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Major League Lacrosse (MLL) was a men's
field lacrosse Field lacrosse is a full contact outdoor men's sport played with ten players on each team. The sport originated among Native Americans, and the modern rules of field lacrosse were initially codified by Canadian William George Beers in 1867. Fi ...
league in the United States. The league's inaugural season was in 2001. Teams played anywhere from ten to 16 games in a summertime regular season. This was followed by a four-team playoff for the championship trophy, the
Steinfeld Trophy The Steinfeld Trophy was a trophy given annually to the winners of the Major League Lacrosse (MLL) championship. The trophy is contested in a 4-team playoff where the top teams (based on regular season record) compete in a single-elimination forma ...
, named after founder Jake Steinfeld. League attendance peaked at 6,417 in 2011 and the 2019 average was 4,587. The Chesapeake Bayhawks and New York Lizards (originally the Baltimore Bayhawks and Long Island Lizards) were MLL members throughout its existence and competed in the first three championship games, with the Lizards winning two. The
Boston Cannons The Cannons Lacrosse Club are 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) as the Boston Cannons from their inaugural 2001 sea ...
, the last of the six charter franchises to remain in their original market with their original name, won their first championship in 2011. The Philadelphia Barrage returned to the league in 2020 after an 11-season hiatus. After moving from Bridgeport to Philadelphia, the Barrage won three championships in four years from 2004 to 2007. For much of the league's history, the Denver Outlaws were the only team west of the Mississippi River, being part of the league's ambitious westward expansion in 2006. Being owned by the Pat Bowlen family and the Denver Broncos, the Outlaws were successful from the start, missing the postseason only once in 14 seasons, while claiming three championships in ten appearances. The
Connecticut Hammerheads The Connecticut Hammerheads were a Major League Lacrosse (MLL) professional men's field lacrosse team based in Fairfield, Connecticut. The team played for one season during the 2020 season. The team's home field was Rafferty Stadium located on t ...
were the league's youngest franchise, and were set to play at
Rafferty Stadium Rafferty Stadium is a 3,500-seat lacrosse stadium on the campus of Fairfield University in Fairfield, Connecticut. It is home to the Fairfield Stags men's and women's lacrosse teams. The facility opened officially on February 2, 2015. The stad ...
near Bridgeport in 2020 before the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
forced a shortened, quarantined season. The final champions were the Boston Cannons, who defeated the Denver Outlaws at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland following a COVID-19-shortened 2020 season. On December 16, 2020, the league announced that it would be merging with the Premier Lacrosse League. At the time of the announcement, the 2020 MLL champion Boston Cannons were announced as the only team continuing play in the 2021 season as members of the PLL. Their roster would be set via expansion draft and, following PLL style, dropping "Boston" from their name, becoming the Cannons Lacrosse Club.


History


Founding (2001–2005)

