William L. Edwards | |
---|---|
Born | Edward Francis Sylvia [1] January 27, 1945 |
Nationality | American |
Occupation(s) | Real estate developer, sports team owner/executive |
Bill Edwards is an American businessman. He owns numerous properties in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Bill Edwards was born on January 27th, 1945 [2] and grew up in New Bedford, Massachusetts. [1] He served in the United States Marine Corps during the Vietnam War, earning a Purple Heart. [1] After the war, he moved to Detroit and entered the mortgage business. [1] Born Edward Francis Sylvia III, he changed his name to William Larry Edwards when he moved to Detroit. [3]
Edwards served as president of Mortgage Investors Corp., [4] which the Tampa Bay Times described as the "nation's largest VA mortgage lender" in 2005. [5] In 2013, the Edwards-owned Mortgage Investors was fined $7.5 million for violating the federal do not call list. [6] That same year, Edwards negotiated a sale of Mortgage Investors to HomeBancorp, [7] but the deal was never completed. [6] After the failure of the deal, Mortgage Investors stopped making new home loans and laid off the majority of its staff. [8] In 2015, two mortgage brokers that never did any business with MIC sued Edwards, alleging that Mortgage Investors had defrauded veteran home buyers and the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. [9]
In 2009, Edwards bought the Treasure Island Tennis & Yacht Club. [1] In 2011, he won the right to manage the Mahaffey Theater. [1] Edwards also owns Big3 Entertainment, which has produced records for artists such as Cheap Trick. [7] [10]
In 2011, he bought the BayWalk in downtown St. Petersburg. In 2014, the BayWalk reopened as Sundial St. Pete. [11]
In 2014, Edwards bought a block of St. Petersburg known as the Tropicana Block. [10]
In 2013, Edwards bought a controlling interest in the second-tier Tampa Bay Rowdies soccer club, then playing in the North American Soccer League. The team has played in the United Soccer League since 2017. [12] Edwards hoped to move the Rowdies up to Major League Soccer, the league above the USL. [13] He operated Al Lang Stadium for the city of St. Petersburg, and owns the nearby McNulty Station parking garage and a Rowdies-themed bar and restaurant. [13] In October 2018, it was announced that Edwards had sold the club to Tampa Bay Rays, the area's Major League Baseball franchise, who announced plans to purchase the Rowdies and assume control of Al Lang Stadium. [14]
In November 2016, Edwards filed a complaint against the Rowdies' arch-rival, Fort Lauderdale Strikers' holding company, Miami FC, LLC, over money loaned to the struggling club. Edwards claimed that the team had failed to pay him back $300,000 in loans. He sought damages and foreclosure on Fort Lauderdale's assets in the lawsuit. A signed promissory note showed that the collateral put up to secure the loans included the team's patents, copyrights, trademarks, rights to use of the name "Fort Lauderdale Strikers" along with other tangible assets. [15]
In May 2017 Edwards was awarded a summary judgment in the case, and after a June 2017 public sale, gained control of the copyrights, trademarks and any rights to the use of the name "Fort Lauderdale Strikers" or any variation for $5,100. [16] He has yet to announce what he plans to do with the Strikers brand.
Edwards donated $1 million to the campaign of Florida Governor Rick Scott and $4.6 million to the 2012 Republican National Convention. [1] He donated $350,000 to the presidential candidacy of Jeb Bush. [17]
The Fort Lauderdale Strikers was a professional soccer team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They competed in the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1977 to 1983. They played their home matches at Lockhart Stadium.
The Tampa Bay Rowdies were an American professional soccer team based in Tampa, Florida, that competed in the original North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1975 to 1984. They enjoyed broad popular support in the Tampa Bay area until the NASL folded in 1984, after which the team played in various minor indoor and outdoor leagues before finally folding on January 31, 1994. The Rowdies played nearly all of their outdoor home games at Tampa Stadium and nearly all of their indoor games at the Bayfront Center Arena in nearby St. Petersburg, Florida. Although San Diego played indoors until 1996, the Rowdies were the last surviving NASL franchise that played outdoor soccer on a regular basis.
Al Lang Stadium is a 7,500-seat sports stadium along the waterfront of downtown St. Petersburg, Florida, United States which was used almost exclusively as a baseball park for over 60 years. Since 2011, it has been the home pitch of the Tampa Bay Rowdies of the USL Championship soccer league.
