
Detroit Cougars / Detroit Falcons (1926-1932)
The Detroit Cougars were established when the Victoria Cougars of the Western Hockey League (WHL) relocated to Michigan and joined the National Hockey League (NHL).

The Detroit Cougars were established when the Victoria Cougars of the Western Hockey League (WHL) relocated to Michigan and joined the National Hockey League (NHL).

The Richmond Roadrunners played in the Atlantic Coast Football League in 1968 and 1969. The team moved up from the United American Football League, where they played their inaugural season as the Richmond Mustangs. In 1970, the team re-branded as the Saints, reflecting their affiliation with the NFL’s New Orleans Saints.

The Seattle Steelheads were members of the West Coast Negro Baseball Association (WCNBA) in that circuit’s only season, 1946. The team was actually the Harlem Globetrotters baseball club and returned to barnstorming when the WCNBA ceased operations.

Hockey’s San Francisco Seals were a popular entry in the minor Western Hockey League (WHL) in the 1960s. The team won two championships before being “promoted” to the NHL in 1966 for the 1967-68 season.

Omaha, Nebraska has hosted the top farm club of the Kansas City Royals since the Major League club’s inception in 1969. Initially known as the Omaha Royals, the Class AAA club won four league championships of the American Association, including back-to-back titles in their first two seasons in 1969 and 1970. The Royals survived the closure of the American Association, joining the Pacific Coast League in 1998. From 1999 until 2001, the team was briefly known as the “Golden Spikes” before returning to the Royals nickname. In 2011, the club re-branded as the Omaha Storm Chasers while simultaneously moving into the new $36M Werner Park.
The Boston Tigers were a semi-professional soccer team that played in Chelsea and Lynn, Massachusetts, melting pot cities that bordered the northern edge of Boston. The Tigers competed in the American Soccer League (ASL) against competition from other Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic cities. Future two-time NASL Most Valuable Player Carlos Metidieri suited up for the Tigers in 1967.

Not just a One-Year Wonder, but a winless One-Year Wonder. The Columbus Thunderbolts lasted for just a single season in the Arena Football League in the summer of 1991. Along the way, they compiled a record of 0-10 under Head Coach Dave Whinham despite signing two-time Heisman Trophy finalist Major Harris at quarterback.

The Los Angeles Stars basketball team was a short-lived effort by the American Basketball Association to plant its flag in L.A. during the early years of its rivalry with the National Basketball Association. The Stars labored in the shadows of the NBA’s Lakers and never established a substantial following. Coached by Hall-of-Famer (and future Lakers coach) Bill Sharman, the Stars did enjoy a thrilling Cinderella playoff run at the end of their second and final season in L.A.

In the spring of 1982, the Canadian Football League’s venerable Montreal Alouettes franchise collapsed under a mountain of debt. Seeking a clean slate for new ownership, league officials folded the Alouettes on May 13, 1982 and awarded a new Montreal expansion club to Seagram’s liquor baron and Montreal Expos founder Charles Bronfman the next day. The club embarked on a star-crossed four year voyage under the new name “Concordes”, drawing inspiration from the iconic supersonic transatlantic jets of the era.
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