National Lacrosse League facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
National Lacrosse League

Formerly	Eagle Pro Box Lacrosse League (1986–1988) Major Indoor Lacrosse League (1988–1997)
Sport	Box lacrosse
Founded	1986; 39 years ago (1986)
Inaugural season	1987
Commissioner	Brett Frood
No. of teams	15
Countries	Canada (6 teams)  United States (9 teams)
Headquarters	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Most recent champion(s)	Buffalo Bandits (6th title)
Most titles	Philadelphia Wings Toronto Rock Buffalo Bandits (6 titles each)
TV partner(s)	TSN ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN+, ESPNews, ESPNU

The National Lacrosse League (NLL) is a professional sports league for men who play box lacrosse. It is based in North America, with its main office in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The NLL currently has fifteen teams. Nine of these teams are in the United States, and six are in Canada. The NLL is very popular, ranking third in average attendance for professional indoor sports around the world. Only the NHL (ice hockey) and the NBA (basketball) have more fans attending games. Unlike most other box lacrosse leagues, which play in the summer, the NLL plays its games in the winter and spring. Their season runs from December to June. Each year, the best teams compete in playoffs to win the National Lacrosse League Cup. Since 2004, the NLL has had between 8,900 and 10,700 fans at each game.

How Box Lacrosse Games Are Played

NLL games have four 15-minute periods, called quarters. There are short 2-minute breaks between quarters and a longer 15-minute break at half-time. To start each quarter and after every goal, players "face-off" at the center of the field. This decides which team gets to start with the ball. Two players push their sticks together with the ball in the middle. A scramble usually happens as players from both teams try to win the ball.

If a game is tied after all four quarters, the teams play sudden death overtime. This means the first team to score a goal wins the game. Each team can take one 45-second timeout per half. Each team dresses 19 players for a game. This includes 2 goaltenders (goalies) and 17 "runners" (field players). NLL goals are 4 feet 9 inches wide and 4 feet tall.

The NLL uses a 30-second shot clock. This is like the shot clock in professional basketball. The clock starts counting down when a team gets the ball. If the team doesn't shoot the ball at the goal before time runs out, they lose possession. However, if they shoot and then get the ball back, the shot clock resets.

If players get into a fight, it results in a 5-minute major penalty. Players are not automatically kicked out of the game for fighting.

Season and Playoff Fun

Every team in the NLL plays eighteen games during the regular season. Nine games are played at home, and nine are played away. All 15 teams are part of one big standings table. NLL games are usually played on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Sometimes, teams play two games in one weekend.

The regular season starts in December and finishes in April. Since 2018, the league has expanded its playoffs to include eight teams.

Starting with the 2024 season, the top 8 teams in the standings make it to the playoffs. The first round is a single-elimination game, meaning if you lose, you're out. The Conference Finals and the Championship rounds are "best-of-three" series. This means a team needs to win two games to move on or win the championship.

Meet the Players

The NLL has a "soft" salary cap for each team. In 2013, this cap was US$400,000 per team. The average salary for a player in 2013 was about $19,135. A "franchise player" (a top player) could earn around $34,000.

Many NLL players have other full-time jobs outside of lacrosse. For example, John Tavares from the Buffalo Bandits is a high school teacher. As of 2018, the NLL salary cap was $415,000. Here's how player pay generally worked:

• Rookies (first-year players): $10,208
• Second-year players: $12,196 to $16,631
• Veteran minimum (experienced players): $15,165
• Veteran maximum: $30,132
• Franchise player: $37,664
• Average salary: $19,375.21

Even though nine of the fifteen teams are in the U.S., less than 7% of the players are American. About 83% of players are Canadian, and 10% are Haudenosaunee (Native American/First Nations), from either Canada or the U.S.

NLL Teams

Current Teams in the NLL

Starting with the 2024 NLL season, the league changed its structure. It no longer has East and West Conferences. All teams now play in a single division, and every team plays against every other team at least once. In 2025, the New York Riptide team will move to Ottawa, Canada, and change its name to the Ottawa Black Bears.