Major League Lacrosse was founded in 1999 by Jake Steinfeld, Dave Morrow and Tim Robertson. Steinfeld is the creator of the
Body By Jake Jake Steinfeld (born February 21, 1958) is an American actor, fitness personality, entrepreneur, and producer. He develops businesses through the "Body by Jake" brand. Early life Born in the Sea Gate neighborhood of Brooklyn, Steinfeld was rai ...
line of exercise equipment and videos. Morrow is a former
All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...
n lacrosse player at
Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nin ...
and the president of
Warrior Sports Warrior Sports is an American sports equipment manufacturer based in Warren, Michigan. The company currently focuses on ice hockey and lacrosse, producing sticks, helmets, gloves, goalie masks, and protective gear for both sports. Warrior e ...
. Tim Robertson is the son of televangelist Pat Robertson and the former CEO of The Family Channel. Steinfeld was a former lacrosse player at Cortland State (NY), read an article about Dave Morrow. After reading the article, Steinfeld couldn't believe that with the excitement the sport of lacrosse has, there was not a professional outdoor league.Take it Outside. MLL's Official Gameday Program Steinfeld said, "For years, America's top collegiate lacrosse players have not had the opportunity to play in a professional outdoor league at the conclusion of their collegiate careers. Those days are over with the creation of Major League Lacrosse." The league held two separate drafts to stock the six teams for the 2001 season. The first draft took place in 2000 for post-collegiate players. A second draft was held on June 1, 2001, in Baltimore, Maryland, for players whose college eligibility had expired in 2001. Ryan Mollett of Princeton was selected first overall by the Rochester Rattlers. In addition, each team was assigned three franchise players to each team before the initial draft. MLL began play in 2001 with six teams in the northeastern U.S. split into two divisions. The American Division included teams in
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
,
Bridgeport Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonn ...
, Connecticut, and on Long Island; the National Division included teams in Baltimore,
New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...
, and Rochester. All teams were owned by the league, which assigned three franchise players to each team before the initial draft. The first MLL game took place on June 7, 2001, with the Baltimore Bayhawks defeating the Long Island Lizards 16–13 at Homewood field in Baltimore, Maryland. Chris Turner scored the first goal in MLL history. The MLL played a 14-game
regular season In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of ...
its first two years, then the schedule was cut to 12 games. After the first year, the league's playoff format had the top teams in each division advancing to the semifinals, with two wild card playoff spots going to the teams with the next-best records regardless of division. The first MLL Championship Game saw the Long Island Lizards beat the Baltimore Bayhawks 15–11 in September 2001. The game was played at the John F. Kennedy Stadium in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Paul Gait was named the game's MVP. Four out of the first five championship games were between the
Long Island Lizards The New York Lizards, originally the Long Island Lizards, were a Major League Lacrosse (MLL) team based in Hempstead, New York, located on Long Island. They are original members of the MLL. They lost the league's inaugural game on June 7, 2001 to ...
and the
Baltimore Bayhawks The Chesapeake Bayhawks were a Major League Lacrosse (MLL) professional men's field lacrosse team based in Annapolis, Maryland since 2010. They played in the greater Baltimore metro area beginning with the MLL's inaugural 2001 season, as the Balti ...
. The Lizards won titles in 2001 and 2003, while the Bayhawks won in 2002 and 2005. The recently relocated Philadelphia Barrage beat the
Boston Cannons The Cannons Lacrosse Club are 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) as the Boston Cannons from their inaugural 2001 sea ...
13–11 in 2004's final. In 2003, New Balance became a "founding member" and major sponsor of MLL. New Balance founder and CEO, Jim Davis got very involved in the operation of the league, including providing financial support. Davis still owns the
Dallas Rattlers The Dallas Rattlers were a professional men's field lacrosse team as a member of Major League Lacrosse (MLL) based in Frisco, Texas starting in 2018. The franchise was a charter member of the MLL, operating as the Rochester Rattlers in Rochester ...
. In 2005,
Andrew Goldstein Andrew Scott Goldstein (born March 25, 1983 in Milton, Massachusetts) is the first American male team-sport professional athlete to be openly gay during his playing career. He came out publicly in 2003 and was drafted by his hometown team, the ...
became the first American male team-sport professional athlete to be openly gay during his playing career. Goldstein played goalie for the Long Island Lizards from 2005 to 2007, although he only appeared in two games in 2006.


Expansion and contraction (2006–2011)

