The Milwaukee Wave is an American professional

indoor soccer Indoor soccer or arena soccer (known internationally as indoor football, fast football, or showball) is five-a-side version of minifootball, derived from association football and adapted to be played in walled hardcourt indoor arena. Indoor s ...

team based in

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee i ...

. Founded in 1984, they have been the oldest continuously operating professional

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

team in the United States and are seven-time league champions, most recent being the 2018–19 champions of the

Major Arena Soccer League The Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) is a North American professional indoor soccer league. The MASL features teams playing coast-to-coast in the United States and Mexico. MASL is the highest level of arena soccer in North America. MASL players ...

. The team plays their games at the

UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena The UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena (originally the Milwaukee Arena and formerly MECCA Arena and U.S. Cellular Arena) is an indoor arena located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The arena, which seats as many as 12,700 people and offers of floor space, is ...

. The team colors are black and yellow.

History

The team was founded on August 3, 1984, as a member of the

American Indoor Soccer Association American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

and played in every season and incarnation of that league (see

MISL The Misls (derived from an Arabic word مِثْل meaning 'equal') were the twelve sovereign states of the Sikh Confederacy, which rose during the 18th century in the Punjab region in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent and is cit ...

). They have also played in the

Xtreme Soccer League The Xtreme Soccer League (XSL) was an indoor soccer league that began play in December 2008. Four teams from the former Major Indoor Soccer League participated in the first XSL season: the Chicago Storm, Detroit Ignition, Milwaukee Wave, and Ne ...

and the third version of the

. The team is currently a member of the

. Milwaukee also hosted the 2003 and 2006 MISL II All-Star Games.

Keith Tozer Keith Tozer is a retired American soccer player who played professionally in the Major Indoor Soccer League, American Soccer League and American Indoor Soccer Association. He is currently the commissioner of the Major Arena Soccer League. Playe ...

was the team's coach for 21 years before leaving to become

United States national futsal team The United States national futsal team represents the United States at international competitions. It is governed by the United States Soccer Federation and affiliated with CONCACAF. The U.S. Futsal Federation was founded in 1981 and the fir ...

head coach. While with the Wave, he was the all-time winningest coach in North American indoor soccer, with six league championships and more than 700 wins. The Wave played in the first season of the

in the 2008 – 2009 season, but moved to the new Major Indoor Soccer League for the 2009–2010 season. After the 2013–2014 season, the team announced that it was leaving the MISL along with five other teams and join the MASL. In 2014 the ownership group ROC Ventures, headed by Mike Zimmerman, became a partner in the team's ownership. Just before the 2014–15 season began, the Wave replaced their traditional green

artificial turf Artificial turf is a surface of synthetic fibers made to look like natural grass. It is most often used in arenas for sports that were originally or are normally played on grass. However, it is now being used on residential lawns and commerc ...

with a black turf to match the team's colors and marketing strategy. Reception by fans and the press was mixed but generally positive.

Players

:''''

Active roster

Inactive roster

2022–23 transfers

Transfers in

Transfers out

2022–23 matches

Wave Hall of Fame inductees

Retired numbers

* 5 –

Peter Knezic Peter Knezic is a retired American soccer player who played professionally in the Major Indoor Soccer League, American Soccer League, United Soccer League and American Indoor Soccer League. He coached at the professional, collegiate and youth so ...

* 11 – Steve Morris * 27 –

Victor Nogueira Victor Nogueira (born July 17, 1959 in Mozambique) is a retired American soccer goalkeeper. Nogueira spent six seasons in the North American Soccer League, but gained his greatest recognition in over twenty seasons in three indoor leagues, the Ma ...

* 13 – Michael King * 17 –

Todd Dusosky Todd Dusosky (born May 12, 1976 in Anoka, Minnesota) is a retired American soccer forward who spent most of his career with indoor teams. He also played a handful of seasons in the USL A-League. Soccer Dusosky graduated from Anoka High School i ...

* 19 – Troy Dusosky

Other notable former players

* Brian Loftin *

Jimmy Banks Jimmy Banks (September 2, 1964 – April 26, 2019) was an American soccer defender. After a standout career at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, Banks spent six seasons playing indoor soccer with the Milwaukee Wave. He also earned 35 cap ...

Year-by-year

* Regular season ended early due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Head coaches

* Keith Tozer missed parts of the 1997–98 & 1999–00 season coaching the US Futsal team. Both times, Art Kramer filled in.

Owners

* Luis Antonio Ramos - Tony (1984) * Ron Creten, Wayne Lueders, Dr. Christiansen (1985–87) * Michael H. Bazelon (1987–2002) * Charles Krause (2002–09) *

James Lindenberg James Lindenberg (December 20, 1921 – April 28, 2009) was an American-born Filipino engineer and businessman. He moved to the Philippines in the 1940s. He is credited for his founding of Bolinao Electronics Corporation (BEC), the precursor of ...

(2009–2013) * Sue Black (2013–2014) * Mike Zimmerman (2014–present)

Arenas

* MECCA Auditorium 1984–1988 *

Bradley Center The Bradley Center (also known as the BMO Harris Bradley Center under sponsorship agreements) was a multi-purpose arena located on the northwest corner of North Vel R. Phillips Ave. and West State Streets in downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United ...

1988–2003 *

2003–present

References

External links

* {{Wisconsin Sports 1984 establishments in Wisconsin American Indoor Soccer Association teams Association football clubs established in 1984 Indoor soccer clubs in the United States Major Arena Soccer League teams Major Indoor Soccer League (2001–2008) teams Major Indoor Soccer League (2008–2014) teams National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) teams Xtreme Soccer League teams Soccer clubs in Wisconsin