It’s Good: CRDA Unanimously Approves Arena Football League Expansion to Atlantic City

(bobistraveling/Flickr Creative Commons)

By Matt Rappa, Sports Talk Philly editor

The Arena Football League will soon have its fifth team, and for Atlantic City, its fifth professional sports franchise in the past 20 years.

Tuesday afternoon, the 19-member Casino Reinvestment Development Authority (CRDA) Board unanimously passed the measure to enter a nonbinding term sheet and three-year public-private partnership license agreement with the AFL, according to NJ.com's Chris Franklin.

The AFL announced the expansion team via Twitter, shortly after receiving CRDA Board approval:

The yet-to-be-named AFL team will receive $500,000 in funding; it has been approved to play at the iconic Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall. One year after being built in 1929, the then-called Atlantic City Convention Hall hosted the United States' first indoor college football game. Nearly 90 years later, Boardwalk Hall will be home to the AFL franchise in Atlantic City history.

“Atlantic City is a great market for the Arena Football League,” said AFL Commissioner, Randall Boe. “The AFL is focused on fan engagement and the integration of sports betting, fantasy and fan gamification with our games. Atlantic City is a perfect fit with that strategy and will be a great city for the Arena Football League.”

A sixth AFL team is expected to be announced, along with Atlantic City, prior to the 2019 season, joining the already-existing Philadelphia Soul, Baltimore Brigade, Washington Valor and Albany Empire. The Cleveland Gladiators remain on hiatus as Quicken Loans Arena continues to undergo renovations. By 2020, the AFL could see as many as 10-12 teams, according to Philadelphia Soul Head Coach Clint Dolezel prior to the team's open player tryouts this past Saturday in Pitman, New Jersey.

The team will be operated by Trifecta Sports and Entertainment (TSE), which also oversees the Soul and Empire. AFL Chairman of the Executive Committee, TSE Owner and Soul Majority Owner Ron Jaworski said he "couldn’t be more excited that Arena Football is coming to Atlantic City." “We are going to bring a family friendly affordable entertainment product to AC, and bring a team that will become an integral part of the community, giving people in the area a team to be proud to call their hometown team," Jaworski said.

"Coming from last year where we didn't know if we were going to play the week before we started training camp, I was a little scared," Dolezel said. "[Now,] I haven't heard this much optimism in a long time, so I'm excited about it, too."

Fans will help name Atlantic City's new team on its new website, AtlanticCityAFL.com.