Major League Crest

Earlier in November, FC Cincinnati unveiled their new team crest in preparation for their 2019 Major League Soccer debut. The new logo has an updated appearance from its United Soccer League counterpart and features a few details that pay tribute to the city of Cincinnati. 

The overall shape of the crest is inspired from the West End which is where the team’s stadium will be built. The font used on the crest for “FC Cincinnati” is said to be both German and modern and the way Cincinnati is displayed symbolizes how the city is on the rise. The winged lion has been given an updated look and is holding a sword to show how the club is ready for battle. The crown on the lion’s head is for the Queen City, and the three tiered wing commemorates the team’s USL seasons prior to joining MLS. It’s tail is in the shape of a capital “C” for Cincinnati, and the winged lion logo was retained to showcase the franchise’s winning spirit. 

I the crest was leaked a few days before the it was officially unveiled, and it received mixed reviews from fans. Personally, I love it. It looks sleek and much more professional than the USL logo. It also features Cincinnati much more prominently than the hold crest. I think as time goes on, more people will appreciate the new crest. I will always have a soft spot for the original USL crest as that is the symbol of the team that captured the attention of the soccer world and helped propel the franchise to MLS. I will continue to wear and obtain merchandise with both logos and support the team no matter what.

Go FCC!

FC Cincinnati 2019 Season Outlook

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone previews the 2019 Major League Soccer debut season of FC Cincinnati. 

An Elite Challenger

Without question, professional wrestling reached its peak in popularity during the late 1990s and early 2000s. The World Wrestling Federation was engaged in a ruthless battle for ratings supremacy and company survival with World Championship Wrestling. Extreme Championship Wrestling grew from a small renegade promotion in Philadelphia and became a national phenomenon and formidable challenger to both WCW and the WWF. All three companies were putting on excellent matches and pay-per-view worthy television shows with an unbelievably deep roster. Ratings for pro wrestling television programs skyrocketed as quality programming became the weekly standard. That changed when ECW folded and WCW was bought by the WWF.

The battlefield became quiet as Vince McMahon's pro wrestling juggernaut emerged as the sole survivor. The WWF eventually became World Wrestling Entertainment and with no real threat to ratings or profits, the quality of WWE programming began to decline as did pro wrestling's popularity. It seemed as if the company began to rest on its laurels. Ring of Honor and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling have since emerged from the rubble left from the Monday Night Wars between WCW and WWE, but they do. It have the financial backing or popularity to really be contenders to WWE's throne. New Japan Pro Wrestling has made strides in garnering the interest of American wrestling fans, but the time zone difference and lack of a real television deal is a tough obstacle to overcome for the Japanese wrestling promotion. The reign of WWE over the professional wrestling world looked like it would last forever. If a pro wrestling company were to challenge WWE for the crown, it would need to be an elite challenger. Enter All Elite Wrestling.

Following the success of the independent "All In" wrestling event that featured wrestlers from promotions such as ROH, TNA, NJPW, and the National Wrestling Alliance among others, speculation on if top ROH stars and "All In" masterminds Cody Rhodes and the Young Bucks would start their own promotion ran rampant. Trademarks for "All Elite Wrestling" were filed for in November and Rhodes, the Young Bucks, and several other of ROH's top wrestler left the promotion in December. On January 1, 2019, All Elite Wrestling's creation was officially announced. The next day, the father and son duo of Shahid Khan and Tony Khan were announced as company investors with Tony also serving as company president. The Khans are billionaires as well as part owners of the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League and Fulham Football Club of the Premier League and are reportedly backing the new wrestling promotion with a $100 million investment.

The first shots of what could be a new wrestling war were fired on January 8 when AEW held its inaugural press conference at TIAA Bank Field which is the home of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Wrestling fans packed the conference as WWE's SmackDown television program was airing live from Jacksonville later that night. At the conference, AEW announced a working relationship with Chinese professional wrestling company Oriental Wrestling Entertainment as well as some of the wrestlers signed to the AEW roster. Notable wrestlers already under the AEW brand include Christopher Daniela, Frankie Kazarian, Scorpio Sky, Pac (who competed in WWE as Neville), and Chris Jericho.

While it is still early and AEW has yet to produce an official show or announce any sort of television deal at the time that this lost was written, many wrestling reporters and fans, including myself, see AEW as a legitimate competitor to WWE. Apparently WWE might be feeling the same way. The company was reportedly turning away people from the SmackDown airing in Jacksonville who were wearing AEW merchandise. The company's inaugural event, "Double or Nothing," is set for May 25, 2019. There is still plenty of time for AEW to not only announce a television deal and build toward the event but also sign more wrestlers to its roster. The Revival and Mike Bennett have recently requested their release from WWE. I wouldn't be shocked if they wind up in AEW, and if they are first of a number of WWE defections.

As a wrestling fan, I am very excited for AEW. Having another legitimate professional wrestling company that has both the talent and the financial backing to compete with WWE is a fantastic development for the wrestling industry as a whole. Not only does it give fans another option to get their pro wrestling fix, but it can also bring about a surge in wrestling popularity and quality. The Monday Night Wars took professional wrestling a to unprecedented heights. Maybe AEW can be the catalyst to launch another wrestling boom.

Elimination Chamber 2019 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on the 2019 WWE Elimination Chamber event.

