Fort Lauderdale Strikers

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Fort Lauderdale Strikers
Fort Lauderdale Strikers logo.svg
Full nameFort Lauderdale Strikers
Nickname(s)Strikers
Founded2006
Dissolved2016;3 years ago (2016)
Owner Bill Edwards
League North American Soccer League
Website Club website
Soccerball current event.svg Current season
Cristiano Dias played almost 100 games for Miami FC Cristiano Dias Cropped.jpg
Cristiano Dias played almost 100 games for Miami FC

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. They mostly played their home games in Central Broward Stadium. The Strikers were named after the original Strikers, who played in the old North American Soccer League from 1977 to 1983.

Association football Team field sport

Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played with a spherical ball between two teams of eleven players. It is played by 250 million players in over 200 countries and dependencies, making it the world's most popular sport. The game is played on a rectangular field called a pitch with a goal at each end. The object of the game is to score by moving the ball beyond the goal line into the opposing goal.

Fort Lauderdale, Florida City in Florida, United States

Fort Lauderdale is a city in the U.S. state of Florida, 28 miles (45 km) north of Miami. It is the county seat of Broward County. As of the 2017 census, the city has an estimated population of 180,072. Fort Lauderdale is a principal city of the Miami metropolitan area, which was home to an estimated 6,158,824 people in 2017.

North American Soccer League association football league, began in 2011

The North American Soccer League (NASL) is a professional men's soccer league headquartered in New York City. The league has been on hiatus since completing the 2017 season.

Contents

The team was known as Miami FC from 2006 until 2011 before re-branding as the Strikers in 2011. They had an in-state rivalry with the Tampa Bay Rowdies. [1] [2]

History

1977–1997: Fort Lauderdale Strikers legacy

The original Fort Lauderdale Strikers were founded in 1977 when the Robbie family relocated the Miami Toros north to Fort Lauderdale and rebranded the team. The team competed in the old North American Soccer League and played its home matches at Lockhart Stadium. Between 1977 and 1983, the Strikers fielded some the world's best players including Gerd Müller, Teófilo Cubillas, Elías Figueroa, George Best and Gordon Banks. [3] The team was captained by Ray Hudson, who led the Strikers to the playoffs in each of their seven seasons in Fort Lauderdale. In 1984, the Strikers relocated to Minneapolis as the Minnesota Strikers.

Miami Toros

The Miami Toros was 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.

North American Soccer League (1968–84) defunct association football league (1968–1984)

The North American Soccer League (NASL) was the top-level major professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984. It was the first soccer league to be successful on a national scale in the United States. The league final was called the Soccer Bowl from 1975 to 1983 and the Soccer Bowl Series in its final year, 1984. The league was headed by Commissioner Phil Woosnam from 1969 to 1983.

Gerd Müller German association football player

Gerhard "Gerd" Müller is a German retired footballer. A prolific striker renowned for his clinical finishing, especially in and around the six-yard box, he is regarded as one of the greatest players and goalscorers of all time.

Following the Strikers departure to Minnesota, former Striker Ronnie Sharp [4] launched the Fort Lauderdale Sun of the newly formed United Soccer League in 1984. The team featured numerous former Strikers. In 1988, the Fort Lauderdale Strikers returned to professional soccer as part of the American Soccer League. During this period the Strikers enjoyed great success, including a national championship in the 1989 season, the only major trophy the Strikers have won. In 1991, the team merged with the Orlando Lions.

Ronnie Sharp is a former professional footballer who played in the North American Soccer League and Mexican Primera División.

United Soccer League (1984–85) American soccer league (1984–1985)

The United Soccer League was a professional soccer league in the United States in the mid-1980s.

The 1984 USL season was the United Soccer League's first and only full season.

In 1994, another team began play in the United States Interregional Soccer League as the Fort Lauderdale Kicks. The next year, with the folding of the American Professional Soccer League Strikers, the Kicks took the name Fort Lauderdale Strikers for themselves. This only lasted one year as the team changed names again, becoming the Florida Strikers before the 1996 season. The team folded in 1997.

