The Cleveland Crunch are an American professional

indoor soccer Indoor soccer or arena soccer (known internationally as indoor football, fast football, or showball) is five-a-side version of minifootball, derived from association football and adapted to be played in walled hardcourt indoor arena. Indoor socc ...

club located in

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

competing in as a charter member of the

Major League Indoor Soccer Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicator ...

(MLIS). The rebranded Crunch returned to indoor play as a member of the MASL 2 in March 2021. Formed in 1989 as an expansion team in the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL), the Crunch played a total of 16 seasons in three separate leagues under two different names. The team played three seasons in the original MISL, later known as the

Major Soccer League Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

(MSL), before joining the rival National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) in 1992. After nine seasons in the NPSL, the team joined a second incarnation of the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) in 2001. In 2002, the team was rebranded the Cleveland Force in honor of the former team of the same name. After four seasons in the second MISL, the team folded in 2005. The Crunch returned to indoor play in the M2 for the 2021 season. On July 18, 2021 the Crunch defeated the Wichita Wings by a final score of 11-6 to win the league championship.

History

The original Cleveland Force team had folded on July 22, 1988.

Akron Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city prop ...

businessmen George S. Hoffman and Stuart Lichter formed an ownership group; named Al Miller general manager; and named former Force star

Kai Haaskivi Kai Haaskivi (born 28 December 1955 in Lahti) is a retired Finnish soccer player. He starred in the North American Soccer League, playing outdoor as well as indoor soccer. He also played for the Finland national football team. He now coaches ...

player-coach. Miller and Haaskivi brought back many players who had been fan favorites during the Force's height of popularity in the mid-1980s. The Crunch's home arena was originally the

Richfield Coliseum Richfield Coliseum, also known as the Coliseum at Richfield, was an indoor arena located in Richfield Township, between Cleveland and Akron, Ohio. It opened in 1974 as a replacement for the Cleveland Arena, and had a seating capacity of 20,273 f ...

. Near the end of the Crunch's first season, Miller engineered a trade that would help Cleveland make the championship finals in seven of the next 10 years. He sent veteran forward Paul Wright to the San Diego Sockers for Zoran Karic, a feisty forward who immediately hit it off with Cleveland star

Hector Marinaro Hector Luis Marinaro Jr (born December 6, 1964) is a Canadian soccer coach and former player who is the men's soccer coach at John Carroll University. As a player he was the all-time leader in points and goals in professional indoor soccer, a ...

. Within weeks, they were dubbed the "Dynamic Duo" and together rewrote the scoring record books for the next decade. When the original MISL ceased operation in the summer of 1992, the Crunch, Baltimore and Wichita joined the rival NPSL as "expansion teams". All were permitted to keep only six players, then fill the rest of their rosters in an expansion draft of players made available by other NPSL teams. The NPSL, in an effort to promote the sport in the United States, had a cap of two non-Americans allowed on a roster. Canadian-born Marinaro and Serbia native Karic filled that quota immediately. Besides Marinaro and Karic, holdovers from the MISL Crunch were midfielders Tommy Tanner and Andy Schmetzer, defender George Fernandez and young goalkeeper

Otto Orf Otto E. Orf II (born November 4, 1963) is a retired American soccer goalkeeper who played professionally in the United Soccer League and Major Indoor Soccer League and National Professional Soccer League. He played one game for the U.S. at the ...

. Orf had only a 14–32 record the previous three years with the club as backup to P.J. Johns. Before switching leagues, Miller had signed four-time NPSL goalkeeper of the year Jamie Swanner from the Canton Invaders. That contract was voided when the Crunch entered the NPSL. Swanner and several ex-Invaders signed as free agents with another expansion team, the

Buffalo Blizzard The Buffalo Blizzard was a soccer club that existed from 1992 to 2001 in Buffalo, New York. History The team was originally owned by the Knox brothers who owned the Buffalo Sabres at the time, and additionally by the Riches who owned the minor l ...

. New Crunch coach

Gary Hindley Gary Hindley (born May 8, 1947) is an American soccer coach. He has coached youth soccer, high school, college and professional teams. He won Coach of the Year honors in 1984 in the United Soccer League, 1991 American Professional Soccer League a ...

wanted Orf as his starter, citing the big keeper's strong throwing arm as an offensive weapon. He wanted Orf getting the ball to Marinaro and Karic with outlet passes at the team's new home, the

CSU Convocation Center The Bert L. and Iris S. Wolstein Center is a 13,610-seat indoor arena located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the campus of Cleveland State University (CSU). It is home to the Cleveland State Vikings men's and women's basketball t ...

