The Cleveland Crunch is an American professional

indoor soccer Indoor soccer or arena soccer is a form of five-a-side football, five-a-side or six-a-side version of minifootball. It is derived from association football and adapted to be played in walled hardcourt indoor arenas. It differs from the FIFA, FIFA ...

club located in

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

, Ohio. Formed in 1989 as an expansion team in the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL), the Crunch played a total of 16 seasons in three separate leagues under two different names. The team played three seasons in the original MISL, later known as the

Major Soccer League Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

(MSL), before joining the rival National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) in 1992. After nine seasons in the NPSL (including winning three league titles - 1994, 1996, 1999), the team joined a second incarnation of the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) in 2001. In 2002, the team was rebranded the Cleveland Force in honor of the former team of the same name. After four seasons in the second MISL, the team folded in 2005. The Cleveland Crunch franchise was revived in 2020. The team joined

Major Arena Soccer League 2 The Major Arena Soccer League 2 (MASL 2) is a North American indoor soccer league that serves as the Minor league, developmental league of the Major Arena Soccer League. History MASL 2 launched in 2017 to "provide an outlet for teams to either r ...

(MASL 2) for the 2021 season (winning the MASL 2 championship) and then joined Major League Indoor Soccer (MLIS) for its 2023 season, winning the MLIS Championship in 2024. All totaled, the Crunch recognizes all five championships won under the various incarnations of the franchise (three NPSL, one MASL 2, one MLIS).

History

Founding of the Cleveland Crunch

The original Cleveland Force team had folded on July 22, 1988.

Akron Akron () is a city in Summit County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the fifth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 190,469 at the 2020 census. The Akron metropolitan area, covering Summit and Portage counties, had ...

businessmen George S. Hoffman and Stuart Lichter formed an ownership group; named Al Miller general manager; and named former Force star

Kai Haaskivi Kai Haaskivi (born 28 December 1955) is a retired Finnish soccer player. He starred in the North American Soccer League, playing outdoor as well as indoor soccer. He also played for the Finland national football team. He now coaches in the Unit ...

player-coach. Miller and Haaskivi brought back many players who had been fan favorites during the Force's height of popularity in the mid-1980s. The Crunch's home arena was originally the

Richfield Coliseum Richfield Coliseum, also known as the Coliseum at Richfield, was an indoor arena located in Richfield Township, between Cleveland and Akron, Ohio. It opened in 1974 as a replacement for the Cleveland Arena, and had a seating capacity of 20,27 ...

. Near the end of the Crunch's first season, Miller engineered a trade that would help Cleveland make the championship finals in seven of the next 10 years. He sent veteran forward Paul Wright to the San Diego Sockers for

Zoran Karic Zoran ( sr-Cyrl, Зоран) is a common South Slavic name, the masculine form of Zora (given name), Zora, which means ''dawn, daybreak''. The name is especially common in Serbia, North Macedonia, Croatia and to some degree in Slovenia. Notable p ...

, a feisty forward who immediately hit it off with Cleveland star

Hector Marinaro Hector Marinaro may refer to: * Hector Marinaro (footballer, 1931-2017), Argentine football coach and former centre-back * Hector Marinaro (soccer, born 1964), Canadian soccer coach and former forward, son of above footballer {{hndis, Marinaro ...

. Within weeks, they were dubbed the "Dynamic Duo" and together rewrote the scoring record books for the next decade.

Move to NPSL and Three Championships

In 1992 the Crunch joined the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) where it made a name for itself as a dominating soccer club, winning three championships in five seasons. When the original MISL ceased operation in the summer of 1992, the Crunch, Baltimore and Wichita joined the rival NPSL as "expansion teams". All were permitted to keep only six players, then fill the rest of their rosters in an expansion draft of players made available by other NPSL teams. The NPSL, in an effort to promote the sport in the United States, had a cap of two non-Americans allowed on a roster. Canadian-born Marinaro and Serbia native Karic filled that quota immediately. Besides Marinaro and Karic, holdovers from the MISL Crunch were midfielders Tommy Tanner and Andy Schmetzer, defender George Fernandez and young goalkeeper

Otto Orf Otto E. Orf II (born November 4, 1963) is a retired American soccer goalkeeper who played professionally in the United Soccer League and Major Indoor Soccer League and National Professional Soccer League. He played one game for the U.S. at the ...

. Orf had only a 14–32 record the previous three years with the club as backup to P.J. Johns. Before switching leagues, Miller had signed four-time NPSL goalkeeper of the year Jamie Swanner from the Canton Invaders. That contract was voided when the Crunch entered the NPSL. Swanner and several ex-Invaders signed as free agents with another expansion team, the

Buffalo Blizzard The Buffalo Blizzard was a soccer club that existed from 1992 to 2001 in Buffalo, New York. History The team was originally owned by the Knox brothers who owned the Buffalo Sabres at the time, and additionally by the Riches who owned the minor l ...

