🚨 PLL UNVEILS HOME CITIES

Welcome home, PLL squads!

The Premier Lacrosse League has announced home cities for each of its eight teams, which are now split into two conferences:

Eastern Conference
Boston Cannons
New York Atlas
Philadelphia Waterdogs
Maryland Whipsnakes

Western Conference
Carolina Chaos
Denver Outlaws
Utah Archers
California Redwoods

The criteria used to determine home locations relied upon fan data, previous ticket sales, commercial opportunities and overall sports market performance. The PLL picked these eight locations to maximize fan growth, giving several established sports markets a new pro lacrosse team to follow.

The league will still use a touring model in conjunction with home cities. Each team will have a designated home weekend during the season. The home team each weekend will play two games, giving one of the seven other teams a bye week.

Here’s a closer look at each revamped team…

💣 Boston Cannons

This one was the easiest to guess. The Boston Cannons were one of six charter MLL franchises in 2001, and the franchise remained in Boston until the merger in 2020. Ever since hosting the first-ever PLL weekend in 2019, Gillette Stadium has been a regular stop on the tour. The Cannons made themselves at home this postseason, smacking Atlas 20-11 in the quarterfinals at Gillette.

🐍 Maryland Whipsnakes

Terps will love this location and new color scheme. The Maryland Whipsnakes have a heavy contingent of former University of Maryland players on their roster (Jake Bernhardt, Michael Ehrhardt, Matt Rambo, Mike Chanenchuk and Kyle Bernlohr to name a few). The 2024 season should be an exciting homecoming for these players. If historic Homewood Field in Baltimore remains the tour stop, Maryland fans will enjoy invading Johns Hopkins’ sacred turf once a year.

🐶 Philadelphia Waterdogs

The Waterdogs already have strong ties to Philadelphia, as their season has ended at Subaru Park each of the past three years. In 2021, they lost in the semifinals to the Whipsnakes in Philly. The following season, they returned to the City of Brotherly Love and beat the Chaos in the PLL Championship. Last season, they made it back to the title game but fell to the Archers in a thriller. Star attackman Michael Sowers is from the Philly area, so expect to see some purple 22 jerseys if you’re in the city.

🌐 New York Atlas

The New York Atlas have the potential to scoop up a massive fan base, as they look to pull from both Long Island as well as Upstate. The PLL makes regular stops in both areas, with Albany hosting the season opener each of the past two years and Hofstra hosting the semifinals in 2023. Two of Atlas’ biggest stars — attackman Jeff Teat and defenseman Gavin Adler — have NY ties from their college days at Cornell.

🤠 Denver Outlaws

The Denver Outlaws coming back and taking the place of Chrome may be the most exciting aspect of this announcement. The Outlaws were one of the most successful teams in MLL history with three league championships and 10 title game appearances from 2006-2020. The past couple of seasons, Denver has raised the electricity level by hosting the PLL’s Throwback Weekend. Now, the Mile High City has a real throwback to celebrate with the return of the Outlaws.

🦂 Carolina Chaos

The league needed a southern presence, and the Carolina Chaos will provide it. Charlotte has been a stop on the PLL tour each of the past two seasons, but the PLL also played games in Atlanta in 2019 and 2021. The Chaos could claim the entire surrounding territory for home weekends. One outspoken star who should dig this home location is Chaos defenseman Jack Rowlett, who won a National Championship at the University of North Carolina.

🏹 Utah Archers

Utah is not the biggest hotbed for professional sports, but the Archers have the potential to change that. They’re the reigning PLL Champions and feature some of the biggest stars in the game — including league MVP Tom Schreiber, former No. 1 overall draft pick Grant Ament and an elite goaltender in Brett Dobson. The PLL created a bubble in Utah during the 2020 season (COVID-19) and has returned there for a weekend each of the past three seasons. Now, the league is rewarding those fans and investing in the area with a quality home team.

🐻 California Redwoods

Redwoods are native to California so the home city makes logical sense, but claiming the entire state is ambitious. With the California Redwoods, the PLL aims to unite markets in Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco and beyond. The ‘Woods have both the brand strength and the personalities to pull it off. Attackman Ryder Garnsey, in particular, projects to be a perfect fit with his “Hollywood” playing style and entertaining mic’d up moments. 

📈 State Of The League

Watch PLL President and Co-Founder Paul Rabil break down each of the new home markets in this State of the League video.