MLL added four teams for the 2006 season, bringing the league's number of teams up to ten. The expansion markets were Los Angeles, Denver,
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...
, and
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...
, extending the league across the country and into top media markets. MLL combined the original six teams into the Eastern Conference and put the new teams into the Western Conference. The Los Angeles Riptide were owned by the Anschutz Entertainment Group and played its home games at the Home Depot Center. Denver Broncos' owner Pat Bowlen brought the Denver Outlaws to an NFL stadium,
Mile High ''Mile High'' is a British television drama based on the lives of the cabin crew members of Fresh!, a budget airline based in London. The name of the show is a reference to the Mile High Club. The show was broadcast on Sky1 from 2003 to 2005 ...
. The other new franchises were the
Chicago Machine The Chicago Machine were a Major League Lacrosse franchise from 2006 until 2010. The Machine, a men's professional field lacrosse team, played in Toyota Park from 2007 until 2009. Chicago played all its "home" games at various stadiums across ...
and the San Francisco Dragons. Despite winning championships in 2006 and 2007, Philadelphia didn't attract more than 2,500 fans to their games. So in 2008, the Barrage tested out new markets by playing all of its "home" matches in five other cities: Cary, North Carolina; Hillsboro, Oregon; Irving, Texas; St. Louis; and Virginia Beach. In addition, the Barrage's "home game" against the Cannons was played in Boston. At the end of the
2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
season, four teams – Los Angeles, New Jersey, Philadelphia, and San Francisco – folded due to financial problems. Several of these teams suffered from poor attendance, San Francisco drew 2,808 per game and only 1,920 in New Jersey. This contraction forced the remaining six teams to form one conference. The Rochester Rattlers won the 2008 Steinfeld Cup but like the Barrage, struggled at the gate. At the start of the 2009 season, a new ownership group in Toronto bought the rights to the Rochester franchise. The Toronto Nationals inherited the staff and players of the team, but the Rattlers' name and team colors were left in Rochester for the possibility of a future team. That same group of players went on to win another championship in 2009 playing for a different team in a different country. The Chicago Machine played the entire 2010 season as a traveling team testing expansion markets for the league, before deciding that the franchise would be moving to Rochester and adopting the Rattlers name in 2011. In 2010, the Bayhawks and Lizards met for the fifth time in the championship game. The Bayhawks prevailed 13–9, almost the same score as when they beat Long Island 15–9 five years earlier. The newly renamed Chesapeake Bayhawks went on to win two more championships in the next three years, in 2012 and 2013. Their five Steinfeld Cup trophies are the most in MLL history. The league's attendance peaked at 6,417 per game in the 2011 season. The individual franchises had a wide range of local support. Denver lead the league in attendance, drawing 12,331 fans per game in 2011, while the relocated Hamilton Nationals had 1,214 people per game, one-tenth of Denver's attendance.


LXM Pro Tour

In late 2009,
Kyle Harrison Kyle Harrison (born March 12, 1983) is an American retired professional lacrosse player from Baltimore, Maryland. Currently, he serves as the PLL Director of Player Relations and Diversity Inclusion. He had a 17-year career in professional fi ...
, Scott Hochstadt, Craig Hochstadt, Xander Ritz, and Max Ritz formed the
LXM Pro Tour LXM Pro Tour, or LXM Pro, was a California-based professional men's field lacrosse showcase that featured many of the sport's most accomplished players. LXM Pro Tour was founded by former college lacrosse and Major League Lacrosse players, notab ...
. The tour would feature two teams playing games across the country at special events involving the LXM Pro game and youth activities. The tour competed for players with the MLL as the more established league would not let players under contract play in other professional lacrosse events. On February 13, 2014, MLL announced a partnership with the LXM Pro Tour, a week after the league announced a new equipment deal with STX, a sponsor of one of the LXM Pro teams. The deal moved LXM to the MLL off-season and allowed players to participate in both MLL and LXM. However, LXM Pro didn't hold any tour stops after the announcement.


Southern trend (2012–2018)

During the early years of MLL, the league did not have any teams in the southeast. In January 2011, Commissioner David Gross announced that Charlotte, North Carolina, as well as Columbus, Ohio, were granted expansion teams for the 2012 season. The Ohio Machine and Charlotte Hounds opened play in April 2012, with both teams missing the playoffs in their inaugural season. With the expansion, the league grew to eight teams and expanded its schedule to fourteen games. In November 2013, the Hamilton Nationals folded and an expansion franchise was awarded to the Florida Launch for the 2014 season. The Launch inherited the Nationals roster. The
Atlanta Blaze The Atlanta Blaze were a professional men's field lacrosse team in Major League Lacrosse (MLL). The Blaze became the ninth team in MLL as an expansion team for the 2016 season and played its home games at Atlanta Silverbacks Park in Atlanta, Geo ...
became the ninth MLL team in 2016. The Rattlers relocated
gain Gain or GAIN may refer to: Science and technology * Gain (electronics), an electronics and signal processing term * Antenna gain * Gain (laser), the amplification involved in laser emission * Gain (projection screens) * Information gain in de ...
from Rochester, New York, in 2018 to Dallas, Texas, and began play as the
Dallas Rattlers The Dallas Rattlers were a professional men's field lacrosse team as a member of Major League Lacrosse (MLL) based in Frisco, Texas starting in 2018. The franchise was a charter member of the MLL, operating as the Rochester Rattlers in Rochester ...
in 2018.


