Since the time we talk about it, the time has come. Montreal’s new professional basketball team is officially born. And it’s called the Alliance de Montréal.
The big unveiling took place Wednesday afternoon between the walls of the Verdun Auditorium, which will be the home of the new team of the Canadian Elite Basketball League (LECB).
Several players from the Montreal sports community were on hand for the occasion. A festive atmosphere reigned in the building, in the large space that separates the Scotty Bowman and Denis Savard rinks. It was the culmination of a long process led, among others, by Alliance vice-president Annie Larouche.
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
The mayoress of Montreal Valérie Plante, the mayor of the Verdun borough Jean-François Parenteau and the vice-president of the Alliance Annie Larouche, from right to left
Over the past few months, more than 1,500 people have taken the poll to find the team’s name. Three of them proposed the Alliance. But the final choice was really made one day in May, when Mr.me Larouche was returning from a visit to his hairdresser.
“For two hours she said to me: it’s got to be called the Alliance. When I was young, I played outside. Basketball was my youth and no matter what gender, age, or gang you belonged to, everyone was on the basketball court. It’s community and inclusion, it’s unifying, ”said M.me Larouche at La Presse.
A proposal that strangely recalled the different qualifiers often used in responses to the survey carried out among the population: diversity, inclusion, multiculturality …
“Immediately after, I had a meeting with the league, remembers Mme Larouche. We were suggesting names and I said wait, I have to say it. The name Alliance is suggested to me. There was a long silence and Mike [Morreale] said: that’s it, that’s our name. ”
The logo depicts a blue and white wolf surrounded by a thin red line. A fleur-de-lys adorns the animal’s forehead.
The colors are reminiscent of those of other teams that occupy an important place in the Montreal sporting landscape. We obviously think of the Montreal Canadiens.
The wolves, who march in packs, “form a group to hunt their prey, like a team that unites to win games,” said LECB commissioner and former Toronto Argonauts football player Mike Morreale.
“We are extremely excited that you are becoming an ally, joining the Alliance and being part of this team,” he hinted.
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
Valérie Plante and Annie Larouche
For local talent
The Alliance becomes the ninth team in the LECB, after those of Fraser Valley, Edmonton, Saskatchewan, Guelph, Hamilton, Niagara, Ottawa and Scarborough. His arrival in the Montreal sports scene will obviously allow the population to have access to quality basketball.
“We are excited by the entertainment that we bring, by the quality of the basketball that we bring,” said Mike Morreale. There is no doubt that with the exception of the Toronto Raptors this is the best basketball you will see in this country. ”
It is also good news for young Quebec players, who now have an option to play professional at home.
“We have local talent, and we can’t wait to give our Quebecers the opportunity to play at home, in front of their family and friends,” said Annie Larouche.
The Alliance will play its first game at the start of the next CEBL season in May 2022. The Scottie Bowman rink will then be converted into a gymnasium until the end of the season in August.
The organization still has a lot of work ahead of it until then. The next step will be to appoint its general manager in the coming weeks, said Annie Larouche. The choice of head coach and players will come next.