Overview of NLL teams

Team	City	Arena	Capacity	Founded	Joined	Head coach
Albany FireWolves	Albany, New York	MVP Arena	14,236	1987*	2021	Glenn Clark
Buffalo Bandits	Buffalo, New York	KeyBank Center	19,070	1991	1992	John Tavares
Calgary Roughnecks	Calgary, Alberta	Scotiabank Saddledome	19,289	2001	2002	Josh Sanderson
Colorado Mammoth	Denver, Colorado	Ball Arena	17,809	1987*	2003	Pat Coyle
Georgia Swarm	Duluth, Georgia	Gas South Arena	11,355	2004*	2015	Ed Comeau
Halifax Thunderbirds	Halifax, Nova Scotia	Scotiabank Centre	10,595	1995*	2019	Mike Accursi
Las Vegas Desert Dogs	Paradise, Nevada	Michelob Ultra Arena	12,000	2021	2022	Shawn Williams
Ottawa Black Bears	Ottawa, Ontario	Canadian Tire Centre	18,655	2018*	2025	TBD
Panther City Lacrosse Club	Fort Worth, Texas	Dickies Arena	12,200	2020	2021	Tracey Kelusky
Philadelphia Wings	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Wells Fargo Center	19,543	2017	2018	Paul Day
Rochester Knighthawks	Rochester, New York	Blue Cross Arena	10,664	2019	2019	Mike Hasen
San Diego Seals	San Diego, California	Pechanga Arena	12,920	2017	2018	Patrick Merrills
Saskatchewan Rush	Saskatoon, Saskatchewan	SaskTel Centre	15,200	2005*	2015	Jimmy Quinlan
Toronto Rock	Hamilton, Ontario	First Ontario Centre	17,383	1998*	1999	Matt Sawyer
Vancouver Warriors	Vancouver, British Columbia	Rogers Arena	18,910	2000*	2013	Curt Malawsky

An asterisk (*) means the team moved to its current city and has played in other places before.

Here are teams that are no longer active in the NLL:

Overview of former NLL teams

Team	City	Years active	Notes
Washington Wave	Washington, D.C.	1987–1989
New York Saints	Uniondale, New York	1987–2003	Moved from East Rutherford, New Jersey (New Jersey Saints)
Detroit Turbos	Detroit, Michigan	1989–1994
Boston Blazers	Boston, Massachusetts	1989–1997	Moved from Worcester, Massachusetts (New England Blazers)
Pittsburgh Bulls	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	1990–1993
Charlotte Cobras	Charlotte, North Carolina	1996
Arizona Sting	Glendale, Arizona	2001–2007	Moved from Columbus, Ohio (Columbus Landsharks)
Anaheim Storm	Anaheim, California	2002–2005	Moved from East Rutherford, New Jersey (New Jersey Storm)
Vancouver Ravens	Vancouver, British Columbia	2002–2004
Portland LumberJax	Portland, Oregon	2006–2009
Orlando Titans	Orlando, Florida	2007–2010	Moved from New York City (New York Titans)
Chicago Shamrox	Hoffman Estates, Illinois	2007–2008
Boston Blazers	Boston, Massachusetts	2009–2011	Not connected to the first Blazers team
New York Riptide	Uniondale, New York	2018–2024	Moving to Ottawa (Ottawa Black Bears) in 2024–25

History of the NLL

NLL Progression

Year	Teams	Games played
1987	4 teams	6 games
1988		8 games
1989	6 teams
1990
1991		10 games
1992	7 teams	8 games
1993
1994	6 teams
1995
1996	7 teams	10 games
1997	6 teams
1998	7 teams	12 games
1999
2000	8 teams
2001	9 teams	14 games
2002	13 teams	16 games
2003	12 teams
2004	10 teams
2005
2006	11 teams
2007	13 teams
2008	12 teams
2009
2010	11 teams
2011	10 teams
2012	9 teams
2013
2014		18 games
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019	11 teams
2020	13 teams	18 (12 played)
2021	Season cancelled
2022	14 teams	18 games
2023	15 teams
2024

The Early Years: Eagle Pro Box Lacrosse League (1986-1988)

Professional box lacrosse in the United States started again on March 13, 1986. This was with the creation of the Eagle Pro Box Lacrosse League (EPBLL). Before this, in 1985, there was an eight-game series called the USA/Canada Superseries. This event was like a preview for the new league.

The league started with four teams: Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, D.C., and East Rutherford, New Jersey. The EPBLL began playing in the 1987 season. The first games were on January 10, 1987. The Philadelphia Wings played the New Jersey Saints, and the Baltimore Thunder played the Washington Wave.

The four teams played a six-game regular season. Then, all four teams went into a single-elimination playoff tournament. The Baltimore Thunder became the first EPBLL champions. They beat the Washington Wave 11–10. In its first season, over 124,536 fans attended games.