Cincinnati Reds Quadruple Mascot Bobblehead Unboxing

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone unboxes a Cincinnati Reds Quadruple Mascot bobblehead from the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum. 

National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum Cincinnati Reds Quadruple Mascot Bobblehead: https://store.bobbleheadhall.com/products/redsmascots

The Taylor Era Has Begun

After weeks of speculation, the worst kept secret in the National Football League of Zac Taylor becoming the next head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals was made official last Monday. Taylor will become the tenth head coach in the history of the franchise and is considered to be a breath of fresh air for the team as his offensive mindset is the total opposite of the defensive atmosphere that was created under the Marvin Lewis regime. Despite being only 35 years old, Taylor has a plethora of coaching experience.

He started his coaching career at Texas A&M University in 2008 as a graduate assistant and tight ends coach before joining the Miami Dolphins in 2012 as assistant quarterbacks coach. In 2013, he became the team’s quarterbacks coach and served as interim offensive coordinator in 2015. Taylor had his first stint in the Queen City as quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator for the University of Cincinnati Bearcats in 2016. He then joined the Los Angeles Rams staff in 2017 as assistant wide receivers coach before taking over as quarterbacks coach in 2018. 

I am very excited to see what the Bengals can do with Zac Taylor as the new head coach. The team had become very stale and the fanbase had become beyond frustrated with Marvin Lewis and his style of coaching. With offensive innovation becoming the growing trend in the NFL, the Bengals wanted to hire somebody with a connection to one of the coaches leading that change, and I believe they did that by hiring a former protégé of Sean McVay in Zac Taylor. Hopefully Taylor can take what he learned from under McVay, make it his own, and turn the Cincinnati Bengals into Super Bowl Champions.

Who Dey!

Corey Dillon Bobblehead Unboxing

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone unboxes a Cincinnati Bengals bobblehead of Corey Dillon.

Adios Ambrose?

The day after the 2019 Royal Rumble, rumors started swirling around the internet that Dean Ambrose was set to leave World Wrestling Entertainment after Wrestlemania 35. Those rumors seemingly turned to fact as WWE released a statement confirming that Ambrose would not be renewing his contract once it expired in April. Reports indicated that Ambrose had grown frustrated with the creative direction of his character and had reached his breaking point with the company.  

Ambrose first debuted with the company in late 2012 as part of the faction known as the Shield along with Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins with Ambrose capturing the United States Championship in 2013. The trio ran roughshod in WWE before embarking on singles careers after Wrestlemania 30 in 2014. Ambrose would go on to capture the Intercontinental Championship in 2015 and the WWE World Heavyweight Championship in 2016 before winning the Tag Team Championship with Seth Rollins in 2017 making him the first member of the Shield to become a Grand Slam Champion. He missed most of 2018 with an injury and when he returned around SummerSlam, the Shield briefly reunited before Reigns had to leave the company due to cancer. Ambrose later turned heel on Rollins, but the feud between the two and Ambrose’s heel turn never gained any real traction.

With WWE confirming that Ambrose will not be renewing his contract, the top wrestling promotion in the world will be without one of its biggest stars following Wrestlemania 35. This could be beneficial for both sides as Ambrose leaving the company will allow somebody to take his place in the company. For Ambrose, there might be no better time than now to be a free agent in the wrestling industry. New Japan Pro Wrestling is growing in popularity outside of Japan and Ring of Honor has been a nice alternative to WWE for wrestlers looking for a new home. Impact Wrestling is seemingly rising back up the ranks, and the National Wrestling Alliance is starting to make waves in the pro wrestling world once again. There is also All Elite Wrestling which is a very real threat to WWE. It has legitimate big-name stars with Cody Rhodes, the Young Bucks, and Chris Jericho already signed to its roster, and it is backed by the Khan family. The Khans are billionaires and are providing the financial support for AEW. I would not be surprised if Ambrose winds up in AEW as he will undoubtedly become the hottest free agent on the market. 

This could also be a work by WWE. Their confirmation of Ambrose leaving the company was uncharacteristically addressed months in advance and was also very pleasant when compared to the statements that WWE released when they parted ways with other wrestlers. I would not be shocked if this all part of a storyline, but I would also not be surprised if Ambrose is truly leaving the company. Either way, it has definitely created a buzz for the WWE and Ambrose. Combine that with the upcoming Wrestlemania 35 pay-per-view, and you have must see TV for wrestling fans.

If Ambrose really is leaving though, it will be a sad day for Cincinnati wrestling fans. Ambrose is the most popular wrestler to come from the Queen City since Brian Pillman. He became the last undisputed WWE World Heavyweight Champion in company history and is also the first member of the Shield to become a Grand Slam Champion. More importantly, he made me heavily invested in pro wrestling again which is something that has not happened since I was a kid during the Attitude Era. Having a hometown favorite to root for in WWE is fun, and I will never forget where I was or how I reacted when Ambrose cashed in his Money in the Bank contract to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. I am and will always be a Dean Ambrose fan, and whether or not he returns to the WWE as Dean Ambrose or wrestles for another company as Jon Moxley, I will always be in his corner.

Anthony Munoz Bobblehead Unboxing

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone unboxes a Cincinnati Bengals Anthony Munoz bobblehead.