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.
Portland, Oregon, United States, is home to three major league sports teams — the Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association, the Portland Timbers of Major League Soccer, and the Portland Thorns FC of the National Women's Soccer League. The city also hosts a wide variety of other sports and sporting events.
Ultimate Canada is a not-for-profit organization that serves as the governing body of the sport of Ultimate in Canada. It runs the Canadian Ultimate Championships (CUC) and Canadian University Ultimate Championship (CUUC) series.
Kenneth Ray Westerfield is an American pioneering frisbee disc player, who achieved numerous disc sports accomplishments in the 1970s. A disc sports Hall of Fame inductee in freestyle, ultimate, and disc golf. In addition, he was voted "Top Men's Player" in the 1970–75 Decade Awards. Westerfield produced tournaments, set world records, and won awards in every disc sport. He was a tournament co-director for the Canadian Open Frisbee Championships (1972–1985) in Toronto, the Vancouver Open Frisbee Championships (1974–1977) in Vancouver, BC, the 1978 Santa Cruz Flying Disc Classic in Santa Cruz, California, the 1985 Labatt's World Guts Championships in Toronto, and the 1987 World PDGA Disc Golf Championships in Toronto. Westerfield founded the first ultimate league in Canada – the Toronto Ultimate Club (1979). As one of the original freestylers from the 1960s, used his expertise in several company-sponsored touring Frisbee shows in the U.S. and Canada. Irwin Toy,, Molson Frisbee Team (1974–77), Adidas Canada (1974–1979), Goodtimes Professional Frisbee Show (1978–82), Orange Crush Frisbee Team (1977–78), Air Canada Frisbee Team (1978–79), Lee Jeans Frisbee Team (1979–80) and the Labatts Schooner Frisbee Team (1983–85).
The Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA), formerly the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL), is a professional ultimate disc league that consists of 24 teams divided between the South, Central, East, and West divisions. The UFA is located in North America. 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 Detroit Mechanix are an American professional ultimate frisbee team based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The Mechanix compete in the formerly titled American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL), now known as the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA) as a member team of the league's Central Division. The Mechanix began play in 2012 as one of the eight charter teams of the AUDL. The team is owned by Brent Steepe and was founded in 2010.
The Toronto Rush are a semi-professional ultimate team based in Toronto, Canada. They compete in the Ultimate Frisbee Association’s East division.
The Portland Stags were an American semi-professional ultimate team based in Portland, Oregon. The Stags competed as part of Major League Ultimate (MLU) in the league's Western Conference until the league suspended operations in 2016. The team was one of the original eight teams that formed the MLU in 2013. The team saw the post-season three times and in 2016 saw its first appearance at the MLU Championship.
The Philadelphia Phoenix is a professional ultimate team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and a member of the East Division of the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA). The Phoenix are currently owned and operated by Main Line Today's "Woman on The Move" Christina Lee Chung, MD, FAAD. From 2020 to 2021 the team competed in the Atlantic Division. The Phoenix home field is located on the campus of Neumann University.
The New York Empire is an ultimate team in the Ultimate Frisbee Association based in New York City. The team is in the East Division of the league, and won its first title in 2019, its second in 2022 and its third title in 2023. The Empire played its first season in 2013.
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 Dallas Legion, formerly the Dallas Roughnecks, are a professional ultimate team that competes 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 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 is a professional ultimate team that plays in the East Division of the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA). The team was announced on December 4, 2019, and played its first season in 2021 owing to the Covid-related cancellation of the UFA 2020 season.
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"
The Houston Havoc are an American professional ultimate frisbee team based in Houston, Texas. The Havoc play in the South Division of the Ultimate Frisbee Association, formerly the American Ultimate Disc League.
The Salt Lake Shred are a professional ultimate disc team based in Salt Lake City, Utah who compete in the Ultimate Frisbee Association's (UFA) West Division. They play their home games at Zions Bank Stadium, a soccer stadium in Herriman, Utah.
The Colorado Summit are a professional ultimate disc team based in Golden, Colorado who compete in the Ultimate Frisbee Association's (UFA) West Division. They play their home games at the Colorado School of Mines' Marv Kay Stadium.
