Writer: Matt Rappa

CRDA Vote to Bring Arena Football to Atlantic City Set for Tuesday

Matt Rappa Sports Editor

Published21 Jan 2019

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(bobistraveling/Flickr Creative Commons)

By Matt Rappa, Sports Talk Philly editor

The fate of whether the Arena Football League expands to Atlantic City, New Jersey, lies in the power of the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority (CRDA).

Tuesday at 2 p.m., the 19-member CRDA Board will vote to "enter into a nonbinding term sheet and negotiate a three-year public-private partnership license agreement" with the Philadelphia-headquartered league, according to the Press of Atlantic City's Amanda Auble. The Board will vote on the whether to allow the AFL to use Boardwalk Hall and "give them funding," notes the Press' Nicholas Huba.

The yet-be-named franchise would play at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall; it would be the AFL's fifth team currently slated for 2019 action, joining the Philadelphia Soul, Baltimore Brigade, Washington Valor and Albany Empire. The Cleveland Gladiators remain on hiatus as Quicken Loans Arena continues to undergo renovations. Fans will reportedly help name Atlantic City's new team, according to the Press.

Atlantic City was most recently reported as a probable AFL expansion city on January 9, although such rumors existed much prior. The Soul played a game at Boardwalk Hall on May 30, 2015, against the Las Vegas Outlaws for the DraftKings Boardwalk Bowl. An announced crowd of 6,514 attended the game, of which the Soul won, 51-43.

The AFL is excepted to add a sixth franchise, in addition to Atlantic City, for the upcoming season. Philadelphia Soul head coach Clint Dolezel said Saturday, at the team's open player tryouts, that the AFL could "possibly add four more teams" by the 2020 season.

"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."

Auble writes:

The Arena League team in Atlantic City — the name of the team will be chosen by fans in a contest — will try to succeed in a market where other professional sports teams have failed. It will be the fifth professional sports franchise to come to Atlantic City in the past 20 years.

In-game betting is being considered for Boardwalk Hall, as the AFL shifts its focus to move forward as a "next-generation sports league" with an "uniquely modernized and gamified experience for fans."

Soul Majority Owner and Chairman of the AFL's Executive Committee, Ron Jaworski, told the Press' David Weinberg on January 9 that expansion to Atlantic City is "going to happen," and that he is "absolutely thrilled."

“The people of Atlantic City and South Jersey deserve it," Jaworski said. “I can’t say enough about the overwhelming support we’ve received from the City, the CRDA, the casino industry and the people."

"Everyone’s been behind this 100 percent.”