Ottawa Black Bears

The Ottawa Black Bears are an upcoming professional box lacrosse franchise based in Ottawa, Ontario. They are members of the Eastern Conference of the National Lacrosse League (NLL) and will play home games at the Canadian Tire Centre and will start competing in the 2025 NLL season.

History
On February 20, 2024, John Rodenburg of CFGO Radio reported that the New York Riptide would be relocating to Ottawa following the conclusion of the 2023–24 season and will play their home games at Canadian Tire Centre for the 2024–25 season. The team cited poor attendance and their eviction from Nassau Coliseum as factors in the move. The next day, NLL commissioner Brett Flood made the official announcement that the Riptide would be relocating to Ottawa and rebranding as the Ottawa Black Bears. This marks the first time professional box lacrosse has been played in Ottawa since 2003, when the Ottawa Rebel played their final season in Canada's capital before relocating to Edmonton and later to Saskatchewan, where they are now known as the Saskatchewan Rush.