Philadelphia, PA, February 17, 2020 - Major League Lacrosse Commissioner, Alexander Brown, announced today that the Philadelphia Barrage are back. The team will operate under Mark Burdett, and Spencer Ford will make his head coaching debut for the Barrage.

The Barrage moved from Bridgeport to Philadelphia for the 2004 MLL season. The Philadelphia Barrage dominated MLL during these years, making the playoffs four of their five years and winning the MLL Championship three times. The Barrage featured some of the most storied names in MLL history, including Matt Striebel, Brian Spallina, Ryan Boyle, Roy Colsey and Brian Reese.

“We are thrilled to be bringing the Barrage back to Philadelphia,” said Mark Burdett, president of the Philadelphia Barrage. “The history of success for this franchise paired with the development of the market over the last decade makes this a perfect match. Participation rates for youth lacrosse in Philadelphia are now among the highest in the country, developing players that go on to the highest levels of NCAA and even MLL play. We’re excited to return to Philadelphia, and to actively work with community leaders, businesses, and local non-profit organizations to bring a positive impact to the entire Philadelphia community.”

The Philadelphia Barrage will be led by Spencer Ford. Ford began with Major League Lacrosse in the league’s inaugural year, playing one game in 2001. After four years of not playing, Ford made his return in 2006 for the LA Riptide. His career ended in 2009 due to injury, but his value in the league had become known and he was immediately brought into the Bayhawks’ front office as the team’s General Manager. Since 2009 Ford has served in General Manager and Offensive Coordinator positions for the Bayhawks and the Atlanta Blaze. After developing the most successful team in Blaze history in 2019, Ford is ready to step forward and lead the Philadelphia Barrage.

“I could not be more excited to reintroduce the Barrage to the fans in Philadelphia,” said Ford. “Fans will see the best talent lacrosse has to offer in the men wearing the Barrage blue and orange. The tradition of success built in ’04 to ’08 is not lost on me. We look forward to bringing the trophy home to Philadelphia at the end of the season.”

The Barrage season will open in Philadelphia on June 6.

“We are proud to bring the Barrage back to Philadelphia,” said Major League Lacrosse Commissioner, Alexander Brown. “Rooting ourselves in Philadelphia allows MLL to tap into one of the largest youth lacrosse markets in the country and offer these young fans the opportunity to see the highest level of play all summer long.”

For more information on Barrage season tickets, please email info@phillybarrage.com. Tickets will go on sale on Wednesday, March 11.

About the Philadelphia Barrage

The Philadelphia Barrage will be returning to Philadelphia in the 2020 season. Major League Lacrosse’s (MLL) Philadelphia Barrage played in Philadelphia in the 2004 to 2008 MLL seasons. In that time the Barrage won three national championships and won 62% of their games. The Barrage will be led by Spencer Ford and will carry on their tradition of success in 2020. The Barrage will offer fans the opportunity to be a part of this growing, fast-paced, exciting professional lacrosse community through a family friendly sporting experience. For information on tickets, to get the latest Barrage news and to get geared up for the 2020 season, visit: https://phillybarrage.com/



Additional Barrage Information

Twitter: @phillybarrage

Instagram: @philadelphiabarrage

Facebook: Philadelphia Barrage

About Major League Lacrosse

Major League Lacrosse (MLL), based in Boston, is the premier professional outdoor lacrosse league. MLL has led lacrosse’s growth into the mainstream of competitive team sports since 2001. In the spring of 2018, MLL entered into new leadership for the first time in 17 years when it selected Alexander Brown as the Commissioner. Since that time, MLL has been on an aggressive path towards sustainably developing and growing the league. In 2019 MLL welcomed ten new partners to the league, introduced a creative and sophisticated digital team (generating 194% growth in social traffic, 122% growth in social engagement and 393% growth in web traffic) and achieved a 16% increase in total attendance year-over-year. 2020 will be Major League Lacrosse’s twentieth- anniversary season. In partnership with Cascade, Major League Lacrosse is celebrating its history in the twenty weeks leading up to the 2020 season. Learn more about the MLL’s twentieth anniversary season presented by Cascade on majorleaguelacrosse.com.