Atlanta Ruckus
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| Full name | Atlanta Silverbacks Football Club |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Silverbacks |
| Founded | 1998 as Atlanta Ruckus |
| Stadium |
Atlanta Silverbacks Park Atlanta |
| Capacity | 5,000 |
| League | National Premier Soccer League |
Atlanta Silverbacks are an American soccer club based in Atlanta, United States. Founded in 1998 as Atlanta Ruckus, the club has played in many leagues over the years. The team plays its home games at Atlanta Silverbacks Park, a large soccer complex featuring a 5,000-seat soccer-specific stadium in Atlanta, 15 miles northeast of downtown. The team's colors are red, black, grey, and white.
The team currently plays in the National Premier Soccer League. The women's team, the Atlanta Silverbacks Women, plays in the Women's Premier Soccer League.
In July 1994, the American Professional Soccer League announced it had accepted the Atlanta Magic, owned by Sam Chase, as a new franchise for the 1995 season. At the time, the Magic played in the USISL. In October 1994, the team, still referred to as the Atlanta Magic, signed national team forward Bruce Murray. However, by November 1998, Chase had decided to enter an entirely new team, to be named the Atlanta Ruckus, in the APSL. Despite this decision, several Magic players moved to the Ruckus, including Bill Andracki, Chris Hellenkamp, Brian Moore and Mo Suri. Even after the creation of the Ruckus, the Atlanta Magic continued to play in the USISL, losing to the Baltimore Bays in the 1995–96 USISL indoor season championship.
The Ruckus nearly failed even before it had played a game. Six weeks before the 1995 season, Chase experienced financial difficulties and failed to post the required $100,000 letter of credit with the league by the March 1 deadline. The league nearly revoked the franchise, but, South African businessman Johnny Imerman quickly stepped in and bought the team. The Ruckus, under former U.S. national team coach Lothar Osiander, began its competitive existence on May 5, 1995 when it defeated the Vancouver Whitecaps in the first game of the newly renamed A-League. The Ruckus experienced a mid-season loss of form, but the addition of several new players, including Justin Fashanu, led to a resurgence. Atlanta made it to the championship series, only to lose to the Seattle Sounders in three games. After losing nearly $600,000 in 1995 and continuing to lose money in 1996, Imerman arranged for the league to take over team operations in June 1996. In August 1996, Vincent Lu purchased the franchise. In June 1998, the league suspended the team after Lu refused to sign a renewed franchise agreement with the league. The A-League continued to operate the team, now known as the A-League Atlanta. At the time Umbro had a promotional contract with the A-League and it contacted a local Atlanta law firm, Alston & Bird, about the possibility of litigation against the league and Lu. However, this contact resulted in Alston & Bird lawyer John Latham purchasing the team along with his friend Bobby Glustrom. In September 1998, Latham and Glustrom hired Mike Balson as general manager. Balson then hired 1996 USISL Coach of the Year Nuno Piteira as head coach.
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