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Professional arena football will return to Stockton in 2027 when the Stockton Crusaders begin play, arena leaders, city officials and team representatives announced Wednesday at Adventist Health Arena.
The Crusaders will join Arena Football One (AF1) as an expansion franchise and are expected to begin play in March 2027. The team will play its home games at Adventist Health Arena, marking the return of indoor football to the venue for the first time since 2015.
Jason Perry, regional general manager for Legends Global, which manages the city-owned arena, said the announcement followed years of discussions between arena leaders and team representatives.
"With the Crusaders, this has been a couple of years in the making," Perry said. "We have been having many conversations and a lot of drafts sitting in my inbox to get us to this day, so it's quite impressive that we just stayed the course and got to where we are, and we are super pumped to make Stockton Crusaders home here at the Adventist Health Arena."
Mayor Christina Fugazi referenced her State of the City address in May, where she proclaimed that Stockton is ready.
"We are ready for so many things," Fugazi said. "We're a resilient city. We're a city that has grit, and we are ready to fight for every single yard that we can in the city of Stockton."
The mayor, who worked as an usher at the arena when it opened in 2005, said the franchise will offer another family-friendly entertainment option and strengthen the city's sports offerings.
"This just isn't about a game," Fugazi said. "This is about tradition. This is about our history, and this is about bringing the community together. We need more activities in order to bring families out."
The Crusaders will become the latest professional sports team to call Stockton home, joining Minor League Baseball's Stockton Ports, the NBA G League's Stockton Kings and a Federal Prospects Hockey League expansion team announced in May. The Kings play at the arena, which will also host the hockey team. The Ports play at Banner Island Ballpark next to the arena.
Crusaders Team President Scott McKibben said Stockton's history as a football market and the arena's suitability for indoor football made the city an attractive location.
"For a long time, we always thought that this was a great market for arena football," McKibben said. "There was an AF2 team here many years ago, and you drew well. It's a football town."
McKibben also noted the University of the Pacific's suspended NCAA Division I football program and its history of producing coaches and players who went on to shape professional football.
They include Amos Alonzo Stagg, who led the Tigers from 1933 to 1946 and won more than 100 games; Pete Carroll, the Super Bowl-winning head coach of the Seattle Seahawks, whose coaching career began at Pacific; Tom Flores, a Pro Football Hall of Famer who played quarterback for the Tigers and became the first minority head coach to win a Super Bowl with the Oakland Raiders; and Jon Gruden, who began his coaching career as a wide receivers coach at the University of the Pacific in 1989.
"If you go back and look at the tree of coaches that were with or associated with the NFL that came through UOP, it sounds like the Hall of Fame," McKibben said. "We looked at this and said, 'I need to talk to Jason and chat a little bit about what's the possibility of the arena coming together on a deal.'"
McKibben said the team intends to be active in the community and plans to house players locally during the season.
"Our players will be engaged much in the community," McKibben said. "We are here to be part of the moral fabric of this community. We are concerned about youth. We are concerned about education. We are concerned about our players who are able to reach their particular goals that go beyond football."
The Crusaders will compete in AF1, a professional nine-team indoor football league led by former NFL head coach Jeff Fisher. The league was formed in 2024 by owners of surviving franchises from the Arena Football League’s failed reboot and is currently in its second season.
The league includes franchises from the East Coast to the Pacific, including the Albany Firebirds, Beaumont Renegades, Kentucky Barrels, Michigan Arsenal, Minnesota Monsters, Nashville Kats, Oceanside Bombers, Oregon Lightning and Washington Wolfpack.
League games are televised nationally, according to team representatives.
Crusaders General Manager Greg Pierce, who was born and raised in the Central Valley, said people in the Valley love football and that community involvement will be a central focus of the franchise.
"As passionate and committed as we are as an executive team, we cannot grow the Stockton Crusaders alone," Pierce said. "We need you, our fans, to grow the Stockton Crusaders."