1988 Season

The same four teams played in the second season of the EPBLL. They played an eight-game schedule. The New Jersey Saints won the championship, beating the Washington Wave 17–16. This was the second time the Wave lost in the championship game.

After this season, the Saints team moved to Long Island and became the New York Saints. The league also changed its name to the Major Indoor Lacrosse League (MILL). Two new teams, Detroit and Boston, joined the league for the 1989 season. The Detroit team was called the Detroit Turbos, and the Boston team was the New England Blazers.

Major Indoor Lacrosse League (1989-1997)

1989 Season

In 1989, each of the six teams played an eight-game schedule. The new Detroit Turbos team had 12,171 fans at their first game. Overall, over 230,000 fans watched regular season games. The Philadelphia Wings won the league championship. They beat the New York Saints 11–10 in front of a record crowd of 16,042 fans.

After the championship, the league added a new team in Pittsburgh, called the Pittsburgh Bulls. The Washington Wave team stopped playing after three seasons.

1990 Season

In 1990, the New York Saints played the Philadelphia Wings in front of a record crowd of 17,177 fans in Philadelphia. The Wings later won their second championship in a row, beating the New England Blazers 17–7. Over 287,000 fans attended games this season. After the season, famous twin brothers Paul Gait and Gary Gait joined the Detroit Turbos. They had won national championships in college.

1991 Season

In 1991, the season schedule grew from 8 to 10 games. The Gait brothers had a great first season with the Detroit Turbos. Paul scored a record 47 goals, and Gary had a record 36 assists and 68 points. The Turbos won their first championship, beating the Baltimore Thunder 14–12. The league also held its first All-Star Game in Philadelphia.

After the season, Buffalo got a new team called the Bandits for the 1992 season.

1992 Season

The league went back to an eight-game schedule in 1992. The Blazers team moved to Boston and changed their name to the Boston Blazers. The new Buffalo Bandits team had a great start, selling out two games in their first season. The Bandits went on to win the league championship, beating the Philadelphia Wings 11–10 in overtime. This was the first time a new team won the title.

1993 Season

Buffalo won their second championship in a row in 1993, beating the Philadelphia Wings 13–12. The Bandits had an 18-game winning streak, which was the longest in professional sports at the time. Buffalo became the second team to win back-to-back championships.

The league and players agreed to a new contract. The Pittsburgh Bulls team stopped playing after four seasons.

1994 Season

ESPN2 started showing NLL games on Monday nights. The Philadelphia Wings stopped the Buffalo Bandits from winning a third championship. The Wings beat the Bandits 26–15 in front of a sold-out crowd. This win gave the Wings their third championship, the most for any team.

After the season, a new team was added in Rochester, New York, called the Rochester Knighthawks. This team replaced the Detroit Turbos, who stopped playing.

1995 Season

The new Rochester Knighthawks won their first game. Philadelphia set a league attendance record with 17,380 fans at a game. The Philadelphia Wings won their second championship in a row and fourth overall. They beat the Knighthawks 15–14 in overtime.

After this season, another new team, the Charlotte Cobras, joined the league.

1996 Season

In 1996, the league schedule increased to 10 games. The Charlotte Cobras had a tough year, losing all their games, and then stopped playing after one season. The Buffalo Bandits beat the Philadelphia Wings 15–10 in the championship game. This was Buffalo's third championship.

1997 Season

The 1997 season started with a new league record crowd of 18,595 fans in Buffalo. The Rochester Knighthawks won their first MILL championship. They beat the Bandits 15–12 in front of 18,055 fans.

The National Lacrosse League Era (1998-Present)

In 1997, the Major Indoor Lacrosse League changed its name to the National Lacrosse League (NLL). The schedule expanded to 12 games. Two new teams joined: the Syracuse Smash and the Ontario Raiders. The Boston Blazers team stopped playing.

1998 Season

The 1998 season had 12 games for each team. The playoffs changed to a best-of-three championship series. The Philadelphia Wings won their fifth championship, beating the Baltimore Thunder 2-0 in the series.

In 1999, the Raiders team moved to Toronto and became the Toronto Rock. The Rock had a perfect home record and won their first championship. They beat the Rochester Knighthawks 13–10.

2000 Season

The Toronto Rock won their second championship in a row, beating the Knighthawks 14–13. This game is considered one of the best lacrosse games ever played.

