On Monday, January 11, The North American Soccer League announced that the Atlanta Silverbacks franchise will see operations suspended immediately.
Unable to finalize a deal to keep the club in the league, NASL President Bill Peterson was quoted on the NASL home page as saying, “The goal all along has been to secure committed local ownership in Atlanta, but despite significant conversations with a number of interested parties, we were unable to identify a group that could lead the Silverbacks in a direction consistent with the rest of our clubs.”
In addition he disclosed his disappointment by saying, “It’s unfortunate, and particularly sad for the Silverbacks’ passionate fan base, which has supported the club tremendously throughout the years.”
The Atlanta Silverbacks were one of the founding members of the re-organization of the NASL back in 2011, and have been in existence since 1998, although they were first formed in 1994 and recognized as the Atlanta Ruckus.
Originally, the Atlanta Magic were playing in the United States Indoor Soccer League, when it was announced that the team was accepted to begin play in the American Professional Soccer League in 1995, under the ownership of Sam Chase. The team was split, and actually remained as an USISL club, despite forming a new club to play in the APSL. Several players left to join the newly formed franchise.
The Ruckus existed from 1994 – 1998, although they were battling similar issues to the ones they are currently dealing with. After a 1995 season where the club lost over $600,000, the league nearly revoked the franchise, but South African businessman Johnny Imerman quickly stepped in and bought the team as they were about to join the newly formed A-League. After only one season as the owner, Imerman turned over ownership to the league, and 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, and here we are again today facing a similar situation in Atlanta.
The Atlanta Silverbacks have been run by the NASL since the mid-way point of the 2014 season, and remained as such through the 2015 season after purchasing the club from Boris Jerkunica and Henry Hardin.
What the hell is a Silverback, and how did they get that name?
In September, 1998, after announcing that the Ruckus were disbanding and creating a new team for the city of Atlanta, a press conference was held at Zoo Atlanta to announce the new name of the club.
John Latham and Bobby Glustrom hired Mike Balson as general manager and Balson, in turn, hired the 1996 USISL Coach of the Year Nuno Piteira as their head coach. It was at the zoo that the pairing of Latham and Glustom announced that the team would be known as the Atlanta Silverbacks in honor of Willie B., a silverback gorilla who was a star attraction at the zoo.
Now you know!
If you can recall, Atlanta had a club in the original NASL formed back in 1968, and the team won the first ever Soccer Bowl over the San Diego Toros. Atlanta found their way to the finals the following season, but lost to the Kansas City Spurs. The club again reached the finals in the 1971 campaign, but failed to win their second title losing to the Dallas Tornado.
Atlanta originally survived the 1969 season that saw 10 NASL franchises fold, but they too were forced to close shop, and were shut down after the 1973 season.
Making a comeback in 1979, the Atlanta Chiefs name and logo were revived in 1979, when the Colorado Caribous franchise moved to Atlanta, but they too were only able to support a team until 1981.
The Silverbacks played in the NASL for the last five seasons, and reached the finals once. The club appeared in the 2013 NASL finals against the New York Cosmos, but lost at home 1 – 0 on the strength of the game’s only goal, a Marcos Senna strike from just outside the box. Senna retired this season after a prolific playing career, as he and Raul joined forces in 2015 to help earn the Cosmos their second NASL title in three years.
Last season, Atlanta struggled while finishing in eighth place out of the 11 organizations that took part in the 2015 campaign. They ended the year with 7 Wins, 12 Draws, and 11 Losses with 33 points, but they did have one player who stood out. Midfielder Junior Burgos made his own history on August 8, 2015 as he calmly stood over a 30-yard free kick in the 51st minute that earned him the Goal of the Year honor this past season.
We say goodbye to the Atlanta Silverbacks, but hopefully we will see them back in the league soon.
Silverbacks President and General Manager Andy Smith, who had been with the club for four of its five NASL seasons, took a moment Monday to speak on behalf of the organization, being quoted on the clubs NASL home page saying, “This is obviously a disappointing day for anyone that has been involved with the club over the years,” Smith said. “The organization created some great memories for the city of Atlanta and its soccer fans, but as we all know, you need ownership to continue on. We appreciate all of the time and effort the league and its owners have invested in their search for long-term Silverbacks ownership – they truly turned over every rock in the process. On behalf of the organization, I want to thank all of our staff members, players, coaches, partners, and most importantly fans for their loyal support.”