, where the playing surface was considerably smaller than at the Richfield Coliseum. Orf became a 25-game winner, Marinaro and Karic shattered all scoring records, and Cleveland advanced to the league finals, where it lost to the Kansas City Attack, three games to two. A year later, the Crunch finally broke through to win Cleveland's first championship in any pro sport in 30 years. Marinaro scored the dramatic game-winner in double overtime as Cleveland overcame a 15–10 deficit to defeat the visiting St. Louis Ambush, 17–15, to take the series, three games to one. Lichter faded from view when the MISL folded and Hoffman became even more active as owner during the Crunch's almost yearly run to the finals. Hoffman eventually sold his interest to a Cleveland group headed by Richard Dietrich. Soon after, the NPSL reorganized itself as the new Major Indoor Soccer League in 2001. The team took on the old Cleveland Force name in 2002.

Team honors

League championships * 1993–94 NPSL Champions * 1995–96 NPSL Champions * 1998–99 NPSL Champions * 2021 MASL2 Champions Division titles (Regular Season) * 1990–91 MSL Eastern Division * 1994–95 NPSL American Division * 1995–96 NPSL American Division * 1996–97 NPSL Central Division * 1998–99 NPSL Central Division * 1999-00 NPSL Central Division * 2021-22 M2 Great Lakes Division Division/Conference titles (Playoffs) *1991 MSL Eastern Division *1993 NPSL American Division *1994 NPSL American Division *1996 NPSL American Division *1997 NPSL American Conference *1999 NPSL American Conference *2000 NPSL American Conference

Individual honors

Most Valuable Player Award * 1992–93

* 1993–94 Zoran Karic * 1994–95 Hector Marinaro * 1995–96 Hector Marinaro (shared with Milwaukee's

Victor Nogueira Victor Nogueira (born July 17, 1959 in Mozambique) is a retired American soccer goalkeeper. Nogueira spent six seasons in the North American Soccer League, but gained his greatest recognition in over twenty seasons in three indoor leagues, the Ma ...

) * 1996–97 Hector Marinaro * 1998–99 Hector Marinaro * 1999-00 Hector Marinaro Scoring Champions * 1991–92 Zoran Karic, 102 points in 37 games * 1992–93 Hector Marinaro, 248 points in 38 games * 1993–94 Zoran Karic, 267 points in 36 games * 1994–95 Hector Marinaro, 255 points in 32 games * 1995–96 Hector Marinaro, 247 points in 33 games * 1996–97 Hector Marinaro, 265 points in 36 games * 1997–98 Hector Marinaro, 212 points in 36 games * 1998–99 Hector Marinaro, 195 points in 34 games * 1999–00 Hector Marinaro, 231 points in 38 games * 2000–01 Hector Marinaro, 161 points in 34 games All-Star Game MVP * 1993 game in Cleveland, Zoran Karic * 1995 game in Buffalo, Zoran Karic (shared with Kansas City's Brian Haynes) * 1999 game in Wichita, Zoran Karic * 2001 game in Buffalo, John Ball Rookie of the Year Award * 1991–92

Tommy Tanner Thomas Tanner is a retired American soccer midfielder who played professionally in the USL A-League, Major Indoor Soccer League and National Professional Soccer League. He was the 1992 MISL Rookie of the Year. Tanner is the owner and currently ...

* 1994–95

Henry Gutierrez Hendrig "Henry" Gutierrez (born August 28, 1968 in Hoboken, New Jersey and raised in Miami) is an American former soccer player who began his career in the lower French divisions before finishing it in the United States. He was a member of the U ...

All-Rookie Team * 1991–92 Tommy Tanner, 1st team * 1993–94

Troy Dayak Troy Michael Dayak (born January 29, 1971) is an American former Association football, soccer player who played as central Defender (association football), defender. He spent his entire Major League Soccer career with the San Jose Earthquakes, Sa ...

, 2nd team * 1994–95

Scott Schweitzer Scott Schweitzer (born August 12, 1971 in Rahway, New Jersey) is an American soccer coach and former professional soccer player. He spent two years as the head coach of Carolina RailHawks FC. College soccer Schweitzer was a four-year letter winner ...

, 1st team * 1994–95 Henry Gutierrez, 1st team * 1995–96

Todd Dusosky Todd Dusosky (born May 12, 1976 in Anoka, Minnesota) is a retired American soccer forward who spent most of his career with indoor teams. He also played a handful of seasons in the USL A-League. Soccer Dusosky graduated from Anoka High School i ...

, 2nd team * 1996–97 John Ball, 1st team * 1997–98 Shawn Boney, 2nd team * 1997–98 Bo Simic, 2nd team * 2001–02 Marco Reda, 1st team * 2001–02 Justin Evans, 1st team

Head coaches

(1989–90) 29–50, .367 *

Trevor Dawkins Trevor Dawkins (born 7 October 1945) is an English retired professional footballer who played as a defender or midfielder. He spent seven seasons in the Football League, five in South Africa, and seven in the United States, most in indoor league ...

