• Loading stock data...
Thursday, October 2, 2025

Dead Sports Franchises Are Alive and Well on Twitter

The Expos, Sonics, and Whalers have active accounts, all run by unpaid hobbyists who are clawing to keep fandom alive.

2000, Jupiter, FL, USA; FILE PHOTO; Montreal Expos pitcher Hideki Irabu in action on the mound against the New York Mets at Roger Dean Stadium during Spring Training
RVR Photos/Imagn Images
Sep 27, 2025; Athens, Georgia, USA; Georgia Bulldogs running back Josh McCray (2) runs against Alabama Crimson Tide linebacker Nikhai Hill-Green (41) and defensive back Keon Sabb (3) in the second half at Sanford Stadium.
Exclusive

College Football Viewership Is Up Double Digits. Here’s Why

Average game viewership is up by more than 10% so far.
Read Now
October 2, 2025 |

The Montreal Expos haven’t played a Major League Baseball game since 2004. But on X/Twitter, the long-defunct team posts with a frequency that makes it seem like they’re currently in the hunt to win the 2025 NL East.

Behind the 55,000-follower account is Elias Makos, a Canadian radio host and former Expos PR coordinator. He is one of a handful of hobbyists who run very active and well-followed social media pages for “dead” professional sports teams, and have for decades.

After the Expos left Montreal for Washington, Makos took a job in academia and quickly found himself with some extra time to kill. “It was 2009, I was interested in social media and saw Twitter was taking off, so I thought it would be fun to make an Expos account,” he says. “I was able to get a good handle [@montreal_expos] because it was so early.”

The start was similar for Michael Glasson, owner of the X page for the Hartford Whalers, a former NHL franchise that left Connecticut for North Carolina in 1997. “When I started my account [in 2009], many teams didn’t even have a social media presence yet,” he says. “I believe for a time, the Whalers were more popular online than some active NHL teams.”

These defunct team accounts are not formally affiliated with any of their respective governing leagues, and the content that each one produces varies. Some favor sharing grainy highlight clips and “on this day”–style history posts; others lean in to memes and humor. However, they’re largely united in their primary goals, which are to celebrate their beloved fallen franchises and—more ambitiously—help revive them. 

“I view the page as forward-looking,” says Kenji Onozawa, who has run a popular Seattle SuperSonics account on X since 2009, after the team relocated to Oklahoma City in 2008. He grew up in the Pacific Northwest but moved to Tokyo just before the COVID-19 pandemic. The account offers him a way to keep in touch with the roots of his sports fandom and advocate for its future: “By staying active online, I want to remind people that Seattle is still very much a basketball town. We have the stadium, we have the fans, we have the legacy. All of those things make us a great landing spot for an NBA expansion team.”

Onozawa—who is also involved with an organized effort to bring an NBA team back to Seattle—says that while most of his account’s followers are, like himself, “middle-aged” Seattleites with a personal fondness for the Supersonics’ ’90s heyday, he believes a younger generation of fans is tapping in. “I’ll get people reaching out and saying stuff like, ‘Hey, I found your account because my dad was a Sonics fan.’”

Follower and engagement spikes are most pronounced when a defunct team has a clear news tie-in. For Onozawa and the SuperSonics, the Thunder’s NBA championship in June was ripe for opportunity. “The history of the Sonics leaving Seattle for Oklahoma City brought us back into the national discussion and drove an uptick in engagement with the account,” Onozawa tells Front Office Sports. He’s taken full advantage of the spotlight by making several posts about bringing an NBA team back to Seattle, which have garnered hundreds of thousands of views in the weeks since the Thunder’s win.

Most of the time, though, defunct team account admins have to manufacture relevance. For example, to insert the Expos into last week’s MLB All-Star conversation, Makos had a video of Moisés Alou hitting a double to put the National League over the top in the 1994 Midsummer Classic at the ready. But these kinds of posts do well, too. 

Despite admittedly feeling “bitter” or “disappointed at times” about their respective teams leaving their towns, the account admins FOS spoke with say they try to stay upbeat. This approach, they say, has allowed them to stay out of the firing line of league legal offices and any intellectual property concerns they could potentially have. 