After the season, the league added a new team in Columbus, Ohio, called the Columbus Landsharks. The Syracuse Smash moved to Ottawa and became the Ottawa Rebel. The Pittsburgh CrosseFire moved to Washington, D.C., and became the Washington Power.

2001 Season

The Philadelphia Wings won their sixth championship, beating the Toronto Rock 9–8 in front of the league's largest crowd ever, 19,409 fans.

After this season, the league expanded a lot, adding new teams in Montreal, New Jersey, Calgary, and Vancouver for 2002. This brought the league from nine to thirteen teams.

2002 Season

With thirteen teams, the league created three divisions. The Vancouver Ravens played their first home game in front of 13,772 fans. The Toronto Rock won their third championship in four seasons, beating the Albany Attack 13–12.

After the season, the Washington Power team moved to Denver and became the Colorado Mammoth. The Montreal Express team stopped playing after one season.

2003 Season

The Colorado Mammoth played their first home game in Denver, winning in double overtime in front of 16,121 fans. The Mammoth had two sellout crowds this season. The Toronto Rock won their fourth championship in five seasons, beating the Rochester Knighthawks 8–6.

After this season, the Ottawa Rebel and New York Saints teams stopped playing. Several teams moved: the Columbus Landsharks became the Arizona Sting, the New Jersey Storm became the Anaheim Storm, and the Albany Attack became the San Jose Stealth. The league then changed to two divisions: East and West.

2004 Season

The Arizona Sting played their first home game in a new arena. The Colorado Mammoth had five sellout crowds this season. The 2004 All-Star Game was played in front of 16,742 fans, the largest All-Star Game crowd ever. The Calgary Roughnecks won their first championship, beating the Buffalo Bandits 14–11.

The Vancouver Ravens team stopped playing after three seasons. The Montreal Express team was bought and moved to Minnesota, becoming the Minnesota Swarm. A new team was also added in Portland, Oregon, called the Portland LumberJax. The league also started the National Lacrosse League Hall of Fame.

2005 Season

The league and players agreed to a new contract, allowing the season to start. The first professional lacrosse game in Minnesota was played in front of 14,084 fans. The NLL All-Star Game was shown live on NBC, making it the first live lacrosse broadcast on U.S. national TV. The Toronto Rock won their fifth championship, beating the Arizona Sting 19–13.

After the season, the Anaheim Storm team stopped playing. The Ottawa Rebel team was bought and moved to Edmonton, becoming the Edmonton Rush.

2006 Season

The Edmonton Rush played their first home game in front of 11,385 fans. The league set a new attendance record for a single season, with over 1 million fans attending games. The Colorado Mammoth won their first championship, beating the Buffalo Bandits 16–9.

After the season, two new teams were added for 2007: the New York Titans and the Chicago Shamrox.

2007 Season

The new New York Titans team played their first home game in Madison Square Garden. The NLL played its 1,000th regular season game in 2007. The Rochester Knighthawks won the championship, beating the Arizona Sting 13–11.

After the season, the Arizona Sting and a new Boston team (reviving the Blazers name) paused operations until 2009.

2008 Season

In 2008, John Tavares broke the all-time goal scoring record. Another player, Athan Iannucci, broke the single-season scoring record with 71 goals. The Buffalo Bandits won the championship, beating the Portland LumberJax 14–13 in front of 18,690 fans.

2009 Season

The Boston Blazers rejoined the league, but the Arizona Sting and Chicago Shamrox teams stopped playing. The league also added instant replay for officials to review goals. The Calgary Roughnecks won their second championship, beating the New York Titans 12–10.

After the season, the San Jose Stealth team moved to Washington and became the Washington Stealth. The New York Titans moved to Florida and became the Orlando Titans. The Portland LumberJax team stopped playing.

2010 Season

The Washington Stealth won the championship in their first season in their new home. They beat the Toronto Rock 15–11. After the season, the Orlando Titans team stopped playing.

2011 Season

2011 was the NLL's 25th season. The Toronto Rock won their sixth championship, tying the Philadelphia Wings' record. They beat the Washington Stealth 8–7. After the season, the Boston Blazers team stopped playing.

2012 Season

The Rochester Knighthawks won their third championship, beating the Edmonton Rush 9–6. For the first time since 1992, no teams moved or changed names this year.

2013 Season

The Rochester Knighthawks won their second championship in a row and fourth overall. They beat the Washington Stealth 11–10. After the season, the Stealth team moved to British Columbia and became the Vancouver Stealth.