2006–2010: Miami FC

After Major League Soccer side Miami Fusion were folded in 2001, professional soccer returned to South Florida in the form of a United Soccer Leagues team in 2006 when Traffic Sports USA founded Miami FC. The club made headlines when former World Cup winners Romario and Zinho signed for the team.

Major League Soccer Professional soccer league

Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 24 teams—21 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada and constitutes one of the major professional sports leagues in both countries. The regular season runs from March to October, with each team playing 34 games; the team with the best record is awarded the Supporters' Shield. Fourteen teams compete in the postseason MLS Cup Playoffs through October and November, culminating in the championship game, the MLS Cup. MLS teams also play in domestic competitions against teams from other divisions in the U.S. Open Cup and in the Canadian Championship. MLS teams also compete against continental rivals in the CONCACAF Champions League.

Miami Fusion association football club

The Miami Fusion was a professional soccer team based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. They played in Major League Soccer (MLS) for four seasons, from 1998 to 2001. Announced in 1997 as one of the league's first two expansion teams, their best season was 2001, when they won the Supporters' Shield with the best regular season finish. In 2002, after four years of lackluster ticket sales and revenues, MLS contracted the Fusion along with its other Florida-based team, the Tampa Bay Mutiny. The Fusion played their home games at Lockhart Stadium.

Traffic Sports USA, based in Miami, is a soccer event management company in the North American, Central American and Caribbean region.

In 2007, the team held a contest through public schools in the greater Miami-Dade area for a nickname and mascot. Shia Moreno, an elementary school student won for her nickname "Blues". Daniel Townsend, a senior at Robert Morgan Educational Center won for his mascot creation "Hotshot", a flaming Sonic-the-Hedgehog-like character.

In 2009, the team moved to Fort Lauderdale to play out of Lockhart Stadium. In summer 2010, Miami FC announced its intention to 'pay homage' to the Fort Lauderdale Strikers of the former NASL by incorporating 'Strikers' into the team name from 2011. They rebranded themselves the Fort Lauderdale Strikers on February 17, 2011, and joined the newly established North American Soccer League. [5]

2011–2016: Return of the Fort Lauderdale Strikers

Tim Robbie, son of original Strikers owner Joe Robbie, was named president of the Strikers ahead of the inaugural season. In their first season as the Fort Lauderdale Strikers, the club reached the 2011 NASL Championship Series, losing 3–1 on aggregate to the NSC Minnesota Stars (now Minnesota United FC).

In his second full season in charge, Head Coach Daryl Shore led the Strikers to the playoffs the following season. After a fifth place regular season finish in 2012, the Strikers were bounced from the first round of postseason action by Carolina RailHawks.

Ahead of the 2013 season, the Strikers named Tom Mulroy president of the club. Following a 2–2–7 record, coach Shore was let go by the club before the final match of the 2013 Spring Season. His replacement was Austrian Günter Kronsteiner, who led the club to a fifth-place finish in the Fall Season with a 5–3–6 record.

2014 was a momentous year in the history of the Strikers. A new ownership group was announced on September 19, 2014.[ citation needed ] On the field, Kronsteiner took the Strikers to a place in the NASL Championship, finishing runner-up to the San Antonio Scorpions.

The club made global headlines announcing that Brazil soccer icon Ronaldo had joined the ownership of the club on December 11, 2014. [3] In a press release, Ronaldo was quoted as saying, "I will be very involved with the management of the team and have already started to make introductions that will certainly help us to turn the Strikers into a global powerhouse." It was announced on January 15, 2015 that, if he could get fit, Ronaldo would begin playing for the Strikers.

On September 22, 2016 ESPN FC reported that "The Fort Lauderdale Strikers are in serious financial jeopardy, while the future of the entire National American Soccer League is also in doubt, according to reports." [6] As reported by WRAL in Raleigh, North Carolina, and confirmed by Sun-Sentinel and the Miami Herald, Strikers principal owner Paulo Cesso stopped funding the team on September 1. [6]

On January 6, 2017, the NASL announced that the 2017 season would move forward with eight teams. Fort Lauderdale was not one of the teams listed. [7]

2017: Summary judgement and public sale

In November 2016, Tampa Bay Rowdies owner, Bill Edwards, filed a complaint against the 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 the Strikers’ assets in the lawsuit. A signed promissory note showed that the collateral they put up to secure the loans included the team's patents, copyrights, trademarks, rights to use of the name "Ft Lauderdale Strikers" along with other tangible assets. [8]

In May 2017 Edwards was awarded a summary judgement in the case, and after a June 20 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. [9] [10] [11] He has yet to announce what he plans to do with Strikers brand in the future.

