The Reno Express were a professional indoor football team in

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the ...

. They play their home games at the

Reno Events Center The Reno Events Center is a 7,000-seat multi-purpose arena, located in downtown Reno, Nevada, that was constructed in January 2005. It was the home to the Reno Bighorns of the NBA G League from 2008 to 2018 and to the Reno Barons of the Western ...

during the 2019

American West Football Conference The American West Football Conference (AWFC) is a professional indoor American football minor league created in 2018 by Platinum Events & Security, LLC, the owners of the Idaho Horsemen. The league's inaugural season was in 2019. Players are ...

(AFC) season. They were the first professional football team to play in Reno since the Reno Barons played part of a season in 2011. The team withdrew from the AWFC 2020 season about a month prior to the start of the season, but stated they had plans to return in 2021.

History

On October 15, 2018, the

(AWFC) was founded by the Idaho Horsemen and announced the Express, Tri-Cities Fire, and Wenatchee Valley Skyhawks as the inaugural members. The Express are owned by Platinum Events & Security LLC, the organization that also own the Idaho Horsemen and operates the AWFC. Anthony Bartley was the team's first head coach, but left the team after five games and a 2–3 record. He was replaced by assistant Troy Hansen to finish the season with a 6–6 record and the third seed in the playoffs. The Express traveled to

Wenatchee, Washington Wenatchee ( ) is the county seat and largest city of Chelan County, Washington, United States. The population within the city limits in 2010 was 31,925, and was estimated to have increased to 34,360 as of 2019. Located in the north-central part ...

and defeated the Skyhawks 28–27 to advance to the first championship game against the undefeated Idaho Horsemen. Prior the championship game, the team started a

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fundraiser in order to pay for their trip to Idaho claiming a former associate had been stealing money from the organization. They made it to Boise, and lost 40–20.

Logo change and controversy

The team's original announced logo bore a resemblance to the logo of the

Round Rock Express The Round Rock Express are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. They are located in Round Rock, Texas, and play their home games at the Dell Diamond. The team is named ...

, a Minor League Baseball team. Because the Round Rock team owned the trademarks to the logo, the Reno team was forced to change their primary logo. The team's

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page was updated with a temporary logo on October 15, 2018, which was ultimately scrapped in favor of their another logo in late October 2018.

2019 standings

References

{{reflist

External links

Official website

American West Football Conference website
American football teams in Nevada American football teams established in 2018 2018 establishments in Nevada Sports in Reno, Nevada