Second contraction (2019 to 2020)

On April 1, 2019, just two months before the start of the season, the league announced that the Charlotte Hounds, Florida Launch, and Ohio Machine would not be playing in 2019. While the Hounds announced they would be back in 2021 under new ownership in a renovated stadium, the Launch and Machine effectively folded. The announcement dropped the league down to six teams, the fewest teams since 2011, and meant all remaining owners owned only one team. Jim Davis, owner of New Balance, had owned the Hounds, Launch, and Machine, but he now owns only the Dallas Rattlers. Returning from a two-year retirement, 44-year-old John Grant Jr. broke the record for career points scored during the 2019 season. Also in 2019, MLL saw its first goal by a Japanese player, Kohta Kurashima, who is also the first Japanese born player in MLL history. The Rattlers ceased operations after the 2019 season. and the staff and roster were shifted to an expansion team called the Connecticut Hammerheads. The Atlanta Blaze also ceased operations after the 2019 season and were replaced by a resurrected Philadelphia Barrage. Due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, the league announced they would play a week-long quarantined season in Annapolis at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium with no fans. Every team would play each other once (five total games) before a four-team playoff as normal.


PLL merger (2020)

On December 16, 2020, it was announced that the MLL had agreed to merge all operations with the Premier Lacrosse League. Under this agreement, the leagues will operate as one under the "PLL" brand and model. In order to accommodate the influx of players the PLL will be expanding the league to include its eighth touring team, known as Cannons Lacrosse Club, paying homage to the 2020 MLL champions, the
Boston Cannons The Cannons Lacrosse Club are 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) as the Boston Cannons from their inaugural 2001 sea ...
. The roster of this new team was determined by the 2021 expansion draft.


Rules

A Major League Lacrosse Field is 110 yards long and 60 yards wide. The game is 60 minutes long, divided into four 15-minute quarters with 15-minute intermission at halftime, plus multiple 10-minute golden goal periods for regulation games ending in ties unless one team scores, which wins the game. Teams are required to dress twenty players, with ten players on the field at a time. MLL rules are based on NCAA rules with various changes. The most significant are a two-point goal line from each goal, a 60-second shot clock, the elimination of the restraining box, and allowing dive shots. The shot clock was originally 45 seconds before it was changed to 60 seconds for the 2005 season. From the inception of the league to 2008, there was a limit of three long-stick defensemen per team in order to promote scoring. Beginning in 2009, the league conformed to high school and college lacrosse rules and now allows four long–sticks per team on the field at any one time. 20 players dress for each regular-season game.