Colors and badge

The official colors of the Strikers are red, gold, charcoal gray, metallic gold and "beach sand". According to a press release issued just prior to the beginning of the 2011 season, the color palette is intended to "connecting with the heart and passion of the players and fans of the beautiful game while symbolizing the warmth of the Sunshine State and City of Fort Lauderdale." [12] The team's shirts, which feature red and gold hoops paired with black shorts, intentionally mirror those worn by the old NASL Strikers in the 1980s.

According to the same press release, the logo incorporates "a contemporary seven-pointed sun with ball signifying the golden era of the Fort Lauderdale Strikers from 1977 to 1983", has a "distinctive tie to the City of Fort Lauderdale's landmark wave wall columns of Las Olas Boulevard that bookend the memorable Strikers jersey hoops", and features a unique script and typeface.

The old Miami FC colors were tropical blue, gold and white, and its logo was a simple shield featuring a stylized soccer ball, the Miami FC wordmark, and shading in the team's color palette.

Venue

The Strikers currently play their home games at Central Broward Stadium in Lauderhill, Florida. Built in 1959 as an athletic facility for local high schools, Lockhart Stadium was the home the original Fort Lauderdale Strikers of the original North American Soccer League, as well the now-defunct Miami Fusion of Major League Soccer. The Strikers announced in December 2012 that they would like to see Lockhart Stadium renovated, or build their own soccer specific stadium. [14] The Strikers moved to Central Broward Stadium after their lease with Lockhart ended in 2016; the Striker's final game at Lockhart was a 1–0 win over Jacksonville Armada FC on July 30, 2016. [13] [15]

During their five years in the USL, the old Miami FC played at various stadiums in the greater Miami area, including Tropical Park Stadium, Miami Orange Bowl and FIU Stadium.

In a historical note, the Strikers have hosted the first NASL games for FC Edmonton in 2011 and Ottawa Fury FC in 2014. Lockhart Stadium in Fort Lauderdale also hosted the first road game for the Indy Eleven expansion team (after playing their first two matches at home in Indianapolis).[ citation needed ]

Club culture

The Fort Lauderdale Strikers have strong support among young people in South Florida. The "Club of supporters" is growing in the last years, mainly in some universities of Broward County. [16]

Miami FC used to use cheerleaders from FIU. The Strikers do not have cheerleaders, though the club has an official dance team that performs before games and at halftime. [17]

Rivalries

The Strikers' main rivalry is with the Tampa Bay Rowdies. The rivalry began in 1977 between the original Fort Lauderdale Strikers and the original Tampa Bay Rowdies of the North American Soccer League, [18] In recent times, the rivalry between both fans and the media has been dubbed the Florida Derby, referencing the two clubs' locations in South Florida. [19] The heart of the rivalry between the two sides exists primarily within the two clubs' supporters groups. Presently, the Fort Lauderdale Strikers are supported by the former "Miami Ultras", whom also supported the Miami Fusion. [20]

Coastal Cup

The Coastal Cup (est. 2010) originally was contested between the Strikers and Rowdies, but with Jacksonville Armada FC's entry into the league in 2015, the competition has become triangular. [21] In the 2016 season a new Miami FC team joined the NASL. [22] This addition made the Coastal Cup a quadrilateral competition for one season.

Supporters group

Players and staff

Notable former players

This list of former players includes those who received international caps while playing for the team, made significant contributions to the team in terms of appearances or goals while playing for the team, or who made significant contributions to the sport either before they played for the team, or after they left. It is clearly not yet complete and all inclusive, and additions and refinements will continue to be made over time.

