The Dayton Triangles were founding members of the American Professional Football Association (APFA) in 1920. In 1922, the APFA became known as the National Football League (NFL). In 1929 the team was sold and moved to Brooklyn where they became the Dodgers. For ten seasons, though, they represented Dayton in the NFL.
The United States Football League arrived in Orlando, Florida in October 1984 when the league’s doormat Washington Federals franchise fled the nation’s capital for a fresh start in Florida. During the springtime football league’s first two seasons, the Federals had a league worst 7-29 record. ESPN College Gameday host Lee Corso was the Renegades Head Coach and is likely the only member of the team whose name would be familiar to contemporary football fans. The ‘Gades 5-13 mark in 1985 under Corso was actually the best record in franchise history.
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.
The Cincinnati Stingers hockey team began life in the upstart World Hockey Association in the winter of 1975-76. Owners Bill DeWitt Jr. and Brian Heekin originally sought to land an NHL expansion club for the Queen City, failed, and then accepted the first expansion franchise awarded by the fledgling WHA as a fallback option in May 1973.
The story of the Seattle Pilots is one of the most fascinating in the history of Major League Baseball (MLB). It began years before the team’s 1969 debut, and is tale filled with hope, excitement, money (and lack thereof), franchise relocations, and political influence.
The New Jersey Stallions are a long-time youth club soccer program operating out of Clifton, New Jersey. But during the late 1990’s and early 2000’s the organization also operated men’s – and, briefly, women’s – pro & amateur teams in the United Soccer Leagues. The Stallions debuted in 1996 and the Lady Stallions women’s club joined the USL in 2003. Following the 2004 season, the Stallions shuttered both their men’s and women’s USL adult clubs.
Arena Football League (2006-2008) Utah Blaze Born: September 2004 – AFL expansion franchise Folded: August 4, 2009 First Game: January 28, 2006 (W 48-35 @ San Jose SaberCats) Last Game: June 28, 2008 (L 49-44 vs. Colorado Crush) Arena Bowl Championships: None EnergySolutions Arena Opened: 1991 Team Colors: Owners: John Garff, Robert
The American Basketball Association (ABA) was formed in 1967 as a competitor to the established National Basketball Association (NBA). It started with 11 teams, and within a few years was angling for a merger with the older league. In 1976, the NBA took in four ABA teams, while three other surviving teams disbanded.
Yes, strange as it sounds, but the small, poverty-stricken city of Shreveport, Louisiana once had its very own Canadian Football League franchise: the Shreveport Pirates. The Pirates’ shambolic leadership made a series of head-scratching personnel moves, including the signings of troubled over-the-hill NFL stars Dexter Manley and Mark Duper, and fired the team’s first head coach before taking a regular season snap. Meanwhile the team staggered to a two-year record of 8-28 in the CFL before going out of business at the end of the 1995 season.
Fun While it Lasted presents the Jersey of the Week, brought to you by Royal Retros. Each week, we feature a historic uniform. Click to learn more about the team that wore this classic gear.