. New Crunch coach

Gary Hindley Gary Hindley (born May 8, 1947) is an American soccer coach. He has coached youth soccer, high school, college and professional teams. He won Coach of the Year honors in 1984 in the United Soccer League, 1991 American Professional Soccer League a ...

wanted Orf as his starter, citing the big keeper's strong throwing arm as an offensive weapon. He wanted Orf getting the ball to Marinaro and Karic with outlet passes at the team's new home, the CSU Convocation Center, where the playing surface was considerably smaller than at the Richfield Coliseum. Orf became a 25-game winner, Marinaro and Karic shattered all scoring records, and Cleveland advanced to the league finals, where it lost to the Kansas City Attack, three games to two. A year later, the Crunch finally broke through to win Cleveland's first championship in any pro sport in 30 years. Marinaro scored the dramatic game-winner in double overtime as Cleveland overcame a 15–10 deficit to defeat the visiting St. Louis Ambush, 17–15, to take the series, three games to one. The team went on to win two more championships, in the 1995–96 and 1998-99 seasons. Lichter faded from view when the MISL folded and Hoffman became even more active as owner during the Crunch's almost yearly run to the finals. Hoffman eventually sold his interest to a Cleveland group headed by Richard Dietrich. Soon after, the NPSL reorganized itself as the new Major Indoor Soccer League in 2001. The team took on the old Cleveland Force name in 2002.

Franchise revival

In 2020, a new ownership group announced it was reviving the Cleveland Crunch brand, after the team's 18-year hiatus, and returning professional indoor soccer to Cleveland. The team joined the Major Arena Soccer League 2 ( MASL 2) for the 2021 season. In its first season back, the team earned the Cleveland Crunch's fourth league title, defeating the

Wichita Wings The Wichita Wings were a professional indoor soccer franchise based in Wichita, Kansas. The Wings were admitted to the Major Indoor Soccer League as an expansion team on August 21, 1979.

11-6 to win the MASL 2 Championship. In 2023, the team moved to Major League Indoor Soccer (MLIS) winning the MLIS Championship in 2024, and giving the franchise its overall fifth title (from three different leagues) in team history.

Championships

NPSL

* 1993–94 * 1995–96 * 1998–99

MASL 2

* 2021

MLIS

* 2024

Individual honors

Most Valuable Player Award * 1992–93

* 1993–94

* 1994–95 Hector Marinaro * 1995–96 Hector Marinaro (shared with Milwaukee's

Victor Nogueira Victor Nogueira (born July 17, 1959) 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 Major Indoor ...

) * 1996–97 Hector Marinaro * 1998–99 Hector Marinaro * 1999–00 Hector Marinaro Scoring Champions * 1991–92 Zoran Karic, 102 points in 37 games * 1992–93 Hector Marinaro, 248 points in 38 games * 1993–94 Zoran Karic, 267 points in 36 games * 1994–95 Hector Marinaro, 255 points in 32 games * 1995–96 Hector Marinaro, 247 points in 33 games * 1996–97 Hector Marinaro, 265 points in 36 games * 1997–98 Hector Marinaro, 212 points in 36 games * 1998–99 Hector Marinaro, 195 points in 34 games * 1999–00 Hector Marinaro, 231 points in 38 games * 2000–01 Hector Marinaro, 161 points in 34 games All-Star Game MVP * 1993 game in Cleveland, Zoran Karic * 1995 game in Buffalo, Zoran Karic (shared with Kansas City's Brian Haynes) * 1999 game in Wichita, Zoran Karic * 2001 game in Buffalo, John Ball Rookie of the Year Award * 1991–92 Tommy Tanner * 1994–95 Henry Gutierrez All-Rookie Team * 1991–92 Tommy Tanner, 1st team * 1993–94

Troy Dayak Troy Michael Dayak (born January 29, 1971) is an American former soccer player who played as central defender. He spent his entire Major League Soccer career with the San Jose Clash/Earthquakes and nearly all of his professional career playing ...

, 2nd team * 1994–95

Scott Schweitzer Scott Schweitzer (born August 12, 1971) is an American soccer coach and former player. He spent two years as the head coach of Carolina RailHawks FC. College soccer Schweitzer was born in Rahway, New Jersey. He was a four-year letter winner at N ...

, 1st team * 1994–95 Henry Gutierrez, 1st team * 1995–96 Todd Dusosky, 2nd team * 1996–97 John Ball, 1st team * 1997–98 Shawn Boney, 2nd team * 1997–98 Bo Simic, 2nd team * 2001–02 Marco Reda, 1st team * 2001–02 Justin Evans, 1st team

Head coaches

(1989–90) 29–50, .367 *

Trevor Dawkins Trevor Dawkins (born 7 October 1945) is an English retired professional footballer who played as a defender or midfielder. He spent seven seasons in the Football League, five in South Africa, and seven in the United States, most in indoor league ...

(1990–92) 40–25, .615; Playoffs: 8–11, .421 *

(1992–95) 78–42, .650; Playoffs: 15–12, .555 * Bruce Miller (1995-01) 149–87, .631; Playoffs: 27–18, .600 *

George Fernandez George Fernandez is a retired American soccer defender who played professionally in the Major Indoor Soccer League and National Professional Soccer League. He coached in both the Continental Indoor Soccer League and NPSL and was the 1994 CIS ...

