Football Trumps Baseball in Shockoe
The lobby of the Indoor Football League's home office in Shockoe Bottom.
IFL Commissioner Tommy Benizio (left) with Communications Director, Mike Clark.
Baseball in Shockoe Bottom might be dead, but the Indoor Football League is offering a glimpse of hope for Richmond sports fans.
The IFL opened their corporate office in Shockoe Bottom because of Commissioner Tommy Benizio’s ties to the area.
“We chose Richmond because of my familiarity with the city as a graduate of Midlothian High School, and because it is a great place to live and work,” Benizio said.
With the corporate office in Richmond, it would only make sense to have a team in the area.
SportsQuest has signed a letter of intent with the IFL to form a team in Richmond that will be playing by 2011 and could be playing as early of 2010, Phillip G. Evans president of SportsQuest announced today. Follow more on this story at TimesDispatch.com.
We got more of the scoop from IFL's Director of Communications, Mike Clark:
What is the IFL? The IFL is a professional indoor football league played on hockey rink size fields. We were formed out of the merger between the United Indoor Football Association and the Intense Football League and are in our first year of play as the Indoor Football League. We have hundreds of talented players including former Dallas Cowboys QB Quincy Carter and former 2000 NFL Draft’s # 4 overall pick Peter Warrick, and have this year alone had over 10 players sign to NFL contracts or to participate in NFL camps. Also, approximately 25 players have signed to play in the Canadian Football League. We are a 20 team league spanning from Fairbanks, Alaska to Washington DC.
Why did the league decide to move its corporate offices to Richmond? First and foremost, since we have such a national presence we had the opportunity to move the league offices anywhere in the country. Tommy Benizio, the first elected Commissioner and former owner of the Odessa Roughnecks, was a graduate of Midlothian High School and his family currently resides here. He always loved the area, the people, and the community and thought Richmond would be perfect to house the league offices. The move also helps as we plan to expand the league on the east coast.
Are we going to get an IFL team here? Yes. The ownership group from Sports Quest plans to bring a team to their new complex for the 2011 season. However, we are diligently working to secure their play for the 2010 season in an alternate facility while their new complex is being built.
What is the IFL staff looking forward to about living and working in RVA?
Tommy Benizio, Commissioner Benizio is excited about moving back to his roots and being closer to his family. He has spent a lot of time in the area and knows what a fun place it is to live and work. It was a no-brainer decision to move the league offices to Richmond.
Mike Clark, Director of Communications I recently moved from Philadelphia, PA and have fallen in love with the city. The weather is fabulous, and the people are all so nice. I have truly taken the city in, and the people have made it a smooth transition coming from the north.
Brooks York, Director of Football Operations Brooks played on the 2008 Richmond Spiders National Championship football team playing safety and is excited to make that transition from playing football here, to working in football here. He knows what a rich football city this is and hopes we can capitalize on that love of football and have the community embrace Indoor Football
Robert Loving, Assistant Commissioner Serving in law enforcement for the Henrico County police department for 28 years, Robert is looking forward to bringing the sport of indoor football to Richmond, and is particularly excited to have a venue for family entertainment and sport enjoyment to his hometown.
For more information on the Indoor Football League visit their website at www.goifl.com.
Please sign in to respond | | Register