Established
1994
City
Shreveport
League History
1994 - 1995 / Canadian Football League
Team History
1994 - 1995 / Shreveport Pirates
Nickname
Pirates - The Shreveport Pirates are an iconic Canadian Football League team that has been around since 1994. The origins of their nickname can be traced back to the early days of professional football in Louisiana when the city was home to a semi-pro football team called the Shreveport Pirates.
The original Pirates were founded in 1936 and played out of Fair Grounds Stadium, now known as Independence Stadium. They competed against other local teams across Louisiana throughout their nine-year existence before disbanding due to financial difficulties after World War II.
Their legacy is today with the modern-day CFL franchise that plays at Independence Stadium and proudly carries on its predecessor's name - The Shreveport Pirates! As sports fans, we should take pride in knowing our hometown teams have such deep roots within our community and continue to honor those who came before us by keeping alive these cherished traditions for generations to come!
Championship
Grey Cup 0
Stadium
1994 - 1995 / Independence Stadium
Owner
1994 - 1995 / Bernard Glieberman and Lonnie Glieberman
- 1994
- 1995
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Shreveport Pirates Team Formation
The Pirates were created when Bernard Glieberman and his son Lonnie, owners of the Ottawa Rough Riders, expressed a desire to move the struggling franchise to the United States. The CFL rejected this move but engineered a deal in which the Rough Riders were essentially split in two. The Gliebermans received an expansion franchise in Shreveport, while a new ownership ... -
Pirates Close Shop
The problems continued off the field as the Gliebermans tried to relocate the team to Norfolk, Virginia. However, officials there broke off talks after learning that Glieberman faced several lawsuits in Shreveport. Notable about the move to Virginia was “the Great Tucker Caper” when the City of Shreveport tried to seize Bernard Glieberman’s 1948 Tucker (which was on loan to ...
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* verifies that player has played for this team as an added player by a fan.
History of the Pirates
The Shreveport Pirates were a professional Canadian Football League (CFL) team based in Shreveport, Louisiana. The team played from 1994 to 1995 and was the first American-based franchise in the CFL's modern era. During their two seasons, they compiled an overall record of 13–27–1 and won one division championship.
The Pirates began to play during the 1994 season as part of an expansion that saw four teams join the league: Las Vegas Posse, Birmingham Barracudas, Memphis Mad Dogs, and Shreveport Pirates. They were coached by Forrest Gregg, who had previously been the head coach for several NFL teams, including Green Bay Packers, with whom he won Super Bowl I & II titles, and coaching at SMU, where he led them to consecutive Cotton Bowl wins in 1984 & 1985. In their inaugural season, they finished 11-7, which was good enough for 1st place in East Division but lost out on a Grey Cup berth due to tiebreaker rules then used by CFL. Despite this disappointment, they returned with the same core group of players under new coach John Huard the following year. Still, they failed to replicate previous success finishing 2nd last place at a 2 -14 record, missing playoffs altogether.
Although short-lived, the legacy left behind by The Pirates is still felt today amongst sports fans throughout Louisiana who fondly remember cheering on “their” football team during its brief stint; even though it may not have ended up achieving much success on the field, ultimately leading it being disbanded after just two seasons due lack fan support despite a strong start. However, Shreveport pirates remain an essential part of history books when talking about the early days of CFL especially considering how difficult the task of establishing successful american based franchises proved to be back than making them worthy of mention anytime discussion takes place regarding past greats or forgotten heroes sport we love so dearly.
Sports Fan Products
Retired Number
*Blue is this team’s history