The National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) was, along with the United Soccer Association (USA), the U.S. and Canada’s first foray into top-level outdoor soccer, After one season, the two merged to form the North American Soccer League (NASL).
The Seattle Rangers were a three-year entry in the Continental Football League (1965-1969), a sprawling late ’60’s attempt at creating a “triple-A” level of professional football, a cut below the NFL and the AFL. The Rangers were the highest level of pro football played in the state of Washington until the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks arrived in 1977.
The Baltimore Elite Giants got their start in Nashville, before moving to Columbus, Ohio for one year, then to Washington, D.C. They moved down the road in Baltimore in 1938 and played there until 1950, before spending their final season back in Tennessee.
The original Winnipeg Jets were charter members of the WHA in 1972. They moved to the NHL in 1979, along with three other WHA squads. In 1995, they were sold and moved to Phoenix for the 1996-97 hockey season. The name was revived when the Atlanta Thrashers moved to Manitoba in 2011 and assumed the Jets name but not their history.
The Atlantic City Surf were one of the six original franchises in the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. The Atlantic League was (and remains) the most ambitious league to arise out of the independent baseball boom of the 1990’s. The Surf played at the Sandcastle, a 5,900-seat ballpark built on the grounds of Atlantic City’s municipal airport, Bader Field. The stadium was built with $11.5 million in Casino Reinvestment Development Authority funds and $3 million in taxpayer bonds.
SUPER SOCCER LEAGUE Announced: January 5, 1978 Vanished: Summer 1978 Founders: Dennis Murphy, Jerry Saperstein, Richard Ragone, Norm Sutherland, Fredric Wise & Dr. Elliott Gorin Background Periodically, some persuasive entrepreneur claims to have developed the sport of the future. And from the 1960’s to the 1990’s that man was
The Texas Terror were an Arena Football League based in Houston that played two seasons in 1996 and 1997. The team was owned by the management of the Houston Rockets and, like their NBA parent, played at the Compaq Center (formerly the Houston Summit). After a dreadful sophomore season in 1997 that saw the team’s attendance plummet by over 50%, ownership abandoned the “Terror” identity and re-branded the team as the Houston ThunderBears in 1998. The ThunderBears eventually went out of business in 2001, closing the book on this indoor football franchise.
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.
The Baltimore Stallions played two seasons in the CFL starting in 1994. The most successful of the league’s American teams, they went to the Grey Cup following both seasons, winning in 1995. The team experienced grief off the field from the NFL, first with a lawsuit over using the name Colts, then by the relocation of the Cleveland Browns.
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.