Teams


Timeline

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ConnecticutHammerheads bar:ConnecticutHammerheads from:10/02/2020 till:end color:blue $t:black $RightMargin text:"Connecticut Hammerheads" # – AtlantaBlaze bar:AtlantaBlaze from:01/01/2016 till:10/02/2020 color:black $t:white $LeftIn text:"Atlanta Blaze" # – FloridaLaunch bar:FloridaLaunch from:21/11/2013 till:01/04/2019 color:gold2 $LeftIn text:"Florida Launch" # – OhioMachine bar:OhioMachine from:01/01/2012 till:01/04/2019 color:lightblue $t:white $LeftIn text:"Ohio Machine" bar:OhioMachine at:19/08/2017 $champ mark:(line, lightblue) # – CharlotteHounds bar:CharlotteHounds from:01/01/2012 till:01/04/2019 color:blue $t:white $LeftIn text:"Charlotte Hounds" # – HamiltonNationals bar:HamiltonNationals from:19/02/2009 till:03/02/2011 color:black $t:white $LeftIn text:"Toronto Nationals" bar:HamiltonNationals from:03/02/2011 till:21/11/2013 color:orange $t:black $LeftIN text:"Hamilton Nationals" bar:HamiltonNationals at:23/08/2009 $champ mark:(line, black) # – ChicagoMachine bar:ChicagoMachine from:01/01/2006 till:23/11/2010 color:lightblue $t:white $LeftIn text:"Chicago Machine" # – SanFranciscoDragons bar:SanFranciscoDragons from:01/01/2006 till:01/11/2008 color:purple $t:white $LeftIn text:"San Francisco Dragons" # – LosAngelesRiptide bar:LosAngelesRiptide from:01/01/2006 till:01/11/2008 color:teal $t:white $LeftIn text:"Los Angeles Riptide" # – DenverOutlaws bar:DenverOutlaws from:01/01/2006 till:end color:orange $t:black $LeftIn text:"Denver Outlaws" bar:DenverOutlaws at:23/08/2014 $champ mark:(line, orange) bar:DenverOutlaws at:20/08/2016 $champ mark:(line, orange) bar:DenverOutlaws at:18/08/2018 $champ mark:(line, orange) # – NewJerseyPride bar:NewJerseyPride from:01/01/2001 till:01/11/2008 color:red $t:white $LeftIn text:"New Jersey Pride" # – PhiladelphiaBarrage bar:PhiladelphiaBarrage from:01/01/2001 till:01/01/2004 color:blue $t:white $LeftIn text:"Bridgeport Barrage" bar:PhiladelphiaBarrage from:01/01/2004 till:01/11/2008 color:orange $t:black $LeftIn text:"Philadelphia Barrage" bar:PhiladelphiaBarrage from:01/01/2020 till:end color:orange $t:black $RightMargin text:"Philadelphia Barrage" bar:PhiladelphiaBarrage at:22/08/2004 $champ mark:(line, orange) bar:PhiladelphiaBarrage at:27/08/2006 $champ mark:(line, orange) bar:PhiladelphiaBarrage at:26/08/2007 $champ mark:(line, orange) # – DallasRattlers bar:DallasRattlers from:01/01/2001 till:19/02/2009 color:gold $t:black $LeftIn text:"Rochester Rattlers" bar:DallasRattlers from:23/11/2010 till:16/11/2017 color:gold $t:black $LeftIn text:"Rochester Rattlers" bar:DallasRattlers from:16/11/2017 till:10/02/2020 color:darkblue $t:white $LeftIn text:"Dallas Rattlers" bar:DallasRattlers at:24/08/2008 $champ mark:(line, gold) # – NewYorkLizards bar:NewYorkLizards from:01/01/2001 till:14/12/2012 color:aqua $t:white $LeftIn text:"Long Island Lizards" bar:NewYorkLizards from:14/12/2012 till:end color:green $t:black $LeftIn text:"New York Lizards" bar:NewYorkLizards at:03/09/2001 $champ mark:(line, aqua) bar:NewYorkLizards at:24/08/2003 $champ mark:(line, aqua) bar:NewYorkLizards at:08/08/2015 $champ mark:(line, green) # – ChesapeakeBayhawks bar:ChesapeakeBayhawks from:01/01/2001 till:01/01/2007 color:navy $t:white $LeftIn text:"Baltimore Bayhawks" bar:ChesapeakeBayhawks from:01/01/2007 till:01/03/2010 color:blue $t:white $LeftIn text:"Washington Bayhawks" bar:ChesapeakeBayhawks from:01/03/2010 till:end color:navy $t:white $LeftIn text:"Chesapeake Bayhawks" bar:ChesapeakeBayhawks at:01/09/2002 $champ mark:(line, navy) bar:ChesapeakeBayhawks at:21/08/2005 $champ mark:(line, navy) bar:ChesapeakeBayhawks at:22/08/2010 $champ mark:(line, navy) bar:ChesapeakeBayhawks at:26/08/2012 $champ mark:(line, navy) bar:ChesapeakeBayhawks at:25/08/2013 $champ mark:(line, navy) bar:ChesapeakeBayhawks at:06/10/2019 $champ mark:(line, navy) # – BostonCannons bar:BostonCannons from:01/01/2001 till:end color:blue $t:white $LeftIn text:"Boston Cannons" bar:BostonCannons at:28/08/2011 $champ mark:(line, blue) bar:BostonCannons at:26/07/2020 $champ mark:(line, blue)


Championship games

The MLL Championship Game was played at a neutral site decided by the league. Teams qualified for the playoffs by finishing with one of the top four records during the regular season. Those four teams played in a semifinal to determine who plays in the Championship Game.


Performance by team

''Italics'' indicates a defunct team


Draft

Every year, Major League Lacrosse held a collegiate player draft. The collegiate player draft occurred prior to the league season. Only players who competed at the collegiate level and whose
NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...
eligibility has expired in the previous season were eligible for the draft. The exact date, location, and number of rounds varied each year. In addition, each off-season, MLL heald a supplemental player draft. The draft was held to expand a team's protected list to a pre-season active roster of 40 players. If a player wasn't selected, they returned to the player pool.


