The city has been home to several additional professional sports franchises, including a women's basketball team and multiple soccer teams. Cleveland has also been home to several ice hockey franchises, beginning in 1937 with the AHL member Cleveland Barons.[95] The original Barons, although having been the most successful team in AHL history at that point, moved to Jacksonville, Florida, where they subsequently folded after one season.[96] The salient cause of the Baron's move came from Nick Mileti's short-lived WHA franchise, the Cleveland Crusaders, which shared the old Cleveland Arena with the Barons in beginning in 1972.[97] The new league ultimately created a financial disparity that the Barons could not compete with.[98] Local philanthropist George Gund facilitated the relocation of the NHL's California Golden Seals to Cleveland in 1976 and renamed them the Barons. However, this latest incarnation was short lived, with the team merging with the Minnesota North Stars following the 1977-78 season.[98] In 1992 the Cleveland Lumberjacks of the (also now-defunct) IHL began play, lasting until 2001. Later in 2001, a third incarnation of the Barons was established, this time having returned to the AHL. The Barons moved to Worcester, Massachusetts following the 2006 season.



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