Fort Lauderdale Strikers

Miami FC

Head coaches

Miami FC

Fort Lauderdale Strikers

Head CoachInterim Head CoachPeriodGWTLWin %Honors/Notes
Flag of the United States.svg Daryl Shore 2011–137725232932.47Longest-tenured coach in modern Strikers history. Led the club to the 2011 NASL Championship Series.
Flag of Brazil.svg Ricardo Lopes201310010.00
Flag of Austria.svg Günter Kronsteiner 2013–144316111637.21Led the club to the 2014 NASL Championship Final and first Coastal Cup.
Flag of Argentina.svg Marcelo Neveleff2015922520.00
Flag of Honduras.svg Iván Guerrero 20151100100.00
Flag of Austria.svg Günter Kronsteiner 20152088640.00best win percentage in modern Strikers history
Flag of Brazil.svg Caio Zanardi20163612101433.33

Achievements

Club

NASL Championship

Coastal Cup

Ponce De Leon Cup

Individual

Golden Boot Award

NASL Best XI

Record

Year-by-year

YearDivisionLeagueReg. SeasonPlayoffsOpen CupAvg. Attendance
Miami FC
2006 2USL First Division5thQuarter-finals2nd round2,074
2007 2USL First Division9thDid not qualify1st round916
2008 2USL First Division9thDid not qualify3rd round1,701
2009 2USL First Division9thDid not qualify2nd round1,063
2010 2USSF Division 24thDid not qualify3rd round1,254
Fort Lauderdale Strikers
2011 2NASL4thRunner-upDid not participate3,985
2012 2NASL5thQuarter-finals3rd round3,615
2013 2NASLSpring: 7th
Fall: 5th
Did not qualify3rd round4,265
2014 2NASLSpring: 5th
Fall: 4th
Runner-up3rd Round3,825
2015 2NASLSpring: 8th
Fall: 4th
Semi-finals3rd Round4,471
2016 2NASLSpring: 6th
Fall: 6th
Did not qualifyQuarter-finals1,331

Most appearances

#Pos.NameNationCareerNASLPlayoffsUS Open CupTotal
1 Midfielder Darnell King Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2012–2014733480
2 Defender Iván Guerrero Flag of Honduras.svg  Honduras 2013–702274
3 Defender Toni Ståhl Flag of Finland.svg  Finland 2011–13646373
4 Midfielder Wellington Paeckhart Flag of Brazil.svg  Brazil 2011–2014626472
5 Goalkeeper Matt Glaeser Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2011–13616370
6 Midfielder Martín Núñez Flag of Uruguay.svg  Uruguay 2011, 2013–2014617169
7 Midfielder Mark Anderson Flag of England.svg  England 2012–2014623368
8 Midfielder Walter Restrepo Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2011–13475456
9 Forward Aly Hassan Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2012–15473252
10 Midfielder Shawn Chin Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2014–2015472251

Last updated: October 19, 2015.
Bolded players are currently on the Fort Lauderdale Strikers roster.
List only includes stats from 2011 to present

Top goal scorers

#Pos.NameNationCareerNASLPlayoffsUS Open CupTotal
1 Midfielder Mark Anderson Flag of England.svg  England 2012–2014190322
2 Midfielder Martín Núñez Flag of Uruguay.svg  Uruguay 2011, 2013–2014142016
Forward Stefano Pinho Flag of Brazil.svg  Brazil 2015–2016160016
4 Forward Abe Thompson Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2011–201284012
Forward Fafà Picault Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2014120012
6 Midfielder Walter Restrepo Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2011–201391111
Forward Aly Hassan Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2012–201580311
Forward Brian Shriver Flag of the United States.svg  United States 201165011
9 Forward Andy Herron Flag of Costa Rica.svg  Costa Rica 2012–20138008
10 Midfielder Marlon Freitas Flag of Brazil.svg  Brazil 20157007

Last updated: October 20, 2015.
Bolded players are currently on the Fort Lauderdale Strikers roster.
List only includes stats from 2011 to present

See also

Related Research Articles

Lockhart Stadium

Lockhart Stadium is a stadium used mostly for soccer in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States. It was the home of the Fort Lauderdale Strikers of North American Soccer League. It has seen use in a variety of sports, particularly soccer and American football.

