Sports - Defunct Sports Teams, Retro Leagues

The Seattle Rainiers began in 1903 as the Seattle Indians. In 1938, beer magnate Emil Sick bought the team and renamed it after his Rainier brewery. He also built the team a new home, Sick's Stadium. In 1965 they became a farm team of...

Sick's Stadium, also known as Sick's Seattle Stadium and later as Sicks' Stadium, was a baseball stadium in Seattle, Washington. It was the longtime home of the Seattle Rainiers??of the Pacific Coast League and it hosted the Seattle Pilots??during their only major league season...

The original Dayton Gems played in the International Hockey League from 1964 to 1977 and 1979 to 1980, winning 3 Turner Cup championships. A second Dayton Gems team played in the IHL in 2009/2010 and the Central Hockey League (CHL) from 2010 to 2012.

The Dayton Bombers played in the East Coast Hockey League from 1991 to 2009. Their home ice was originally Hara Arena, but in 1996, they moved to the Nutter Center. They made the ECHL playoffs in 13 of their 18 seasons.   OS15110

The second incarnation of the Dayton Gems played in the International Hockey League for one season, 2009/2010 before moving to the Central Hockey League. They folded in 2012.

Encouraged by the initial success of his American Basketball Association (ABA), which challenged the National Basketball Association (NBA), Gary Davidson and his cohorts turned their attention to hockey. On November 1, 1971, Davidson announced the formation of the World Hockey Association (WHA) to challenge...

The original Houston Aeros played in the World Hockey Association (WHA) from its inception in 1972. The league and the Aeros gained instant credibility with the signing of hockey legend Gordie Howe. The team won two championships but folded in 1978, a year before...

The New York Arrows were charter members of the original Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) in 1978. They played their home games at the Nassau County Coliseum on Long Island. In the league's first ever game, baseball legend Pete Rose kicked out the first...

The second incarnation of the Houston Aeros played in the International Hockey League from fall 1994 to spring 2001. After the IHL folded, the Aeros moved to the American Hockey League in fall 2001. In 2013, the team relocated to Des Moines to become...

Not to be confused with the city's current NFL team, these Houston Texans were charter members of the World Football League in 1974. Playing their home games in the Astrodome, they spent only half a season in Houston before moving to Shreveport, Louisiana where...

When the Portland Storm folded at the conclusion of the 1974 World Football League (WFL) season, the prospects for pro football in Bridgetown looked bleak. However, Portland returned to the league the following season with a new team, the Thunder, and a new owner....

The Philadelphia Fever were charter members of the original Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) in 1978. They played their home matches at the old Spectrum before moving to Los Angeles in 1982 to become the Lazers.

The Portland Storm played in the World Football League (WFL) in 1974. Playing their home games at old Civic Stadium, the Storm finished with 7 wins, 12 losses, and 1 tie. The GM was former AFL great Ron Mix, and the head coach was...

The Continental Football League (COFL) formed in 1965 with hopes of achieving a status approaching that of the NFL and AFL. The CFL played primarily in Eastern cities not served by the other two leagues. However, by its second season, it focused on becoming...

The World Football League (WFL) kicked off in July of 1974 as a rival to the established National Football League (NFL). At first, it seemed like it would be a serious rival to the NFL. After all, league founder Gary Davidson had already formed...

When Hammy utters those words, excitement is sure to follow in Downtown Cleveland as the Tribe takes the field.

The Atlanta Chiefs outdoor soccer team was founded in 1967 as a charter member of the National Professional Soccer League, which later merged with the United Soccer Association to from the North American Soccer League in 1968. In 1973, the club was sold and...

The Chicago Whales of the Federal League were originally called the Chicago Federals and the Chi-Feds as they lacked an official nickname. They became the Whales in their second season and were the first team to call what is now Wrigley Field home.

The Force was with soccer fans in Cleveland from 1978 to 1988 as charter members of the Major Indoor Soccer League. The team name was resurrected when the Cleveland Crunch, founded in 1989, changed its name to the Force in 2002.

The Vulcans played in the Continental Football League (CoFL), a tier below the NFL and AFL, for part of the 1967 season. Akron was excited to have a pro football team, but the fun only lasted four games before the team ran out of...