The introduction of the National Indoor Soccer League on Tuesday answered the question regarding the Blast’s future.
But it also spawned another: Where is Rockford, and what is the Rampage?
First: Rockford is a city with a population of about 156,000 in Illinois, about 90 miles northwest of Chicago.
Second: The Rampage won the American Indoor Soccer League title and heads to the NISL seeking better competition.
But what makes Rockford’s inception into the NISL important is the midwestern city could spur expansion westward, as the five-team league also has franchises in Baltimore, Philadelphia, Orlando, Fla., and Monterrey, Mexico.
“With the connections that our new friends Rockford have, we think there is going to be expansion in the Midwest,” Ed Hale, the Blast’s owner, said. “We’re actively going to go after that.”
The AISL housed teams in Massachusetts, Oklahoma, Ohio and Illinois.
Rockford went 12-1 last season, dominating the AISL in similar fashion as the Blast handled the MISL.
“We wanted to upgrade to the majors this year,” Tom Rubio, the Rampage’s owner, said. “We tend to try to follow winners and people who have done well, rather than reinvent things. Going along that line, we decided to join in. And we believe in the next year, there will be additional expansion in the Midwest and the important market of Mexico. Ultimately, we’ll have multiple divisions, where we’ll have competition regionally and also toward the playoffs and a championship.”
The Rampage, coached by Baltimore native Jeff Kraft, is on an island in the NISL, as it will have to travel at least 800 miles to play any of its nine road games in its 18-game schedule.
“We’re excited about our new partners. We have teams that have won, between us and Philadelphia, six of the last seven [MISL] Championships,” Kevin Healey, the Blast’s president, said. “Our town has been the most successful at drawing fans to our games. We’re going to share that information, and I think that’s very important.”
