 | |
| Sport | Ultimate |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2012 |
| First season | 2013 |
| Ceased | 2016 |
| No. of teams | 8 |
| Country | United States (7 teams) Canada (1 team) |
| Most titles | Boston Whitecaps (2) |
| Official website | MLUltimate.com |
Major League Ultimate (MLU) was a North American semi-professional ultimate league from 2013 to 2016. It was composed of eight member teams, seven in the United States and one in Canada. It was formed in 2012, and began its inaugural season in April 2013.
The Philadelphia Spinners left the American Ultimate Disc League at the end of the 2012 season after disagreements on how it was run. [1] With the help of their staff, including former GM Jeff Snader, and a core group of individuals now referred to as the Founders, the MLU was created in 2012. On December 21, 2016, the league announced that its investors had pulled funding and that league operations would be suspended indefinitely. [2]
The MLU used most of the standard rules of Ultimate, with multiple adaptations. Most of the adaptations were like those of the American Ultimate Disc League. Games were played on slightly expanded fields, and double-teaming of an offensive player was allowed. Also unusual for Ultimate, although common in other sports and the AUDL, the MLU used referees to make the calls. [3] With time, more changes to the rules were applied by the MLU. [4]
While most Ultimate games use the Ultrastar disc, the MLU used a slightly different disc, the Innova Pulsar, whose design made it stay in the air longer, leading to more hucks, deep games, and skys. [5] [6]
Although not an on-field rule, an early rule of the league was that all players would be compensated equally, at $25 a game. This eventually led some, like Beau Kittredge, to leave the league. [7]
The eight teams in the MLU were split into two conferences (East and West). During the regular season, each team played 10 matches (sometimes including cross-divisional matches). The top two teams from each division advanced to a conference final. The winners from these matches then advanced to compete in the MLU Championship match.
Highlights of the 2013 championship game were broadcast on Fox Sports 1 as part of an anthology show co-hosted by former NFL player Dhani Jones and Olympic gold medalist Jonny Moseley. ESPN's SportsCenter Top 10 and SportsNation have also featured highlight clips from the MLU, bringing national attention to the league. [8]
In 2016, all games were livestreamed on YouTube and through the MLU website. [9]
In 2013, Five Ultimate was the official uniform manufacturer for all eight teams.
For the 2014 season, Puma became the official jersey sponsor. [10]
For 2015 and 2016, Canterbury was the official jersey sponsor. [11]
| Teams | City/Area | Stadium | Founded | Head Coach(es) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern Conference | |||||
| Boston Whitecaps | Medford, MA | Hormel Stadium | 2012 | Sam Rosenthal [12] | |
| DC Current | Washington, DC | Cardinal Stadium | 2013 | Keven Moldenhauer and Will Smolinski [13] | |
| New York Rumble | Orange, NJ | Bell Stadium | 2013 | Anthony Nuñez and Eileen Murray [14] | |
| Philadelphia Spinners | Fort Washington, PA | Carey Stadium | 2012 | Darryl Stanley [15] | |
| Western Conference | |||||
| Portland Stags | Milwaukie, OR | Milwaukie High School | 2013 | Danny Quarrell [16] | |
| San Francisco Dogfish | Berkeley, CA | Yellowjacket Stadium | 2013 | Jason Seidler [17] | |
| Seattle Rainmakers | Renton, WA | Renton Memorial Stadium | 2013 | Kate Kingery and Fiona McKibben [18] | |
| Vancouver Nighthawks | Vancouver, BC | Thunderbird Stadium | 2013 | Patrick Gatien [19] | |
| Season | Date | Champion | Score | Runner-Up | Venue | Location | MVP | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | July 13, 2013 | Boston Whitecaps | 20–15 | San Francisco Dogfish | Franklin Field | Philadelphia, PA | Jeff Graham (Boston Whitecaps) | [20] |
| 2014 | July 19, 2014 | DC Current | 23–17 | Vancouver Nighthawks | PPL Park | Chester, PA | Markham Shofner (DC Current) | [21] |
| 2015 | August 8, 2015 | Boston Whitecaps | 31–17 | Seattle Rainmakers | PPL Park | Chester, PA | Jeff Graham (Boston Whitecaps) | [22] |
| 2016 | July 16, 2016 | Philadelphia Spinners | 14–11 | Portland Stags | Franklin Field | Philadelphia, PA | Charlie McCutcheon (Philadelphia Spinners) | [23] |
Ultimate frisbee is a non-contact team sport played with a disc flung by hand. Ultimate was developed in 1968 by Joel Silver in Maplewood, New Jersey. Although ultimate resembles many traditional sports in its athletic requirements, it is unlike most sports due to its focus on self-officiating, even at the highest levels of competition. The term "frisbee" is a registered trademark of the Wham-O toy company, and thus the sport is not formally called "ultimate frisbee", though this name is still in common casual use. Points are scored by passing the disc to a teammate in the opposing end zone. Other basic rules are that players must not take steps while holding the disc, and interceptions, incomplete passes, and passes out of bounds are turnovers. Rain, wind, or occasionally other adversities can make for a testing match with rapid turnovers, heightening the pressure of play.
