London Tigers

The London Tigers are a professional Hybrid Football team located in London, Ontario. They currently compete in the North American Association of Football as a member of the West Division. They play their home games at Western Fair Stadium in London.

The Tigers were founded in 1926 as the Toronto Tigers and a member of the Ontario Football Union. They joined the NAAF as a founding member in 1949. The team relocated to Kitchener, Ontario in 1953 after not getting support in the Toronto area and was renamed the Ontario Tigers. In 1958, they would arrive in London, Ontario, and would become the London Tigers. The Tigers'  name doesn't have a specific origin other than being a typical mascot name for a team that would be the secondary team in Toronto. The team has gone through several owners in its history, but Garry Duran would bring stability when he bought the team in 1946. Duran has remained the owner, but when the team moved to London, the ownership title would be shared with new investor Darren Lindell.

Prior to the NAAF, the Tigers had been one of the worse football teams known to man. However, when the team got the NAAF, Joseph Johnson would be hired to run the team and he would eventually bring them to a consistent contender in the early 60s making 4 McCallister Cups and winning 2. 

STADIUM

Western Fair Stadium was opened in 1958 and seats 28,500. The stadium is pretty barebones since it is used as a stadium for the city's fair, hence the name. There are two main grandstands that flank the sidelines, while each end, behind the endzone, has no seats available.

Western Fair Stadium has hosted a single McCallister Cup, which was in 1960, a game the Tigers did win over the Royals

PRE-NAAF HISTORY

NAAF HISTORY

HISTORIC INFORMATION

Head Coaches
Joseph Johnson - 1949-1953
Lewis Gallegos - 1954-1956
Clifford Jacobson - 1957-1958
Roy Aguirre - 1958-1968
Dewey Doyle - 1969-1970
Aengus Lynch - 1971-Pres.

Captains
LB Aengus Lynch - 1957-1963
QB Riley Kiernan - 1964-1969
DB Jackson Miles - 1970
DL Mo Kahn - 1971-Pres.

Hall of Famers
RB Laurent Brazeau - 1968
LB Aengus Lynch - 1969
TE Jervonte Howell - 1969*
DL Olympus Heights - 1972

*Only played half a season with the team

Seasons
1949: 0-8 - 7th NAAF - Missed Playoffs
1950: 2-5-1 - 6th NAAF - Missed Playoffs
1951: 2-8 - 4th North Division - Missed Playoffs
1952: 4-6 - 4th North Division - Missed Playoffs
1953: 2-8 - 4th North Division - Missed Playoffs
1954: 5-5 - 4th North Division - Missed Playoffs
1955: 4-6 - 3rd North Division - Missed Playoffs
1956: 5-5 - 2nd North Division - Lost North Division Final
1957: 4-8 - 4th West Division - Missed Playoffs
1958: 6-5-1 - 2nd West Division - Lost West Division Semi-Final
1959: 10-2 - 2nd West Division - Lost McCallister Cup
1960: 8-4 - 2nd West Division - Won McCallister Cup
1961: 11-1 - 1st West Division - Lost McCallister Cup
1962: 10-2 - 1st West Division - Lost West Division Final
1963: 7-5 - 1st West Division - Won McCallister Cup
1964: 6-6 - 4th West Division - Missed Playoffs
1965: 7-5 - 4th West Division - Lost East Division Semi-Final
1966: 5-7 - 5th West Division - Missed Playoffs
1967: 7-5 - 2nd West Division - Lost West Division Semi-Final
1968: 6-6 - 4th West Division - Missed Playoffs
1969: 4-8 - 5th West Division - Missed Playoffs
1970: 2-9-1 - 6th Central Division - Missed Playoffs
1971: 5-9 - 5th Central Division - Missed Playoffs
1972: 7-7 - 4th Central Division - Missed Playoffs

Awards
Most Valuable/Outstanding Player
1959: QB Riley Kiernan
1960: WR Max Sutton
1961: QB Riley Kiernan
1963: QB Riley Kiernan

Offensive Player of the Year
1951: RB Laurent Brazeau
1961: WR Max Sutton

Defensive Player of the Year
1956: LB Aengus Lynch

Special Teams Player of the Year
1960: K Nimrod Handsworth
1961: K Nimrod Handsworth
1962: K Nimrod Handsworth
1965: K Nimrod Handsworth
1969: K Nimrod Handsworth

Rookie of the Year
1950: RB Laurent Brazeau
1956: RB Clifford Russell

Coach of the Year
1959: Roy Aguirre
1961: Roy Aguirre
1963: Roy Aguirre

Playoff MVP/MOP
1959: QB Riley Kiernan

McCallister Cup MVP/MOP
1960: WR Max Sutton
1963: QB Riley Kiernan

DESIGN

1949-1950

The original Tigers design was very simple as the team was short on funds. A pair of orange stripes made up the design on the helmet and on the home jersey.

1951-1952

With some more funding, the Tigers were able to make a simple update to their uniforms to add stripes to the socks and the away uniform creating the team's original and iconic striping.

1953-1957

Upon their move to Kitchener, they would get an adjusted logo, with the Tiger head becoming their primary and a new "O" version of their previous logo as an alternate. The uniforms would not change themselves remaining with the previous design.

1958-1969

After their second move, now to London, ON, the Tigers would make a more significant change to their uniforms along with the league-wide addition of TV numbers and nameplates. A new "L-T" mark would be added to the logos and to the helmet. The jersey and socks remained the same, however, the biggest change would be the pants as the team moved on from the tan pants to a set of orange pants.

1967

In 1967 the Tigers, along with the other 4 Canadian teams, added a maple leaf to their jersey for Canada's 100th birthday.

1970-Pres.

With the partnership with Patterson Athletics, the Tigers would only make minor changes to their uniform with the TV numbers moving to the shoulders. The team did debut a new logo which is a Tiger's paw with the "L-T" logo on the palm. The new logo was then added to the new helmet.