2014 Season

The Rochester Knighthawks won their third championship in a row and fifth overall. They beat the Calgary Roughnecks 2-1 in the final series.

After the season, the Philadelphia Wings team was bought and moved to Connecticut. They were renamed the New England Black Wolves. This ended the Wings' 28 seasons in Philadelphia.

2015 Season

The Edmonton Rush won their first championship, beating the Toronto Rock 2-0 in the final series. However, the Rush team then moved to Saskatoon and became the Saskatchewan Rush. Also, the Minnesota Swarm team moved to Atlanta and became the Georgia Swarm.

2016 Season

The Rush won their second championship in a row, and their first after moving to Saskatchewan. They beat the Buffalo Bandits 2-0 in the final series.

2017 Season

In 2017, the Georgia Swarm won their first championship in only their second season in Georgia. They beat the Saskatchewan Rush 2-0 in the final series.

2018 Season

In 2018, the Saskatchewan Rush won the championship again, winning the first National Lacrosse League Cup. This new trophy replaced the Champion's Cup. The Rush beat the Rochester Knighthawks 2-1 in the final series. This was the Rush's third title in four seasons.

After the season, two new teams were added for 2019: a new Philadelphia Wings team and the San Diego Seals. This brought the league back to eleven teams. Two more teams were announced for the 2020 season. The New York Riptide would play in Uniondale. Also, the Rochester Knighthawks team moved to Halifax. But the league immediately added a new expansion team in Rochester, keeping a team there.

2019 Season

The 2019 NLL season was delayed because the players went on strike to get a new contract. The league and players eventually agreed to a new five-year contract. The season started on December 15. The new Philadelphia Wings team played their first game. The San Diego Seals played their first game on December 22. The Calgary Roughnecks won their third championship, beating Buffalo 2-0 in the final series.

2020 Season

In 2020, three new teams started playing. The original Knighthawks became the Halifax Thunderbirds. A new Rochester Knighthawks team started. And the New York Riptide also began playing. This brought the league to thirteen teams.

On March 13, 2020, the league stopped playing due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The rest of the season and playoffs were canceled. In July 2020, a new team was added in Fort Worth, Texas, called the Panther City Lacrosse Club.

On February 3, 2021, the 2021 season was also canceled because of the pandemic. The league focused on planning for the 2022 season. The New England Black Wolves team moved to Albany and became the Albany FireWolves. Another new team was added in Las Vegas, called the Las Vegas Desert Dogs, to start playing in 2023.

2022 Season

The NLL returned on December 3, 2021, for its 35th season. This was the first time games were played in almost two years. The fourteen teams played a full 18-game schedule. The Colorado Mammoth won the championship, beating the Buffalo Bandits 2 games to 1. This season also saw the first games for Panther City and the FireWolves.

2023 Season

The 2023 season started on December 2, 2022. The Buffalo Bandits won the championship, beating the Colorado Mammoth 2 games to 1. This was the first season for the Las Vegas Desert Dogs, bringing the total number of teams to fifteen. The first outdoor NLL game, the 2023 NLL Stadium Showdown, was held on March 4 in San Diego.

Commissioners of the NLL

1. Darrel Russell, 1987–1997
2. John Livsey Jr, 1997–2000
3. Jim Jennings, 2000–2009
4. George Daniel, 2009–2015
5. Nick Sakiewicz, 2016–2022
6. Brett Frood, 2022–present

Championship History

Team	Championships	Years	Runner-ups	Runner-up Years
Philadelphia Wings(Original)/Albany FireWolves	6	1989, 1990, 1994, 1995, 1998, 2001	4	1992, 1993, 1996, 2024
Toronto Rock	6	1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2011	3	2001, 2010, 2015
Buffalo Bandits	6	1992, 1993, 1996, 2008, 2023, 2024	7	1994, 1997, 2004, 2006, 2016, 2019, 2022
Rochester Knighthawks(Original)(Now Halifax Thunderbirds)	5	1997, 2007, 2012, 2013, 2014	5	1995, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2018
Edmonton/Saskatchewan Rush	3	2015, 2016, 2018	2	2012, 2017
Calgary Roughnecks	3	2004, 2009, 2019	1	2014
Baltimore Thunder/Colorado Mammoth	3	1987, 2006, 2022	3	1991, 1998, 2023
New Jersey/New York Saints (Folded in 2003)	1	1988	1	1989
Detroit Turbos (Folded in 1994)	1	1991	0	—
Albany Attack/Washington Stealth (Now Vancouver Warriors)	1	2010	3	2002, 2011, 2013
Georgia Swarm	1	2017	0	—
Washington Wave (Folded in 1989)	0	—	2	1987, 1988
Arizona Sting (Folded in 2009)	0	—	2	2005, 2007
New England Blazers (Folded in 1991)	0	—	1	1990
Portland LumberJax (Folded in 2009)	0	—	1	2008
New York Titans (Folded in 2009)	0	—	1	2009

