San Diego Breakers

International Volleyball Association (1975-1978)

Background

The San Diego Breakers were a founding entry in the International Volleyball Association when the co-ed promotion opened in five California and Texas cities in the summer of 1975.

On The Court

The team was solid competitively, advancing to the IVA championship series in both 1975 and 1976. After losing to the Los Angeles Stars in the 1975 final, the Breakers poached one of L.A.’s top players, setter Dodge Parker, for the 1976 season.  The Breakers met the Stars in a championship rematch on September 9, 1976 before an announced crowd of 7,077 at the San Diego Sports Arena. This time the Breakers came out on top, winning three games to one.

After the season, Dodge Parker took home league 1976 IVA MVP honors. Bill Waldrop and Rose Wegrich were 1st Team All-IVA selections. But Parker returned to the Stars and helped his old club regain the title in 1977. Meanwhile the Breakers faded from the league’s elite over the next two seasons.

Financial Problems

Behind the scenes, the Breakers were a circus.

Motown Records boss Berry Gordy Jr. owned the Breakers during the debut season. Gordy quickly soured on his investment. The Breakers led the IVA in attendance that first summer but The Associated Press reported that the team had just eight season ticket holders in the 12,000-seat San Diego Sports Arena. Gordy lost $400,000 and bolted for the exit ahead of the IVA’s sophomore season in 1976 (Escondido Times-Advocate 5/18/1976).

A 29-year old “financial consultant” named Michael Krupp purchased the Breakers from Gordy in April 1976 for $1.00 plus assumption of the team’s debts.  While the team made its championship run that summer, Krupp fought to keep hold of the club. The IVA seized the team from him in June 1976 after payroll checks bounced. Krupp worked to get the club back in fits and starts and eventually regained control by season’s end. Meanwhile, he financed the team’s operation with a series of loans from The Women’s Bank, a start-up bank that opened one month before Krupp acquired the Breakers.

Over the next two years, Krupp reportedly ran up $900,000 in losses on the Breakers. He defaulted on his loans to The Women’s Bank and disappeared in 1978. (San Diego Union Reader, September 28, 1978).

Former Breaker Dodge Parker helped save the team in 1978 by recruiting a reputable owner, Don Sammis, to replace Krupp. The team spent one final season in San Diego, playing in a high gymnasium in 1978. In early 1979, Sammis merged the Breakers with the Parker’s Orange County Stars club. Just four days earlier, Parker died shockingly of a heart attack while jogging at age 29. The merged Breakers/Stars franchise moved to Salt Lake City, Utah under Sammis’ ownership and remained there until the International Volleyball Association folded in the middle of its sixth season in July 1980.

Links

International Volleyball Association Media Guides

International Volleyball Association Programs

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