Top draft picks


Attendance

Since 2006, overall league attendance has varied between 3,800 and 6,500 per game, peaking in 2011 and steadily decreasing to an all-time low in 2018. There has always been a great deal of disparity in attendance figures for different teams in the league. Playing at Invesco Field at Mile High, the Denver Outlaws have led the league in attendance all but one year of their existence. A significant portion of Denver's attendance is from one game each year. The Outlaws established a tradition of having a game on the Fourth of July that always attracts the biggest single-game attendance in the league. 31,644 people attended the game and watched fireworks afterward in 2015. The Fourth of July game has regularly attracted over 25,000 people. Outside of this special event game, Denver currently draws about 6,000 per game.


League operations

The league is owned by Major League Lacrosse, LLC, which is controlled by the founders and the six franchises. The founders – Steinfeld, Morrow, Robertson, and Davis – control five of 14 ownership shares (36%); the nine franchises each have one ownership share (7%). Davis owns two of the nine franchises and has a stake in two others. Atlanta Blaze owner Peter Trematerra sued Major League Lacrosse, LLC, Commissioner Gross, Jim Davis and several businesses controlled by the founders of the league in April 2017. Trematerra alleged that Gross provided inaccurate information about the profitability of the league in 2014, when Trematerra was considering buying an expansion franchise. The suit also claimed that because the league, some of its major sponsors, and Lax Sports Network were all controlled by the same people and entities, sponsorship and broadcast rights were sold for below market value. In August 2017, the MLL accidentally exposed the confidential personal information of over 1,000 players, nearly everyone who has ever played in the league or tried out for a team. The information was stored in one excel spreadsheet that was publicly linked on the league's website for a day. It is unknown if any player experienced identity theft as a result of the incident. Headquarters: * East Rutherford, New Jersey (1999–2001) * Secaucus, New Jersey (2001–2004) * Boston, Massachusetts (2004–2020)


Television coverage

Fox Sports Network Fox Sports Networks (FSN), formerly known as Fox Sports Net, was the collective name for a group of regional sports channels in the United States. Formed in 1996 by News Corporation, the networks were acquired by The Walt Disney Company on Mar ...
broadcast games for the first two seasons, then ESPN2 televised a weekly MLL game from 2003 through 2011. In 2012, ESPN2 televised three regular season games, the All-Star Game, one semifinal, and the MLL Championship game. MLL games have not been regularly shown on ESPN2 since 2012 due to low ratings. Games continue to be streamed on ESPN3.
CBS Sports Network CBS Sports Network (a.k.a. CBSSN) is an American pay television network owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global. When it launched in 2002 as the National College Sports Network (later College Sports Television also known ...
has televised all-star games and the playoffs since 2013. MLL did not receive any money from these networks for these deals. In 2017, Lax Sports Network was given exclusive rights to all 63 regular season games. Twitter streamed the semifinal games and CBS Sports Network broadcast the final. On April 1, 2019, the league announced they had reacquired broadcast rights from Lax Sports Network. It was unclear where each team would broadcast its games, though the Cannons announced on March 28 that NBC Sports Boston would air all 16 of their games. One day prior to the start of the 2019 season, the league announced that 12 games would be broadcast on Stadium and the network would air a weekly studio show. Also in 2019, MLL re-partnered with the ESPN network. Weekly coverage was shown on ESPN+ and several games, including the league championship, were broadcast nationally on ESPN2. MLL saw their biggest television-reach in league history. The semi-finals and finals combined for 297 million total household viewers. Major League Lacrosse would expand its relationship with ESPN for the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season. All 18 games (including postseason) will be available on the ESPN family of networks, including ESPN+. ESPN2 will broadcast two games on Sunday, July 19. A few days later, the partnership was expanded to TSN for Canadian viewers and ESPN Player to allow fans to watch from over 130 countries. The championship game will be broadcast on ESPN's flagship station on Sunday, July 26.MLL announces expanded broadcast schedule
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References


External links

* {{Professional Lacrosse Sports leagues established in 2001 Professional sports leagues in the United States 2001 establishments in the United States