Year	Winner	Runner-up	Score	Series
Eagle Pro Box Lacrosse League
1987	Baltimore Thunder	Washington Wave	11–10
1988	New Jersey Saints	Washington Wave	17–16
Major Indoor Lacrosse League
1989	Philadelphia Wings	New York Saints	11–10
1990	Philadelphia Wings	New England Blazers	17–7
1991	Detroit Turbos	Baltimore Thunder	14–12
1992	Buffalo Bandits	Philadelphia Wings	11–10OT
1993	Buffalo Bandits	Philadelphia Wings	13–12
1994	Philadelphia Wings	Buffalo Bandits	26–15
1995	Philadelphia Wings	Rochester Knighthawks	15–14OT
1996	Buffalo Bandits	Philadelphia Wings	15–10
1997	Rochester Knighthawks	Buffalo Bandits	15–12
National Lacrosse League
1998	Philadelphia Wings	Baltimore Thunder		2–0
1999	Toronto Rock	Rochester Knighthawks	13–10
2000	Toronto Rock	Rochester Knighthawks	14–13
2001	Philadelphia Wings	Toronto Rock	9–8
2002	Toronto Rock	Albany Attack	13–12
2003	Toronto Rock	Rochester Knighthawks	8–6
2004	Calgary Roughnecks	Buffalo Bandits	14–11
2005	Toronto Rock	Arizona Sting	19–13
2006	Colorado Mammoth	Buffalo Bandits	16–9
2007	Rochester Knighthawks	Arizona Sting	13–11
2008	Buffalo Bandits	Portland LumberJax	14–13
2009	Calgary Roughnecks	New York Titans	12–10
2010	Washington Stealth	Toronto Rock	15–11
2011	Toronto Rock	Washington Stealth	8–7
2012	Rochester Knighthawks	Edmonton Rush	9–6
2013	Rochester Knighthawks	Washington Stealth	11–10
2014	Rochester Knighthawks	Calgary Roughnecks		2–1
2015	Edmonton Rush	Toronto Rock		2–0
2016	Saskatchewan Rush	Buffalo Bandits		2–0
2017	Georgia Swarm	Saskatchewan Rush		2–0
2018	Saskatchewan Rush	Rochester Knighthawks		2–1
2019	Calgary Roughnecks	Buffalo Bandits		2–0
2020	Season stopped due to COVID-19 Pandemic.
2021	Season canceled due to COVID-19 Pandemic.
2022	Colorado Mammoth	Buffalo Bandits		2–1
2023	Buffalo Bandits	Colorado Mammoth		2–1
2024	Buffalo Bandits	Albany FireWolves		2–0

Team Changes and Moves

Name Changes and Relocations

• New Jersey Saints (1987–1988) → New York Saints (1989–2003) → No longer active
• New England Blazers (1989–1991) → Boston Blazers (1992–1997) → No longer active
• Baltimore Thunder (1987–1999) → Pittsburgh CrosseFire (2000) → Washington Power (2001–2002) → Colorado Mammoth (2003–current)
• Ontario Raiders (1998) → Toronto Rock (1999–current)
• Syracuse Smash (1998–2000) → Ottawa Rebel (2001–2003) → No longer active (2003–2005) → Edmonton Rush (2005–2015) → Saskatchewan Rush (2016–current)
• Albany Attack (1999–2003) → San Jose Stealth (2004–2009) → Washington Stealth (2010–2013) → Vancouver Stealth (2014–2018) → Vancouver Warriors (2018–current)
• Columbus Landsharks (2001–2003) → Arizona Sting (2004–2007) → No longer active
• Montreal Express (2002) → No longer active → Minnesota Swarm (2004–2015) → Georgia Swarm (2016–current)
• New Jersey Storm (2002–2003) → Anaheim Storm (2004–2005) → No longer active
• New York Titans (2007–2009) → Orlando Titans (2010) → No longer active
• Philadelphia Wings (1987–2014) → New England Black Wolves (2015–2021) → Albany FireWolves (2022–current)
• Rochester Knighthawks (1995–2019) → Halifax Thunderbirds (2020–current)
• New York Riptide (2018–2024) → Ottawa Black Bears (2025–current)

