 | |
| Founded | 2019; 6 years ago (2019) |
|---|---|
| Team history |
|
| Based in | Frisco, Texas at theComerica Center |
| Home arena |
|
| League |
|
| Colors | Navy blue, sky blue, orange, silver, white |
| Personnel | |
| Head coach | Andre Coles[1] |
| Owners | The Germain family (Steve, Kim, Jessica, Austin & Zach Germain)[2] |
| Championships | |
| Division titles (2) | |
| Playoff appearances (4) | |
| Website | FriscoFighters.com |
| Current uniform | |
 | |
 Current season | |
TheFrisco Fighters are an inactive professionalindoor football team based inFrisco, Texas. A member of theIndoor Football League, the Fighters play their home games at theComerica Center. The team was set to participate in the2020 season, but were unable to play due to theCOVID-19 pandemic. The team will sit out the 2025 season, but plan to return for 2026.
The Frisco Fighters are the third indoor football team to play in Frisco following theIntense Football League'sFrisco Thunder (2007–2008) andChampions Indoor Football'sTexas Revolution (2018–2019).[3] The Texas Revolution played in Frisco as aChampions Indoor Football team from 2017 until early 2019, when their membership in that league was terminated.[4] On November 24, 2019, the IFL announced it would debut a new expansion team in Frisco, owned by automobile dealer Steve Germain and his family.[2]
On December 11, the new Frisco franchise revealed their new team name as the "Frisco Fighters", along with their logo, color scheme, and coaching staff. The TEAM Management, LLC was retained to manage operating the Fighters.[5][6] Arena football veteranClint Dolezel (best known for his time as quarterback of theGrand Rapids Rampage andDallas Desperados) was announced as the team's inaugural head coach.[4][6][7] In February 2020, the Fighters added formerDallas Cowboys' wide receiverDrew Pearson as chief relationships officer and an analyst for all the Fighters' televised games.[8]
The IFL completed two games in the2020 season before the entire season was postponed due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, without the Fighters playing a game.[9] The Fighters' inaugural season was eventually cancelled outright.[5] The Fighters continued to advertise on local after their season was cancelled, and engaged in community contributions.[5]
The Fighters played their first game on May 15, 2021, on the road in a 36–33 win over the relaunchedSpokane Shock.[10] Near the end of the 2021 season, head coach Dolezel was signed to a multi-year extension after leading to the team to a 10–2 record.[6] The team then finished with a 10–3 record and advanced to the playoffs, making it to the league semifinal, where they lost to theMassachusetts Pirates 43–22.
After the 2021 season ended, Dolezel left the team to pursue other opportunities, and was replaced by formerSpokane Shock head coach Billy Back.[11] Also during the off-season, the Germain family and theDallas Stars of theNational Hockey League jointly announced a new partnership, which replaced the Fighters' 2020–21 business management team with the Dallas Stars organization for the 2022 season.[12][13]
The Fighters opened the 2022 season on March 12 on the road against the 2021 IFL champion Massachusetts Pirates, and were initially scheduled to play their first 2022 home game on April 1 against theBismarck Bucks.[12] However, due to the collapse of theSpokane Shock franchise in February, the IFL revised its schedule, moving the Fighters' first home game up to March 26 against theDuke City Gladiators. Frisco finished the regular season with a 14–2 record, the best record in the Eastern Conference, advancing to the playoffs for the second year in a row.[14]
After winning a playoff quarterfinal game against theIowa Barnstormers,[15] the Fighters were eliminated in the conference championship with a 48–41 loss to theQuad City Steamwheelers.[16]
| League champions | Conference champions | Playoff berth |
| Season | League | Conference | Regular season | Postseason results | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finish | Wins | Losses | ||||
| 2020 | IFL | Season cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic | ||||
| 2021 | IFL | 3rd | 10 | 3 | Won First round (Spokane) 44–43 Lost Second round (Massachusetts) 43–22 | |
| 2022 | IFL | Eastern | 1st | 14 | 2 | Won First round (Iowa) 64–39 Lost Second round (Quad City) 48–41 |
| 2023 | IFL | Eastern | 1st | 13 | 2 | Won First round (Quad City) 57–29 Lost Second round (Sioux Falls) 45–44 |
| 2024 | IFL | Eastern | 2nd | 13 | 3 | Lost First round (Massachusetts) 50–53 |
| Totals | 50 | 10 | All-time regular season record | |||
| 3 | 4 | All-time postseason record | ||||
| 53 | 14 | All-time regular season and postseason record | ||||
SeeCategory:Frisco Fighters players
Media related toFrisco Fighters at Wikimedia Commons
