Sport | Lacrosse |
---|---|
Founded | 2022 |
CEO | Brad Bryant [1] |
COO | Brian Mankameyer |
Commissioner | Steve Donner |
No. of teams | 9 |
Countries | United States |
TV partner(s) | lacrosse tv (only game of the week) |
Official website | https://pbla.com/ |
The Professional Box Lacrosse Association (PBLA) was a men's professional box lacrosse league in the United States. The league was announced on June 29, 2022, [2] with the first seven (of nine) team locations announced on July 19. [3] The league intended to focus on growing the sport in the United States, drawing players, coaches, and other personnel primarily from there. [2]
Full league operations were suspended just weeks into their first season. [4]
The league started out with a single-ownership structure, with all teams being league-operated. Nine teams were planned for the inaugural season. Names for each team were nominated and voted on by fans from the host cities. [5]
Team | City | Arena | Capacity | Founded |
---|---|---|---|---|
Binghamton Bombers | Binghamton, New York | Visions Veterans Memorial Arena | 4,710 | 2022 |
Charlotte Bootleggers | Charlotte, North Carolina | Bojangles Coliseum | 8,600 | 2022 |
Elmira Renegades | Elmira, New York | First Arena | 3,784 | 2022 |
Hampton Hammerheads | Hampton, Virginia | Hampton Coliseum | 10,147 | 2022 |
Jim Thorpe All-Americans | Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania | PPL Center (Allentown) | 2022 | |
New England Chowderheads | Portland, Maine; Lowell, Massachusetts | Cross Insurance Arena; Tsongas Center | 6,206 6,003 | 2022 |
Salem Mayhem | Salem, Virginia | Salem Civic Center | 6,820 | 2022 |
Syracuse Spark | Syracuse, New York | Upstate Medical University Arena | 5,800 | 2022 |
Trenton Terror | Trenton, New Jersey | CURE Insurance Arena | 7,605 | 2022 |
All teams whose names had been announced were decided by a name-the-team contest. The winners were announced on August, 14th, 2022. The Syracuse Spark were originally going to be called the "Sparkle Muffins" however due to the mouthful that this name would be it was shortened to Spark, the logo and mascot were still a spider. [6]
Lacrosse is a contact team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively modified by European colonists, reducing the violence, to create its current collegiate and professional form.
The National Lacrosse League (NLL) is a men's professional box lacrosse league in North America. The league is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Box lacrosse, also known as boxla, box, or indoor lacrosse, is an indoor version of lacrosse played mostly in North America. The game originated in the 1930s in Canada, where it is more popular than field lacrosse. Lacrosse is Canada's official national summer sport. Box lacrosse is played between two teams of five players and one goalie each, and is traditionally played on an ice hockey rink once the ice has been removed or covered. The playing area is called a box, in contrast to the open playing field of field lacrosse. The object of the game is to use a lacrosse stick to catch, carry, and pass the ball in an effort to score by shooting a solid rubber lacrosse ball into the opponent's goal. The highest level of box lacrosse is the National Lacrosse League.
The Boston Cannons, formerly known as Cannons Lacrosse Club, is a professional men's field lacrosse team in the Premier Lacrosse League (PLL). Formerly based in Boston, Massachusetts, they played in Major League Lacrosse (MLL) from their inaugural 2001 season to 2020. The team's home field was Veterans Memorial Stadium in nearby Quincy. In the MLL, the team won two Steinfeld Cup championship games in 2011 and 2020, the latter being the MLL's final championship. The Cannons joined the PLL in 2020 following the MLL–PLL merger and were rebranded as the Cannons Lacrosse Club before later being rebranded as Boston Cannons once again when the PLL assigned home cities after the 2023 season.
Sports in Canada consist of a wide variety of games. The roots of organized sports in Canada date back to the 1770s, culminating in the development and popularization of the major professional games of ice hockey, lacrosse, basketball, baseball, soccer, football and cricket. Canada's official national sports are ice hockey and lacrosse. Golf, baseball, tennis, skiing, ringette, badminton, cricket, volleyball, cycling, swimming, bowling, rugby union, canoeing, curling, squash, and the study of martial arts are widely enjoyed at the youth and amateur levels. Great achievements in Canadian sports are recognized by Canada's Sports Hall of Fame, while the Lou Marsh Trophy is awarded annually to Canada's top athlete by a panel of journalists. There are numerous other Sports Halls of Fame in Canada.
