PORTLAND, Ore. -- The New Orleans Breakers of the United States Football League will move to Portland for the 1985 spring season, USFL Commissioner Chet Simmons said Tuesday.
Simmons flew to Portland Tuesday morning to attend a team news conference concerning the future of the club. The Breakers were expected to make a formal announcement of the move later in the day.
'We're going to bring a USFL team to Portland,' Simmons said as he moved quickly through Portland International Airport.
Simmons said he is confident the Breakers will attract fans in Portland, the team's third home in three years.
'I think Portland is a great sports town,' Simmons said. 'We like its population base, growth opportunities for the city and the fact there was pro football here several years ago.'
Simmons' announcement ended speculation over whether the Breakers would relocate in Portland. Team officials, including owner Joe Canizaro, President John Ralston and Coach Dick Coury, have been in the city for several weeks to determine whether there is enough interest to move the team.
Canizaro announced several weeks ago that he would move the team or merge with another USFL club, rather than going head-to-head with the New Orleans Saints of the NFL in 1986, when the USFL switches to a fall schedule.
Reaction in the community to a move by the Breakers has been mixed. While team officials said there is support for the team, others are skeptical the club and the league will survive.
The Portland Trail Blazers of the NBA have been the only successful major league franchise in the city. The Portland Timbers of the North American Soccer League folded in 1982 when dwindling attendance forced team owner Louisiana-Pacific Corp. to disband the team.
Portland's World Football League franchises in 1974 and 1975 also went out of business with debts totaling nearly $1 million when the two versions of the WFL folded.
Louisiana-Pacific spokesman Gerry Griffin has called a move by the Breakers to Portland a 'no-brainer' because the city hasn't shown a willingness to support major league sports.
Hal Cowan, former public relations director of the Portland Storm of the WFL, said the Breakers would have to sell out all of their home games at Civic Stadium, which has a capacity of 32,500, to survive in Portland.
'Portland will support a winner, but I'm not sure the league is going to survive,' said Cowan, now sports information director at Oregon State University.
But Simmons said, 'Joe Canizaro likes the city of Portland,' which has a metropolitan area population of about 1 million.
The Breakers were formed in Boston, then moved to New Orleans last December. They averaged 32,000 fans last season at the Superdome, which seats 71,330. Canizaro said the team lost $5 million last season.
Canizaro said the Breakers can save $1 million per year in operating costs by moving to Portland, chiefly because they won't have to pay a 14 percent tax on tickets by the city of New Orleans or pay to lease the Superdome.
Canizaro said he envisions a larger stadium in the future for Portland. Civic Stadium, the city's largest outdoor facility, was built in the 1920s for dog racing, but recently was renovated with new seats and a modern artificial playing surface.
'It would be my position to move toward the concept of a first-class dome stadium, certainly with reasonable financial restraints,' he said. 'I would like, particularly in this climate, a dome stadium.'
The city currently has no plans to construct a domed stadium.
Canizaro reportedly will retain a controlling interest in the team.
