Baltimore in Running to Get a Premier Lacrosse League Team

Baltimore is in the running to have a Premier League Lacrosse (PLL) club assigned to the city. The PLL is a touring model with eight professional lacrosse teams that play 10 regular season games in 10 different cities. The clubs play a doubleheader in their home city when the tour visits that city.

Johns Hopkins University’s Homewood Field has been a stop on the tour since the league’s inaugural season in 2019.

Baltimore is known by many as a lacrosse royalty as it is home to the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame and has a number of NCAA Division I Lacrosse programs in the area, including Johns Hopkins, Loyola, Towson, UMBC, and Navy. PLL Co-Founder Paul Rabil played lacrosse at Johns Hopkins University and has been a resident of the city.

Fans can provide input on the home cities by voting on PLL’s website.

Premier Lacrosse League press release: 

The Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) powered by Ticketmaster today announced that beginning in 2024, all eight PLL lacrosse clubs will be assigned to home cities.

“Moving our eight teams into home cities will mark the biggest investment in the league since its inception,” said Paul Rabil, co-founder and President of the Premier Lacrosse League. “This move will unlock deeper, more connected relationships between our fans, teams and players. Continuing to build a global presence around lacrosse and driving our mission forward will remain core to our approach. We’re giving the PLL local love and global awareness.”

The PLL will maintain its touring model with its eight teams playing in one city over a two-day weekend. Beginning in 2024, the home team will play a double-header when the league is competing in that team’s market.

The league’s schedule will continue its 14 game weekends beginning in June and ending in September. Eight of the league’s 10 regular season game weekends will be held at home venues, with 2 regular season weekends at neutral sites. The All-Star Game, Playoffs and Championship will be held at locations to be determined.

“When we looked at our growth over the last five years, matched by our goals, objectives and expansion, tying our teams to home cities was a natural next step for the business,” said Mike Rabil, co-founder and CEO of the Premier Lacrosse League. “From our major media rights deal with ESPN, to the growing population of 45 million lacrosse fans across the US, the future of our sport is bright. Our teams’ presence in home cities will fuel our league’s future growth by tapping into the most universally understood driver of fan engagement.”

The PLL will continue to operate as a single entity, with the league owning and operating all eight teams. Each teams’ location is set to be announced in the fourth quarter of 2023. The league is evaluating a combination of cities, states, and regions to assign to its eight teams.

Beginning June 3rd, fans will have the opportunity to vote on team locations at pllvote.com and through the PLL app. The league will select cities based on industry-leading analysis, preferred venues, partnership considerations, fan engagement, and historical pro lacrosse ticket sales data.

“We feel excited and ready to give fans of the PLL home teams,” said PLL Board Member, co-founder of Alibaba, and owner of the Brooklyn Nets, San Diego Seals and Las Vegas Desert Dogs, Joe Tsai. “It’s a big step. Teams that are embraced by their communities can become a symbol of how to engage, support and believe in something together. I’ve learned that every market interacts with their favorite team and players differently. We’re up for that challenge.”

“We are thrilled about this next evolution of the PLL,” said ESPN President, Content, Burke Magnus. “We believe having teams in home markets will create a deeper connection with fans, enabling us to share more organic stories and add new features to the broadcast. It is a smart progression at the perfect time.”

The 2023 PLL season kicks off on June 3 and 4 in Albany, NY, with games to be aired live on ABC and ESPN+ each day. To view the PLL schedule and purchase tickets, visit www.premierlacrosseleague.com.

About the Author: Kevin Lynch

Founder and Publisher of SouthBmore.com, longtime resident of South Baltimore, and a graduate of Towson University. Diehard Ravens and O's fan, father of three, amateur pizza chef, skateboarder, and "bar food" foodie. Email me at Kevin@InceptMM.com and follow me on Twitter at @SoBoKevin.