(2001) 3–5, .375 * Mike Pilger (2001–02) 17–31, .354 *

Andy Schmetzer Andy M. Schmetzer (born April 26, 1967) is a former U.S. soccer midfielder and indoor soccer coach. Player Youth Schmetzer grew up in Seattle, Washington, where he attended Nathan Hale High School (Washington), Nathan Hale High School. He learned ...

(2002–04) 33–38, .465; Playoffs: 0–2 .000 *

Omid Namazi Omid Namazi (; born December 8, 1964) is an Iranian-American former professional soccer player and coach. Namazi is a USSF “Pro” coaching license holder. Namazi played professionally as a defender in the American Soccer League, American P ...

(2004–05) 23–16, .590; Playoffs: 2–2 .500 * Louis Kastelic (2020–22) 19-3 .864; Playoffs: 3-1 .750 * Benny Dargle (2022–23) 9-3, .750; Playoffs: 2-1, .666 * Antonio Manfut (2023–present) 20-4, .833; Playoffs: 3-1, .750

Arenas

1989–92 *

Wolstein Center The Bert L. and Iris S. Wolstein Center is a 13,610-seat indoor arena located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the campus of Cleveland State University (CSU). It is home to the Cleveland State Vikings men's and women's basketball ...

1992-05; 2025 (playoffs) * Soccer Complex 2020–present *

I-X Center The International Exposition Center, better known as the I-X Center, is a convention and exhibition hall located in the Hopkins neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio, United States, adjacent to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. The building ...

select games 2022-23

Year-by-year

Playoffs

1990–91
MSL Eastern Division Finals: Defeated Kansas City Comets, 4–3
MSL Championship Series: Lost to San Diego Sockers, 4–2
1991–92
MSL Semifinals: Lost to Dallas Sidekicks, 4–2
1992–93
NPSL American Division Semifinals: Defeated Buffalo Blizzard, 2–1
NPSL American Division Finals: Defeated Harrisburg Heat, 2–1
NPSL Championship Series: Lost to Kansas City Attack, 3–2
1993–94
NPSL American Division Semifinals: Defeated Buffalo Blizzard, 2–1
NPSL American Division Finals: Defeated Harrisburg Heat, 2–1
NPSL Championship Series: Defeated St. Louis Ambush, 3–1
1994–95
NPSL American Division Semifinals: Defeated Buffalo Blizzard, 2–1
NPSL American Division Finals: Lost to Harrisburg Heat, 3–0
1995–96
NPSL American Division Semifinals: Defeated Buffalo Blizzard, 2–1
NPSL American Division Finals: Defeated Baltimore Spirit, 3–1
NPSL Championship Series: Defeated Kansas City Attack, 4–2
1996–97
NPSL American Conference Semifinals: Defeated Baltimore Spirit, 2–1
NPSL American Conference Finals: Defeated Harrisburg Heat, 3–1
NPSL Championship Series: Lost to Kansas City Attack, 4–0
1997–98
NPSL American Conference Semifinals: Lost to Philadelphia Kixx, 2–0
1998–99
NPSL American Conference Semifinals: Defeated Montreal Impact, 2–1
NPSL American Conference Finals: Defeated Philadelphia Kixx, 2–0
NPSL Championship Series: Defeated St. Louis Ambush, 3–2
1999–2000
NPSL American Conference Semifinals: Defeated Montreal Impact, 2–0
NPSL American Conference Finals: Defeated Baltimore Blast, 2–0
NPSL Championship Series: Lost to Milwaukee Wave, 3–2
2002–03
MISL Eastern Conference Semifinals: Lost to Baltimore Blast 1–0
2003–04
MISL Eastern Conference Quarterfinals: Lost to Dallas Sidekicks 1–0
2004–05
MISL Semifinals: Defeated Philadelphia Kixx 2–0
MISL Finals: Lost to Milwaukee Wave 2–0
2020-21
MASL2 Semifinals: Defeated FC Amarillo Bombers 12–6
MASL2 Finals: Defeated Wichita Wings 11–6
2021-22
MASL2 Semifinals: Defeated Muskingun Risers 6-5
MASL2 Finals: Lost to San Diego Sockers2 4-7
2022-23
MLIS Wild Card: Defeated Chicago Mustangs 12-6
MLIS Semifinals: Lost to Omaha Kings 7-8
2023-24
MLIS Semifinals: Defeated Grand Rapids City FC 11-5
MLIS Finals: Defeated Omaha Kings 9-4
2024-25
MLIS Semifinals: Defeated PAO Chicago 14-2
MLIS Finals: Lost to Amarillo Bombers 10-8 OT

References

External links

Official team website

Cleveland's first sports championship since the 1964 Browns
{{Cleveland 1989 establishments in Ohio Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992) teams Major Indoor Soccer League (2001–2008) teams National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) teams Soccer clubs in Ohio Soccer clubs in Cleveland Association football clubs established in 1989