Glasson describes his Whalers account as “official” in its bio, but, he says,“nobody’s ever asked” him to change it. Makos and Onozawa haven’t been approached by MLB or the NBA either, and all three say they have never monetized their accounts.

Franchise relocations and league expansions are notoriously fraught with all kinds of financial and political considerations, so defunct team account owners know their “bring-them-back” campaigns face an extremely uphill battle, no matter how many views or likes their posts get. 

“It’s a pipe dream at this point,” says Makos. “But nothing would make me happier than for the Expos to come back to Montreal. I’d hand over the keys to my account immediately and gladly.”

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

Caitlin Clark
exclusive

Caitlin Clark Will Not Join Second Season of Unrivaled

The Fever star struggled with several injuries in her second WNBA season.
exclusive

Opendorse Is Taking Over Parts of Failed NIL Collective Operator SANIL

SANIL abruptly shut down its operations this week.
Caitlin Clark

Caitlin Clark Backs Napheesa Collier in Fight With WNBA

Clark had her exit interview on Thursday after an injury-riddled season. 

ESPN’s Ben McDonald Stays on Padres-Cubs Call Despite NHL Flap

ESPN sticks with McDonald after his viral hockey “zero chance” jab.

Featured Today

Kōloa Rum Company Rum Rusher

Panthers Bubbly, Jets Wine, Manning Whiskey: The Sports Booze Boom

A sommelier dives into the sports booze trend—and tries Jets wine.
Nov 17, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers fans wave Terrible Towels against the Baltimore Ravens during the fourth quarter at Acrisure Stadium
September 26, 2025

Steelers’ Irish Roots Are Deeper Than NFL Dublin Game

The Steelers have history and the foundation for a future in Ireland.
FARMINGDALE, NY - SEPTEMBER 23: Rory McIlroy of Team Europe hits out of the rough on the first hole during the 2025 Ryder Cup at Bethpage State Park on Tuesday, September 23, 2025 in Farmingdale, New York.
September 25, 2025

Ryder Cup in New York: Record-Setting Hopes and Fan Concerns

Organizers anticipate record attendance and revenue, but worry remains about fan behavior.
FARMINGDALE, NY - SEPTEMBER 22: Cameron Young of Team USA hits his tee shot on the third hole during the 2025 Ryder Cup Practice Round at Bethpage State Park on Monday, September 22, 2025 in Farmingdale, New York.
September 23, 2025

U.S. Ryder Cup Players Will Be Paid. Not Everyone Is Pleased

Americans are receiving a $200,000 stipend, and not everyone is pleased.

Cardinals Vow Changes Coming After Historic Attendance Drop

A stalwart franchise looks to correct an alarming slide in attendance.
Jun 12, 2025; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso (20) and relief pitcher Edwin Diaz (39) celebrate after defeating the Washington Nationals at Citi Field.
September 29, 2025

Two of the Mets’ Biggest Stars Could Dictate Important Offseason

The Mets missed the playoffs despite having one of baseball’s highest payrolls.
September 30, 2025

Tyreek Hill’s Injury Complicates Financial Future With Dolphins

Releasing the receiver after this season would cost $28 million.
Sponsored

How Soccer Star Jozy Altidore Became a Buffalo Bills Owner

Jozy Altidore discusses building a business legacy off the field.
September 29, 2025

Mariners to End 37-Year RSN Run, Join MLB’s In-House Media Model

The Mariners-owned regional sports network is shutting down operations.
September 25, 2025

Celtics Owner Bill Chisholm: Boston Should Have a WNBA Team

Chisholm spoke to reporters Thursday for the first time as Celtics owner.
Aug 30, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; New York Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello calls out a play in the second half to her team against the Phoenix Mercury at Footprint Center.
September 25, 2025

Liberty GM Defends Controversial Brondello Firing

Kolb said he has confidence that the team’s stars will return.
Apr 29, 2023; New York, New York, USA; New Jersey Devils center Michael McLeod (20) during the first period against the New York Rangers in game six of the first round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Madison Square Garden.
September 23, 2025

Rumors of Canes Interest in Hockey Canada Trial Players Provokes Fan Backlash

Hurricanes fans are threatening to boycott if Carolina signs the acquitted players.