Flying disc sports are sports or games played with discs, often called by the trademarked name Frisbees. Ultimate and disc golf are sports with substantial international followings.
The Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA) is a professional ultimate league in North America composed of 23 teams divided between the South, Central, East, and West divisions. Each UFA season has 12 regular season games which run from April to July. Following the conclusion of the regular season, the top three teams from every division advance to the playoffs, a single elimination tournament that culminates in a final four style showcase known as the UFA Championship Weekend, which is contested in late August over two days.
The Philadelphia Spinners were a professional ultimate team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They were founded in 2012 by Katrel Kelly and David Fitzgerald as a team in the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL), but then moved to Major League Ultimate (MLU) in 2013. They played in the MLU until the league was suspended in 2016. The team played in various stadiums throughout the Greater Philadelphia region.
The New York Empire are a professional ultimate team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Empire compete in the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA) as a member of the East Division. The team played its first season in 2013. The Empire won their first title in 2019, followed by titles in 2022 and 2023.
Brodie Smith is a former American Ultimate Disc League player, and current professional disc golf player and YouTube personality best known for his frisbee trick shot videos.
The Seattle Cascades are a professional ultimate team based in Seattle, Washington. The Cascades compete in the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA) as a member of the West Division. The team is named after the mountain range that runs through the Pacific Northwest; their mascot is a Sasquatch named Casey.
The Oakland Spiders are a professional ultimate team based in Oakland, California. The Spiders compete in the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA) as a member of the West Division. The team was founded as the San Jose Spiders in 2014 when the league expanded to the West Coast, and played under that name until moving to Oakland in 2022. The Spiders won the National Championship in their first season and became the first team in the league's history to win consecutive titles when they defeated the Madison Radicals in the 2015 championship game.
Beau Kittredge is a former Ultimate player, author, illustrator, and mobile video game entrepreneur. He is considered to be one of the greatest Ultimate players of all time, noted for his top-end speed and athleticism. Kittredge won one college title, six USA Ultimate club titles, seven world championships, and five AUDL titles. He also won the AUDL Most Valuable Player award twice. He is popularly known for a video in which he jumped over an opponent to catch the disc while playing with the University of Colorado.
The Tampa Bay Cannons were a professional ultimate team in the South Division of the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL) based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Cannons were active from 2015 to 2022.
The 2018 American Ultimate Disc League season was the seventh season for the league. The Madison Radicals won the championship, the team's first. Rowan McDonnell of the DC Breeze won league MVP after the season.
The 2019 American Ultimate Disc League season was the eighth season for the league. It began on April 5, 2019, and concluded on August 11, 2019, when the New York Empire defeated the Dallas Roughnecks to earn the team's first title. Ben Jagt of the Empire won his first league MVP award after the season. The season marked Steve Hall's first as league commissioner, and was the first with an all-star game for the league.
The Dallas Legion, formerly the Dallas Roughnecks, were a professional ultimate team that competed in the South Division of the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA). Founded in 2015, the team played their first year in the 2016 AUDL season, wherein they won the championship title.
The Los Angeles Aviators are a professional ultimate team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Aviators compete in the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA) as a member of the West Division. The team played their first season in 2015.
The San Diego Growlers are a professional ultimate team based in San Diego, California. The Growlers compete in the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA) as a member of the West Division. The team plays its home games at Mission Bay High School. The Growlers began play in the 2015 season.
The Premier Ultimate League (PUL) is a professional women's ultimate league that formed in 2019. The mission of the PUL is "to achieve equity in the sport of ultimate by increasing accessibility to the sport for, and visibility of women, transgender, intersex, non-binary, genderqueer, and genderfluid people through high-quality competition, leadership experiences, and community partnerships". The league strives for gender, racial, and economic diversity in the sport of ultimate frisbee. PUL players are paid $40 per league game.
The Boston Glory are a professional ultimate team based in Greater Boston area. The Glory compete in the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA) as a member of the East Division. The team was announced on December 4, 2019, and played its first season in 2021 owing to the cancellation of the UFA 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Western Ultimate League (WUL) is a professional women's ultimate league in the Western United States. It was founded in 2020. The WUL's stated mission is to "promote visibility, opportunity, and equity within women's ultimate".
The Milwaukee Monarchs are a Premier Ultimate League (PUL) professional "womxn"'s ultimate team based in Milwaukee, WI. They joined the PUL in 2020 as part of the 2020 expansion. The Monarchs are dedicated to "growing the sport with an emphasis on creating opportunities for and raising the profiles of womxn, girls, and players of diverse identities in Wisconsin and the broader Midwest"