Philadelphia Soul Championship Celebration Set

Tuesday July 29, 2008

The Virgin Mobile ArenaBowl XXII Champion Philadelphia Soul will hold a Championship Celebration  on Thursday, July 31 at 3 p.m. at City Hall

PHILADELPHIA (Tuesday, July 29) – The Philadelphia Soul will celebrate bringing home the franchise’s first ArenaBowl title in style on Thursday, July 31 at 3 pm as the City of Philadelphia hosts a Championship Celebration at City Hall in Philadelphia.

The Soul won the title in New Orleans on Sunday, 59-56, against the San Jose SaberCats.

Many notables will take part in the festivities on Thursday, including co-majority owners Jon Bon Jovi and Craig Spencer, as well as minority owner Leo Carlin Jr. and team president and minority owner Ron Jaworski.  Bon Jovi will not perform at the celebration, but Jon will address the fans.

Two-time ArenaBowl MVP QB Matt D’Orazio and the rest of the players will arrive at City Hall in style as Saturn of Philadelphia will provide Saturn Skys for transportation. The coaching staff, play-by-play announcer Ari Wolfe, the Soulmates, Soulman, the Soul Band & Drumline and the Foster Trophy will also be there.

The celebration will start with a procession that will begin at 6th and Market Streets in Philadelphia, and with a police escort the owners, players, coaches and Soulmates will make their way to City Hall.

More information on the celebration’s itinerary will be announced in the next day.

The Soul are celebrating their fifth anniversary this season. Following last season, the Soul were recognized with the Commissioner's Award as the Organization of the Year and were an honorable mention for the PRISM Award in the category of fan appreciation.  The Soul drew a total of 131,817 fans this season, their largest number since their inaugural season of 2004.  The Soul sold out four games in the 2008 season and averaged a crowd of 16,477 fans per game.  Since their inception, the Soul have drawn a total of 646,043 fans, the most in the AFL over that time frame.