(1990–92) 40–25, .615; Playoffs: 8–11, .421 *

(1992–95) 78–42, .650; Playoffs: 15–12, .555 * Bruce Miller (1995-01) 149–87, .631; Playoffs: 27–18, .600 *

George Fernandez George Fernandez is a retired American soccer defender who played professionally in the Major Indoor Soccer League and National Professional Soccer League. He coached in both the Continental Indoor Soccer League and NPSL and was the 1994 CI ...

(2001) 3–5, .375 * Mike Pilger (2001–02) 17–31, .354 *

Andy Schmetzer Andy M. Schmetzer (born April 26, 1967) is a former U.S. soccer midfielder and indoor soccer coach. Player Youth Schmetzer grew up in Seattle, Washington, where he attended Nathan Hale High School. He learned to play soccer under the tutelage o ...

(2002–04) 33–38, .465; Playoffs: 0–2 .000 *

Omid Namazi Omid Namazi ( fa, امید نمازی; born December 8, 1964) is an American retired soccer defender who is currently an assistant coach and the director of scouting for USL Championship club Hartford Athletic. Namazi played professionally in ...

(2004–05) 23–16, .590; Playoffs: 2–2 .500 * Louis Kastelic (2020-22) 19-3 .864; Playoffs: 3-1 .750 *

Benny Dargle Bernard "Benny" Dargle (born 2 January 1957) is an American retired professional soccer player who played as a defender, making over 400 career appearances in a professional career which lasted from 1978 to 1992. Career Dargle was born in Liv ...

(2022-present) TBA

Arenas

1989–92 *

1992-05 * Soccer Sportsplex 2020-22 *

I-X Center The International Exposition Center, better known as the I-X Center, is a convention and exhibition hall located in the Hopkins neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio, United States, adjacent to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. The building i ...

2022-present

Year-by-year

Playoffs

1990–91
MSL Eastern Division Finals: Defeated Kansas City Comets, 4–3
MSL Championship Series: Lost to San Diego Sockers, 4–2
1991–92
MSL Semifinals: Lost to Dallas Sidekicks, 4–2
1992–93
NPSL American Division Semifinals: Defeated Buffalo Blizzard, 2–1
NPSL American Division Finals: Defeated Harrisburg Heat, 2–1
NPSL Championship Series: Lost to Kansas City Attack, 3–2
1993–94
NPSL American Division Semifinals: Defeated Buffalo Blizzard, 2–1
NPSL American Division Finals: Defeated Harrisburg Heat, 2–1
NPSL Championship Series: Defeated St. Louis Ambush, 3–1
1994–95
NPSL American Division Semifinals: Defeated Buffalo Blizzard, 2–1
NPSL American Division Finals: Lost to Harrisburg Heat, 3–0
1995–96
NPSL American Division Semifinals: Defeated Buffalo Blizzard, 2–1
NPSL American Division Finals: Defeated Baltimore Spirit, 3–1
NPSL Championship Series: Defeated Kansas City Attack, 4–2
1996–97
NPSL American Conference Semifinals: Defeated Baltimore Spirit, 2–1
NPSL American Conference Finals: Defeated Harrisburg Heat, 3–1
NPSL Championship Series: Lost to Kansas City Attack, 4–0
1997–98
NPSL American Conference Semifinals: Lost to Philadelphia Kixx, 2–0
1998–99
NPSL American Conference Semifinals: Defeated Montreal Impact, 2–1
NPSL American Conference Finals: Defeated Philadelphia Kixx, 2–0
NPSL Championship Series: Defeated St. Louis Ambush, 3–2
1999–2000
NPSL American Conference Semifinals: Defeated Montreal Impact, 2–0
NPSL American Conference Finals: Defeated Baltimore Blast, 2–0
NPSL Championship Series: Lost to Milwaukee Wave, 3–2
2002–03
MISL Eastern Conference Semifinals: Lost to Baltimore Blast 1–0
2003–04
MISL Eastern Conference Quarterfinals: Lost to Dallas Sidekicks 1–0
2004–05
MISL Semifinals: Defeated Philadelphia Kixx 2–0
MISL Finals: Lost to Milwaukee Wave 2–0
2021
MASL2 Semifinals: Defeated FC Amarillo Bombers 12–6
MASL2 Finals: Defeated Wichita Wings 11–6
2021-22
MASL2 Semifinals: Defeated Muskingun Risers 6-5
MASL2 Finals: Lost to San Diego Sockers2 4-7

References

External links

Cleveland Crunch official website

Cleveland's first sports championship since the 1964 Browns
{{Cleveland 1989 establishments in Ohio Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992) teams Major Indoor Soccer League (2001–2008) teams National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) teams Soccer clubs in Ohio Soccer clubs in Cleveland Association football clubs established in 1989