The Miami Toros were a professional soccer team in the North American Soccer League from 1972 to 1976. The club was founded in 1967 as the Washington Darts, and moved to Miami, where they played the 1972 season in the NASL's Southern Division as the Miami Gatos. In 1973, the club rebranded as the Miami Toros. Their home field was at times the Miami Orange Bowl, Tamiami Field and Miami Dade College's North Campus Stadium.
The Fort Lauderdale Strikers were an American professional soccer team based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida founded in 2006, that last played in the North American Soccer League (NASL), the second tier of the American soccer pyramid in 2016. The majority of their home games were played in Lockhart Stadium. The Strikers were named after the original Strikers, who played in the old North American Soccer League from 1977 to 1983.
Steve Wegerle is a South African former professional soccer player who played as a winger.
Arsène Auguste was a Haitian international footballer who represented Haiti in the 1974 FIFA World Cup.
The Tampa Bay Rowdies are an American professional soccer team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The club was founded in 2008 and first took the pitch in 2010. Since 2017, the Rowdies have been members of the USL Championship in the second tier of the American soccer pyramid. They formerly played in USSF Division 2 and the North American Soccer League (NASL), which were also second-tier leagues. The Rowdies play their home games at Al Lang Stadium on St. Petersburg's downtown waterfront.
The Fort Lauderdale–Tampa Bay rivalry, also known as the Florida Derby, refers to the suspended soccer rivalry that most recently involved the Fort Lauderdale Strikers and the Tampa Bay Rowdies, both of whom played in the North American Soccer League through the 2016 season. Over the years the rivalry has spanned more than one hundred matches across eight soccer leagues and several tournaments, and involved nine different teams from the two regions of Florida. At times it has involved players, coaches, management and fans. Even the press has fanned the rivalry's flames at times. From 2010 through 2014, the winner of the regular season series automatically won the Coastal Cup as well. The status of the rivalry beyond 2016 remains unclear because the Rowdies have since joined the United Soccer League, while the Strikers ongoing ownership and legal battles of 2016 and 2017 have left them defunct.
The 2012 Tampa Bay Rowdies season was the current Tampa Bay Rowdies' third season of existence, and second in the North American Soccer League. Including the original Rowdies franchise and the Tampa Bay Mutiny, this was the 25th season of a professional soccer team fielded in the Tampa Bay region.
The 1977 Fort Lauderdale Strikers season was the first season of the new team, and the club's eleventh season in professional soccer. It is also the first ever incarnation of the club's new name. Previously they were known as the Miami Toros. The 1977 squad won the North American Soccer League's Eastern Division of the Atlantic Conference, and was the top team in regular season with 19 victories for 161 points.
The 2014 season was the current Tampa Bay Rowdies fifth season of existence, and fourth playing in the North American Soccer League, the second tier of American soccer pyramid. Including the original Rowdies franchise and the Tampa Bay Mutiny, this was the 27th season of a professional soccer team fielded in the Tampa Bay region.
The 1983 NASL Grand Prix of Indoor Soccer was an indoor soccer tournament staged by four franchises of the North American Soccer League.
The 1979 Fort Lauderdale Strikers season was part of the club's twelfth season in professional soccer.
The 1979 NASL Budweiser Indoor Soccer Invitational was a four-team indoor soccer tournament held at the Bayfront Center in St. Petersburg, Florida on the final weekend of January 1979.
The 2015 season was the current Tampa Bay Rowdies sixth season of existence, and fifth playing in the North American Soccer League, the second tier of American soccer pyramid. Including the original Rowdies franchise and the Tampa Bay Mutiny, this was the 28th season of professional soccer in the Tampa Bay area.
The 1977 Tampa Bay Rowdies indoor season was the third indoor season of the club's existence.
The 2016 Tampa Bay Rowdies season was the club's sixth NASL season, and seventh season overall since their formation in 2008. It was also their final season in the NASL, as the team switched leagues to the USL after the season ended.
The Professional Cup was an international soccer tournament that took place in 1992 and involved eight, professional clubs from three different leagues in North America; the American Professional Soccer League, the Canadian Soccer League, and the National Professional Soccer League. Although it was billed as "inaugural" this would be the only year that the tournament was played.
The 1983 Tampa Bay Rowdies indoor season was the ninth indoor season of the team's existence. The Rowdies captured the Indoor Grand Prix title. Although they would play for another 10 years, including two more indoors in 1983–84 and 1986–87, this would be the final trophy won by the original club.