he BC Angels will no longer be playing in the Lingerie Football League. On Wednesday, LFL officials announced that the league will be rebranded. The new name is the Legends Football League.
And the name lingerie isn't the only thing being dropped, uniforms will also be altered.
According to a press release issued by the league, "despite the tremendous success of the Lingerie Football League since premiering in 2009, LFL officials are now positioning the global brand to gain more recognition as a sport."
The LFL re-branding announcement also includes these changes:
• Performance wear replaces all lingerie aspects of uniform
• New design of logos will remove any sexy female figures
• Redesign of shoulder pads to increase protection
• Brand tagline shifts from the current "True Fantasy Football" to the new "Women of the Gridiron"
"This is the next step in the maturation of our now global sport. While the Lingerie Football League name has drawn great media attention allowing us to showcase the sport to millions, we have now reached a crossroad of gaining credibility as a sport or continuing to be viewed as a gimmick. In the coming years we will further establish this sport in the US, Australia, Europe and Asia as the most known form of American football globally. In order to reach the next milestone, we feel the focus has to be the sport and our amazing athletes," said Mitchell S. Mortaza, founder of the league.
The B.C. Angels were formed last year as one of four teams in the new LFL Canada. The squad, which plays out of the Abbotsford Entertainment and Sports Centre, enjoyed a successful season, eventually winning the league championship in November.
Abbotsford’s Darnelle Bernemann, the only local player on the Angels, said she and her teammates have known about the rebranding for more than a month, but didn’t know what the changes would be.
“I like it. I didn’t know what route they were going to go or if they would maintain LFL or something completely different,” she said.
She’s glad the name is not provocative and likes the new slogan Women of the Gridiron.
“That’s what we as the athletes thought it was about,” she said, adding some critics couldn’t get past the word lingerie.
As for the equipment changes, Bernemann said it might be hard for the average person to notice a difference.
“They’re completely, strictly sportswear now.
“It’s sports shorts and sports bra top. There’s not going to be a garter belt, there’s not going to be a neck tie.”
Also gone is lace trimming the uniforms.
And the shoulder pads have been improved. Gone are the old foam pads, which she said are being replaced with bigger, more traditional, hard shell football pads made by Rawlings – a noted sports equipment manufacturer.
Bernemann is hoping that the changes will encourage more people to come out to games next season.
She said the squad is already preparing for off season training.
“We’ve worked out the kinks from our first season and know what to expect this year. Besides, we have a championship to defend.”
