Ultiworld and Nathan Jesson published an article Wednesday about the business and history behind the Breeze. The story begins way back in 2013 when, after a tumultuous first season, team founder Aaron Foreman kept the dream alive for his players by exploring some creative business ideas to help ensure that a 2014 season could happen for the AUDL in our nation’s capital.
Then Don Grage entered the scene, and the two owners quickly formed a partnership that would work closely with some of those original players and new Head Coach Alex Ghesquiere to transform the team over the course of 2-3 years from an afterthought to an AUDL force as the league itself grew from 12 to 26 teams.
“I have been involved in many startups and early stage companies, quite a few of which I co-founded, and I have never been interested in doing one on my own,” said Grage about the article. “This was no exception. Aaron had not only built a foundation to work with through 2013, but was also energized to move forward with me and a few key returning players and, soon after, Dutchy [Alex Ghesquiere].”
The Breeze franchise is only a few years old, yet the history is already getting interesting. We thank Ultiworld for the chronicle of a young team in a new professional sport that is gaining momentum on the North American sports landscape. Our sport needs more of these stories out there in addition to stories from the playing fields!
“Since 2013 we have grown with several more passionate players now getting deeply involved in the future of the organization, an amazing group of volunteers and two great new minor equity partners,” Grage continued. “We have a tremendous team off the field to compliment the one on it, and I’m extremely proud to be a part of it.”
Go Breeze!