Pierce said those in the community who want to take the first step in supporting the Crusaders can buy a season ticket at stocktoncrusaders.com.
Crusaders Head Coach Kurt Bryan said that a couple of years ago, the executive team considered bringing a different team to the city, but the effort did not work out.
"I'm so glad that didn't happen because now we have an opportunity here in a top 20 media market to blow the roof off of this thing," Bryan said. "That arena is going to be back with fans. It holds almost 10,000 for an arena pro football game."
Bryan said the organization plans to support youth programs and local initiatives while building a competitive team.
"This is not going to be a drive-by team," Bryan said. "This is going to be a team that lives here, works here, operates here and grows here. We have big plans."
Bryan also mentioned a sponsorship called Kurtz Corner for Kids, which will designate a section at each home game for a sponsor to cover the cost of 50 to 100 tickets for children and their families.
"Those kids are going to get to walk in the arena with their chaperone and have the night of their life," Bryan said. "Maybe they'll get a t-shirt, a sticker or whatever it's going to be. But they're going to meet the players, they're going to meet people involved. Best of all, they're going to have a lot of fun and it's not going to cost them a penny."
During a question-and-answer session with reporters, Perry said a proposed lease agreement is under review by city attorneys and could reach the Stockton City Council for approval as early as July. Until then, the team and the arena are operating under a memorandum of understanding.
McKibben said the organization has begun evaluating office space, player housing and practice facilities but has not finalized locations.
The team plans to begin building its roster through free agency later this year. Bryan said the league's expansion teams typically bring 35 players into training camp before trimming rosters to 24 players.
Team representatives said each team will have eight players on the field at a time. On offense, this consists of three receivers, one fullback, one quarterback and three offensive linemen.
Perry said the Crusaders intend to establish a long-term presence in Stockton.
"It's coming here, it's staying here," Perry said. "It is going to be integrated in the fabric of our community for a long time."
Record reporter Hannah Workman covers news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @byhannahworkman. Support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.
This article originally appeared on The Record: Stockton Crusaders bring pro arena football back to city
Continue reading...
The Crusaders will join Arena Football One (AF1) as an expansion franchise and are expected to begin play in March 2027. The team will play its home games at Adventist Health Arena, marking the return of indoor football to the venue for the first time since 2015.
You must be registered for see images attach
Jason Perry, regional general manager for Legends Global, which manages the city-owned arena, said the announcement followed years of discussions between arena leaders and team representatives.
"With the Crusaders, this has been a couple of years in the making," Perry said. "We have been having many conversations and a lot of drafts sitting in my inbox to get us to this day, so it's quite impressive that we just stayed the course and got to where we are, and we are super pumped to make Stockton Crusaders home here at the Adventist Health Arena."
Mayor Christina Fugazi referenced her State of the City address in May, where she proclaimed that Stockton is ready.
"We are ready for so many things," Fugazi said. "We're a resilient city. We're a city that has grit, and we are ready to fight for every single yard that we can in the city of Stockton."
The mayor, who worked as an usher at the arena when it opened in 2005, said the franchise will offer another family-friendly entertainment option and strengthen the city's sports offerings.
"This just isn't about a game," Fugazi said. "This is about tradition. This is about our history, and this is about bringing the community together. We need more activities in order to bring families out."
The Crusaders will become the latest professional sports team to call Stockton home, joining Minor League Baseball's Stockton Ports, the NBA G League's Stockton Kings and a Federal Prospects Hockey League expansion team announced in May. The Kings play at the arena, which will also host the hockey team. The Ports play at Banner Island Ballpark next to the arena.
Crusaders Team President Scott McKibben said Stockton's history as a football market and the arena's suitability for indoor football made the city an attractive location.
"For a long time, we always thought that this was a great market for arena football," McKibben said. "There was an AF2 team here many years ago, and you drew well. It's a football town."
McKibben also noted the University of the Pacific's suspended NCAA Division I football program and its history of producing coaches and players who went on to shape professional football.