Team History Timeline

NLL Unboxed Program

In November 2023, the NLL started a program called "NLL Unboxed." This program helps promote lacrosse to young people and schools in areas that don't have NLL teams. It also aims to build interest in the sport before lacrosse is played at the 2028 Summer Olympics. Each area in the program gets its own "lacrosse community" team brand.

As part of this program, the league started holding "NLL Unboxed Series" games in the 2024 season. These games are played in the cities of the lacrosse communities. The first game was in Montreal in February 2024. The Toronto Rock played the New York Riptide there. This was the first NLL game in the Montreal area since 2002.

Lacrosse community	City	Added
Tampa Bay Snowbirds	Tampa, Florida	2023
Ottawa Electrics	Ottawa, Ontario	2023
St. Louis Rhythm	St. Louis, Missouri	2023
Baltimore Ghost Crabs	Baltimore, Maryland	2023
Charlotte Cobras	Charlotte, North Carolina	2023
Minnesota Lake Dragons	Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota	2023
Castors de Montréal	Montréal, Québec	2023
Utah Spikes	Salt Lake City, Utah	2023
Seattle Shipwrecks	Seattle, Washington	2023

National Lacrosse League Players' Association

The National Lacrosse League Players' Association (NLLPA) is the union for players in the NLL. It was started in 1991 by former players and a lawyer. The union helps players with things like getting paid for missed work, getting money back for expenses, and having more chances for extra pay. It also helps new players with their contracts and makes sure there's a fair process for fines and suspensions. Before the union, the league paid for injured players' medical bills through insurance.

How to Watch NLL Games

In the early 2000s, CNN Sports Illustrated often showed NLL games. The NLL All-Star Games and Championship games were shown on NBC in 2005 and ESPN2 in 2006.

In 2007, the NLL had a regular "Game of the Week" on Versus (now NBCSN). This was canceled in 2008 due to a disagreement between the players' union and team owners. Also in 2007, the NLL partnered with Sirius Satellite Radio, which broadcast a "Game of the Week" and a weekly highlight show.

For the 2011 season, the NLL returned to Versus. In 2012, the games moved to CBS Sports Network.

In 2012, the NLL also made a deal with The Lacrosse Network on YouTube. Most games were streamed live on YouTube and were available to watch later. For the 2016 season, the league moved to Fox Sports' streaming platform, Fox Sports Go.

In 2017, the NLL made a deal with Twitter to stream a weekly game and playoff games. Another deal was made with CBS Sports Digital to stream games on its subscription platform.

For the 2018–19 season, games were streamed only on B/R Live.

For the 2021–22 season, the NLL made a new deal with ESPN Inc.. All games would stream on ESPN+ in the United States, and at least 10 games would be shown on an ESPN television channel. In Canada, the league also returned to TSN. TSN showed a Saturday-night game package focusing on Canadian teams, playoff games, and streamed other games online for its subscribers.

NLL Video Games

Blast Lacrosse, a video game based on the NLL, came out on May 23, 2001. It was the first lacrosse video game and included all nine teams from the NLL's 2001 season.

On March 31, 2010, the NLL announced a partnership to create NLL Lacrosse 2010. The game was released for Xbox 360 on April 23, 2010.

NLL Awards

• National Lacrosse League Weekly Awards
• National Lacrosse League Monthly Awards
• MVP Award (Most Valuable Player)
• Rookie of the Year Award (best new player)
• Les Bartley Award (coach of the year)
• GM of the Year Award (General Manager of the Year)
• Executive of the Year Award (best league executive)
• Defensive Player of the Year Award
• Transition Player of the Year Award
• Goaltender of the Year Award
• Sportsmanship Award (for fair play)
• Tom Borrelli Award (writer of the year)

See also

In Spanish: National Lacrosse League para niños

• Arena Lacrosse League, a Canadian semi-professional box lacrosse league
• Premier Lacrosse League, an American professional field lacrosse league
• List of professional sports teams in the United States and Canada
• Professional sports leagues in the United States
• List of National Lacrosse League venues