CLEVELAND – The Arena Football League will add a new franchise in 2015, as AFL Commissioner Jerry B. Kurz announced the addition of the “Las Vegas Outlaws” at ArenaBowl XXVII Media Day in Cleveland on Friday. The Outlaws will be owned by rock star Vince Neil, lead singer of the rock band Mötley Crüe.
“The opportunity came up to bring a franchise to Las Vegas and that’s where I’m from,” Neil said in a video statement at Media Day. “Every guy wants to be an ‘outlaw’, so why not give them the Outlaws?”
“Las Vegas is a market that has always been in our plans,” Commissioner Kurz said. “It was just a matter of finding the right ownership group. We believe Vince Neil and his partners are that group and we could not be more excited to now be able to bring Arena Football back to our great fans in Las Vegas.”
This will be the third AFL team to call Las Vegas home. The League first came to the city in 1994 with the Las Vegas Sting. The New Jersey Gladiators also relocated to Las Vegas in 2003 and stayed until 2007 when they moved to Cleveland. The Cleveland Gladiators, who set an AFL record with 17 regular season wins in 2014, will host the Arizona Rattlers in ArenaBowl XXVII this Saturday night at 8:00 p.m. ET on ESPN.