Portland Lacrosse LLC. We have faith that they will put on a first-rate event for the fans in region.”
Full article.
|
|
|
| |
| 1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous)
|