North American Lacrosse League
NALL logo
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| Sport | Indoor lacrosse |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2011 |
| Inaugural season | 2012 |
| Ceased | 2013 |
| Country |
 United States
|
| Official website | NorthAmericanLacrosseLeague.com |
The North American Lacrosse League (NALL) was a professional indoor lacrosse league based in the United States. It was founded in 2011 as North America's fourth professional lacrosse league, after American Lacrosse League (field lacrosse, 1987) Major League Lacrosse (a field lacrosse league) and the National Lacrosse League (the established professional indoor lacrosse organization). However, a rift in the organization led to the departure of four of the five teams to form the Professional Lacrosse League. After playing only one "full" season that was plagued with canceled games, a franchise folding, and players not showing up for games, the leagues folded.
The league was announced in May 2011. According to Sports Business Journal, the league once sought to become an official developmental league for the established National Lacrosse League, but the plan was rejected. Like the NLL but unlike other lacrosse leagues that play in the summer, the NALL originally intended to start play in January. The league announced it did not intend to compete with the NLL, but would serve alternate markets where the NLL had no presence. By December 2011 five franchises had been announced for the inaugural 2012 season: the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Shamrocks, the Charlotte Copperheads, the Jacksonville Bullies, the Kentucky Stickhorses, and the Hershey Haymakers.
However, weeks before the season was to start a rift split the league over leadership and scheduling. One faction comprising four of the five announced teams – Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Jacksonville, Charlotte, and Hershey – announced that the NALL had relieved acting Commissioner Anthony Caruso of duty and would be switching from a winter to a fall schedule. Caruso responded that his removal was not legitimate, asserting that the Hershey franchise had already been suspended for failure to secure a venue, and that Wilkes-Barre/Scranton owner Jim Jennings was no longer managing partner of that franchise. Caruso claimed that he represented the true NALL, which then consisted of the Kentucky Stickhorses, other members of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton ownership group (eventually named the Lehigh Valley Flying Dutchmen), and a recently announced 2013 expansion franchise in Boston (which Caruso claimed would be ready to compete in 2012 and considered a voting member).
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