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The new team, whose name will be announced in February, will be part of the Indoor Football League and will play in Nationwide Arena starting in March 2021.

As part of the transaction, the Germain family has also acquired exclusive rights to the business operations of the entire league, which started in 2008 as a merger between two other indoor football leagues.


The family will control the national and international television broadcast rights, IFL digital streaming fights, licensing, sponsorship and advertising assets associated with the league from a new IFL extension office in Columbus. It has chosen Columbus-based The Team Management LLC to manage the teams and league business.
“When the Destroyers returned last year, we were all in, and it was a sad day when the AFL announced it was shutting down, which was the second time that happened through no fault of our loyal fans,” Germain said in a news release. “Now, with the acquisitions we have made we are in a position to build and grow the indoor game in a meaningful way.”


The Germain family also acquired the ownership of an IFL team near Dallas, Texas, the Frisco Fighters.
With the addition of the Texas team, the IFL will have 13 teams for the 2020 season, including teams in Arizona, North Dakota, Iowa, New Mexico, Wisconsin, California, Illinois, South Dakota and Washington.

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Thursday that they will own and operate a team in the Indoor Football League starting in March 2021.The team will play home games at Nationwide Arena and be coached by former Ohio State receiver Bobby Olive, who played for the Columbus Destroyers in the Arena Football League and coached the Canton Legends of the defunct American Indoor Football.
Olive announced that former Ohio State quarterback Stanley Jackson will serve as offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach and former Ohio State defensive lineman Winfield Garnett will coach the offensive and defensive lines. Former Destroyers player Cecil Doggette will be the team’s defensive coordinator.
No team name or other details were announced.
In addition to owning and operating the team in Columbus, the Germain family acquired the exclusive rights to the business operations of the IFL, including the rights to broadcasts, streaming, licensing, sponsorship and advertising.
The Germains will also own and operate an IFL team in the Dallas suburb of Frisco, Texas, that will begin play in March.
“This is a very exciting day for our family and for indoor football fans in central Ohio,” Steve Germain said. “We have been avid supporters of the indoor game and have been closely aligned with it since the Columbus Destroyers originally launched in 2004. When the Destroyers returned last year, we were all in, and it was a sad day when the AFL announced it was shutting down, which was the second time that happened through no fault of our loyal fans.
“Now, with the acquisitions we have made, we are in a position to build and grow the indoor game in a meaningful way. We understand that there is so much work to do and we are in it for the long term.”
The Arena Football League, which included the Destroyers, announced on Nov. 27 that it had filed for bankruptcy and was shutting down.