The Cleveland Thunderbolts were an

arena football Arena football is a variety of gridiron football designed to be played indoors. The game is played on a smaller field than American or Canadian football, designed to fit in the same surface area as a standard North American ice hockey rink, an ...

team based in

Richfield, Ohio Richfield is a village in Summit County, Ohio, United States. The population was 3,729 at the 2020 census. It is located midway between Akron and Cleveland and is part of the Akron metropolitan area. History Richfield was founded in 1809 and i ...

. The Thunderbolts were founded in 1991 and were a member of the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 Arena Football League season, 1987 season, making it the third longest-runnin ...

(AFL). In 1994, the franchise relocated to

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451–1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, the capital city of the U.S. state of Ohio * Columbus, Georgia, a city i ...

The team played for four seasons total, making the playoffs once. They played their home games in 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 20,27 ...

. The team was moved to Cleveland by John J. Kuczek.

History

Columbus Thunderbolts

Established as the Columbus Thunderbolts and playing its home games at the Expo Coliseum, the team relocated to

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

after 1991 season in the

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

. Perhaps the highlight of the team's one year in

was the play of quarterback Major Harris, who rushed for 429 yards during that season, an achievement given the predominance of passing in the play of the AFL. His record was broken however in 2005 when Michael Bishop ran for 459 yards. The team was sold to John Kuczak and relocated to Cleveland.

Cleveland Thunderbolts

The Thunderbolts operated in the Cleveland area for three seasons, playing their home games in the suburban

, a considerable distance from

downtown Cleveland Downtown Cleveland is the central business district of Cleveland, Ohio, United States. The economic and cultural center of the city and the Cleveland metropolitan area, it is Cleveland's oldest district, with its Public Square, Cleveland, Publi ...

, sharing it with the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers, often referred to as the Cavs, are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Divis ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

and the

Cleveland Crunch The Cleveland Crunch is an American professional indoor soccer club located in Cleveland, Ohio. 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 unde ...

of the National Professional Soccer League. The team qualified for the playoffs in the

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

season, but was relocated to Columbus after the

1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...

campaign. Early in the T-Bolts short existence in Cleveland, John Kuczek was implicated in a federal securities fraud case in Florida. Prior to the team's second season in 1993, Kuczek divested himself of ownership in the club and placed it in a trust for his grandchildren. Son Jeff continued as the front office leader of the organization. Kuczek was ultimately convicted on one count of the indictment. The day before he was due to begin serving his sentence in February 1995, he committed suicide in a

Salem, Ohio Salem is a city in Columbiana County, Ohio, United States. The population was 11,915 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Salem was founded by Quakers in 1806 and played a key role in the Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist ...

hotel room.

Revival of the AFL in Columbus and Cleveland

Thirteen years after the Thunderbolts played their lone season in Columbus, the city would see the AFL return when the

Columbus Destroyers The Columbus Destroyers were an Arena Football League (AFL) team based in Columbus, Ohio, with home games in Nationwide Arena. The team was founded in as the Buffalo Destroyers, based in Buffalo, New York, and relocated to Columbus in . They fo ...

relocated from Buffalo and played five seasons (2004–2008) at

Nationwide Arena Nationwide Arena is a multi-purpose arena in the Arena District of Columbus, Ohio, United States. Since completion in 2000, the arena has served as the home of the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). It is one of two faci ...

. After a 10-year hiatus, the team was relaunched for the

2019 season Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number) * One of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (1987 film), a 1987 science fiction film * '' 19-Nineteen'', a 2009 South Korean film * '' Dici ...

. Cleveland was also without an arena football team for 13 years until the

Cleveland Gladiators The Cleveland Gladiators were an arena football team based in Cleveland, Ohio, and members of the Arena Football League (AFL). The Gladiators played their home games at Quicken Loans Arena, which they shared with the Cleveland Cavaliers of the ...

moved from Las Vegas in 2008. The team has been on hiatus since the 2018 season due to the renovation of

Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse Rocket Arena is a multi-purpose arena in Cleveland, Ohio. The building is the home of the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Cleveland Monsters of the American Hockey League (AHL). It also serves as a sec ...

Season-by-season

Notable players

All-Arena players

The following Thunderbolts players were named to

All-Arena An All-Arena Team, an all-star team consisting of the best players of their position was selected every season in the Arena Football League (AFL). Teams * 1987 All-Arena Team, 1987 * 1988 All-Arena Team, 1988 * 1989 All-Arena Team, 1989 * 1990 Al ...

Teams: *OL/DL

Willie Fears Willie Bert Fears Jr. (born June 4, 1964) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive lineman in the National Football League (NFL) and the World League of American Football (WLAF). He played for the Cincinnati Bengals ...

(1)

Notable coaches

Head coaches

''Note: Statistics are correct through the end of the 1994 Arena Football League season.''

Notes

*The team appeared on the game '' EA Sports Arena Football'' as a hidden bonus team, as well as the sequel '' Arena Football: Road to Glory''.

References

External links

*
Columbus Thunderbolts at ArenaFan.com

Cleveland Thunderbolts at ArenaFan.com
{{Defunct Arena Football League franchises 1991 establishments in Ohio 1994 disestablishments in Ohio Defunct American football teams in Ohio American football teams established in 1991 American football teams disestablished in 1994 Richfield Township, Summit County, Ohio