The CURE Insurance Arena is a multipurpose arena in Trenton, New Jersey. It hosts events including shows, sporting events and concerts.
Sport plays an important role in the business, community, social and cultural life in the state of South Australia.
Sports in San Diego includes one major professional sports team, other highest-level professional teams, minor league teams, and college athletics. The most prominent team in San Diego is the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball (MLB). San Diego FC will begin play in Major League Soccer (MLS) in 2025. San Diego State Aztecs teams play in NCAA Division I (FBS). The Farmers Insurance Open is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour, played annually at Torrey Pines Golf Course.
Sports in Atlanta has a rich history, including the oldest on-campus NCAA Division I football stadium, Bobby Dodd Stadium, built in 1913 by the students of Georgia Tech. Atlanta also played host to the second intercollegiate football game in the South, played between the A&M College of Alabama and the University of Georgia in Piedmont Park in 1892; this game is now called the Deep South's Oldest Rivalry. The city hosts college football's annual Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl and the Peachtree Road Race, the world's largest 10 km race. Atlanta was the host city for the Centennial 1996 Summer Olympics, and Downtown Atlanta's Centennial Olympic Park was built for and commemorates the games.
The prominent women's sports leagues in the United States and Canada serve as the pinnacle of women's athletic competition in North America. The United States is home to the vast majority of professional women's leagues. In North America, the top women's leagues feature both team sports and individual athletes. While some leagues have paid professional women athletes, others do not and function at a semi-professional level.
The Box Lacrosse League (BLL) was a senior men's semi-professional box lacrosse league in the United States. In its final year, the league consisted of five teams with a geographical footprint centered on the Midwest region of the United States and Ontario.
The United Women’s Lacrosse League (UWLX) was a women's lacrosse league in the United States. It was co-founded in Boston, Massachusetts, by Digit Murphy and Aronda Kirby of the Play It Forward Sports Foundation, under the ownership of United Women's Sports LLC in a strategic partnership with STX. Penn State women's lacrosse alum and former United States national team player Michele DeJuliis was appointed as the league’s first commissioner. DeJuliis left after the 2016 season to found the Women's Professional Lacrosse League (WPLL); Kristan Ash served as the second and final league commissioner.
Professional sports leagues in the United States includes major professional sports leagues, other highest-level professional leagues, and minor leagues.
The Boston Storm are a United Women's Lacrosse League (UWLX) professional women's field lacrosse team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They have played in the UWLX since the 2016 season. In the 2017 season, the four teams in the UWLX played in a barnstorming format, with all four teams playing at a single venue.
The Long Island Sound are a United Women's Lacrosse League (UWLX) professional women's field lacrosse team based in Long Island, New York. They have played in the UWLX since the 2016 season. In the 2016 season, the four teams in the UWLX played in a barnstorming format, with all four teams playing at a single venue.
The Philadelphia Force are a United Women's Lacrosse League (UWLX) professional women's field lacrosse team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They have played in the UWLX since the 2016 season. In the 2016 season, the four teams in the UWLX will play on a barnstorming format, with all four teams playing at a single venue.
The sport of lacrosse has been played in the United States by Native Americans long before European exploration. The sport is most popular in the northeast and mid-Atlantic areas of the country. However, the game has recently developed into a popular team sport for both men and women in all regions of the United States.
The National Independent Soccer Association (NISA) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States. The league is in the third tier of American soccer and began play in 2019. NISA initially used a fall-to-spring season format with a winter break but have switched to spring-to-fall which is more common in the United States.
Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) is an American professional field lacrosse league composed of 8 teams. The league's inaugural season debuted on June 1, 2019, and included a 14-week tour-based schedule taking place in 12 major-market cities. The league was founded by the American professional lacrosse player Paul Rabil and his brother Mike Rabil. Investors include The Chernin Group, The Raine Group and Joe Tsai.
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