They include Amos Alonzo Stagg, who led the Tigers from 1933 to 1946 and won more than 100 games; Pete Carroll, the Super Bowl-winning head coach of the Seattle Seahawks, whose coaching career began at Pacific; Tom Flores, a Pro Football Hall of Famer who played quarterback for the Tigers and became the first minority head coach to win a Super Bowl with the Oakland Raiders; and Jon Gruden, who began his coaching career as a wide receivers coach at the University of the Pacific in 1989.
"If you go back and look at the tree of coaches that were with or associated with the NFL that came through UOP, it sounds like the Hall of Fame," McKibben said. "We looked at this and said, 'I need to talk to Jason and chat a little bit about what's the possibility of the arena coming together on a deal.'"
You must be registered for see images attach
McKibben said the team intends to be active in the community and plans to house players locally during the season.
"Our players will be engaged much in the community," McKibben said. "We are here to be part of the moral fabric of this community. We are concerned about youth. We are concerned about education. We are concerned about our players who are able to reach their particular goals that go beyond football."
The Crusaders will compete in AF1, a professional nine-team indoor football league led by former NFL head coach Jeff Fisher. The league was formed in 2024 by owners of surviving franchises from the Arena Football League’s failed reboot and is currently in its second season.
The league includes franchises from the East Coast to the Pacific, including the Albany Firebirds, Beaumont Renegades, Kentucky Barrels, Michigan Arsenal, Minnesota Monsters, Nashville Kats, Oceanside Bombers, Oregon Lightning and Washington Wolfpack.
League games are televised nationally, according to team representatives.
Crusaders General Manager Greg Pierce, who was born and raised in the Central Valley, said people in the Valley love football and that community involvement will be a central focus of the franchise.
"As passionate and committed as we are as an executive team, we cannot grow the Stockton Crusaders alone," Pierce said. "We need you, our fans, to grow the Stockton Crusaders."
Pierce said those in the community who want to take the first step in supporting the Crusaders can buy a season ticket at stocktoncrusaders.com.
You must be registered for see images attach
Crusaders Head Coach Kurt Bryan said that a couple of years ago, the executive team considered bringing a different team to the city, but the effort did not work out.
"I'm so glad that didn't happen because now we have an opportunity here in a top 20 media market to blow the roof off of this thing," Bryan said. "That arena is going to be back with fans. It holds almost 10,000 for an arena pro football game."
Bryan said the organization plans to support youth programs and local initiatives while building a competitive team.
"This is not going to be a drive-by team," Bryan said. "This is going to be a team that lives here, works here, operates here and grows here. We have big plans."
Bryan also mentioned a sponsorship called Kurtz Corner for Kids, which will designate a section at each home game for a sponsor to cover the cost of 50 to 100 tickets for children and their families.
"Those kids are going to get to walk in the arena with their chaperone and have the night of their life," Bryan said. "Maybe they'll get a t-shirt, a sticker or whatever it's going to be. But they're going to meet the players, they're going to meet people involved. Best of all, they're going to have a lot of fun and it's not going to cost them a penny."
During a question-and-answer session with reporters, Perry said a proposed lease agreement is under review by city attorneys and could reach the Stockton City Council for approval as early as July. Until then, the team and the arena are operating under a memorandum of understanding.
McKibben said the organization has begun evaluating office space, player housing and practice facilities but has not finalized locations.
The team plans to begin building its roster through free agency later this year. Bryan said the league's expansion teams typically bring 35 players into training camp before trimming rosters to 24 players.
Team representatives said each team will have eight players on the field at a time. On offense, this consists of three receivers, one fullback, one quarterback and three offensive linemen.
Perry said the Crusaders intend to establish a long-term presence in Stockton.
"It's coming here, it's staying here," Perry said. "It is going to be integrated in the fabric of our community for a long time."
Record reporter Hannah Workman covers news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @byhannahworkman. Support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.
This article originally appeared on The Record: Stockton Crusaders bring pro arena football back to city
Continue reading...
