Endangered Species

0 Comments | Insight on the News, July 30, 2001 | by Patrick Hruby

In the world of professional sports, animal nicknames are going the way of the dodo.

Five weeks into the inaugural season of the Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA), the most remarkable thing about the startup league isn't the level of talent or even the fact that it exists. It's the nicknames. Start with Atlanta Beat, Boston Breakers and Bay Area CyberRays. Add Carolina Courage, New York Power and Philadelphia Charge. Top it off with San Diego Spirit and Washington Freedom. That's eight teams, six cities, two geographic regions -- and exactly one animal-related moniker.

"Every other league is full of animals," says Lynn Morgan, general manager of the Beat. "We're trying to be different."

They're not the only ones. From Major League Soccer (MLS) to minor-league basketball, new teams and leagues are avoiding animal aliases, putting traditional stalwarts such as eagles, dolphins and pretty much the entire cat genus on the endangered species list:

* Although the XFL featured teams named after the criminal element (Hitmen, Enforcers, Outlaws), the insane (Maniax), the paranormal (Demons) and even a fast-action, triple-bladed razor (Xtreme), the now-defunct league lacked a single animal-inspired moniker.

* Likewise, MLS completely has eschewed animal nicknames, favoring amorphous concepts (Revolution), natural disasters (Earthquakes, Fire), interstellar and intraborough phenomena (Galaxy, MetroStars) and atomic energy (Fusion).

* Only one of 16 WNBA teams has an animal name (Lynx), and that's still more than the National Rookie League (NRL) and the International Basketball League (IBL) combined.

"The market's closed on animal names, at least for animals indigenous to the United States," says Rick Burton, director of the Warsaw Sports Marketing Center at the University of Oregon. "I always use Platypus for my fantasy football league. But I don't think anyone else is going to use it."

In the not-too-distant past -- think post-Chicago Staleys, pre-Chicago Fire -- professional team names tended to emerge from five generally accepted categories: uniform colors (White Sox, Red Sox, Reds, Browns); local industry, geography and lore (Packers, Astros, Lakers, Trailblazers); American Indians (Chiefs, Redskins, Blackhawks, Braves); nautical aggressors (Pirates, Buccaneers, Raiders, Vikings); and animals (Broncos, Rams, Colts, Bucks).

Of the big five, animals enjoyed the broadest support. Lions and Tigers ruled the sports jungle. By 1992, 24 teams in the four major pro-sports leagues had animal names, creating a diverse, zoo-like tapestry of fish, fowl and beast. Charlotte Hornets buzzed. Pittsburgh Penguins waddled. Miami Dolphins swam with San Jose Sharks. There were cross-league knockoffs (Tigers, Bengals), father-son pairs (Bears, Cubs) and enough birds to fill an Audubon field guide (Hawks, Falcons, Eagles, Seahawks, Blue Jays, Orioles).

"When teams started to decide that they needed names, they looked to animals," says Bruce Burke, president of Oneworld Communications and a former vice president of NFL Properties. "Animals are the best mascots, so being called the Bears or the Lions might not be a bad idea."

Somewhere along the way -- possibly with the arrival of the Tampa Bay Mutiny, probably with the debut of the Utah Starzz -- everything changed. Animal names entered an ice age, frozen out by a mishmash of increasingly bizarre monikers.

The World League of American Football, now called NFL Europe, jump-started the trend in 1991, naming one team after an atmospheric event (Thunder) and another after a chess piece (Knights). A few years later, MLS upped the ante when its Dallas franchise identified with a medical condition (Burn) and its Columbus team with the night shift at Taco Bell (Crew).

The subsequent arrivals of the WNBA, the short-lived American Basketball League and the shorter-lived XFL brought entirely new entries into the nickname pantheon: maladies (Fever, Shock); calamities (Fire, Storm, Blizzard, Xplosion); disturbed emotional states (Rage, Maniax); missile-defense systems (Lasers); and noise (Noise).

Not to be outdone, minor-league basketball and indoor lacrosse entered the fray, adding common minerals (Rock), precious metals (Gold) and an army's worth of artillery (Barrage, Cannons, Bombers) to the mix. Basketball's NRL even contributed a lofty principle (Justice) -- a precursor of the seventh-grade essay topics (Freedom, Courage, Spirit) that dominate the WUSA.

Tellingly, even the big four have gotten into the act. The NBA broke ranks with its Florida expansion teams (Heat, Magic). Baseball introduced the Rockies. The NFL is about to add the Texans. And when it's not promoting Emilio Estevez star vehicles (Mighty Ducks), the NHL has an apparent fetish for acts of God (Hurricane, Avalanche, Lightning).

The overall result? Of 92 major-, mid-major and minor-league team names chosen in the last decade, only 38 were animal-inspired. "A lot of animal names have already been taken, and you're going to get ridiculed if you take Bears, Tigers, Cubs," Burton says. "So you've got to stretch out further and further."