Fort Lauderdale Sun was a U.S. soccer team which played two seasons in the United Soccer League. In 1984, the team was known as the Fort Lauderdale Sun. Before the 1985 season they changed their name to the South Florida Sun.

Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1977–1983) American soccer team (1977–1983)

The Fort Lauderdale Strikers were an American soccer team, based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. They played in the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1977 to 1983. They played their home games at Lockhart Stadium.

The Fort Lauderdale Strikers were an American soccer team established in 1988 as part of the third American Soccer League. In 1990, it moved to the American Professional Soccer League where it spent five seasons before folding in 1994. The Strikers won the 1989 ASL championship, as well as the 1989 National Pro Soccer Championship.

Tampa Bay Rowdies American professional soccer team, founded 2008

The Tampa Bay Rowdies are an American professional soccer team based in St. Petersburg, Florida, U.S. 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 the North American Soccer League (NASL) and USSF Division 2, which were also second-tier leagues. The Rowdies play their home games at Al Lang Stadium on St. Petersburg's downtown waterfront.

Walter Isidro Ramírez is a Honduran footballer who plays for Penn FC in the United Soccer League.

Phillip Lamarre is an American soccer player currently without a club, having last played with the Fort Lauderdale Strikers of the second division North American Soccer League.

Miami FC American soccer team

Miami FC is an American professional soccer team based in Miami, Florida. They began play in the North American Soccer League (NASL), the second tier of the American soccer pyramid, in the 2016 season. As of the 2019 season, the club plays its home games at Buccaneer Field on the campus of Barry University. Following the cancellation of the 2018 NASL season, some Miami FC players competed with Miami FC 2 in the National Premier Soccer League.

2011 FC Tampa Bay season was the second in the club's existence and the first in the NASL.

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 though 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.

Fafà Picault American soccer player

Fabrice-Jean "Fafà" Picault is an American soccer player who plays for Philadelphia Union in Major League Soccer.

The 2013 Fort Lauderdale Strikers season is the third season of the team in the North American Soccer League, and the entire club's thirty-ninth season in professional soccer. The NASL inaugurated a new format this year in which the season would be split into two, having a spring and fall tournament. The team finished in seventh place during the spring season, and is currently in third place during the fall season.

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.

Soccer Bowl 2011

Soccer Bowl 2011 was the North American Soccer League's postseason championship final of the 2011 season. It was the first championship match held by the new NASL and the first Soccer Bowl since 1984. Also known as the NASL Championship series 2011, the event was contested in a two-game aggregate match between the NSC Minnesota Stars and the Fort Lauderdale Strikers. The first leg was held on October 22, 2011 at National Sports Center in Blaine, Minnesota, while the second on October 29, 2011 at Lockhart Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The Coastal Cup is a trophy and soccer competition among the North American Soccer League (NASL) teams based in Florida. Established in 2010, the trophy is awarded to the best team in regular season play among the league's Florida franchises: the Jacksonville Armada FC, and Miami FC. Head-to-head playoff games, U.S. Open Cup matches and friendlies have no bearing on the outcome of this competition. The Fort Lauderdale Strikers did not field a team in 2017. The Tampa Bay Rowdies also participated in this cup from 2010 though 2016, before leaving the NASL.

The 2014 Fort Lauderdale Strikers season was the team's ninth season overall, and fourth in the North American Soccer League (NASL).

References

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  2. "Tampa Bay Rowdies to Play Fort Lauderdale Strikers For the First Time Since 1993 | MLS News from". Major League Soccer Talk. April 27, 2012. Retrieved November 13, 2012.
  3. 1 2 Copesa, Grupo. "Ronaldo debuta como dirigente comprando equipo donde jugó Elías Figueroa" . Retrieved September 24, 2016.
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  12. Strikers Release New Logo Archived April 5, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
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  15. Pedro Heizer (July 30, 2016). "Strikers bid adieu to Lockhart Stadium on high note". The Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved August 17, 2016.
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