Premier Basketball League Adds the "Chicago Muscle" to Their 2012 Team Roster

CHICAGO, July 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The Premier Basketball League (PBL) announced league expansion into the Chicago, Illinois market. The "Chicago Muscle" will join the PBL for the 2012 season. The Muscle's announcement comes just one week after announcing the PBL's expansion to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.

"We are thrilled to welcome the Chicago Muscle to the PBL. Chicago's sports fans are like none other. 2012 is going to be an amazing fifth season for the PBL and we are honored to have a team in Chicago," commented Brij M. Desai, PBL's President and CEO.

The Chicago Muscle's ownership group brings a wealth of business and industry experience to the team. Leading the Chicago Muscle team's ownership group is Mr. Urmil Patel and Mr. Raj Patel. The Patels have also joined Chicago based communication strategy firm Christopher Foltz & Company who were announced as members of the Chicago market leadership team at the 2011 PBL Finals.

Urmil Patel has been in business and information technology consulting for the past 12 years. As a management consultant, he's typically focused in helping clients with Customer Relationship Management processes and technologies for small businesses to Fortune 100 companies for various industries. Working for large, international and small, local, startup consulting companies, Urmil has worked with 30+ clients helping them find new efficiencies, new revenue streams, and new markets to do business in.

Mr. Raj Patel has worked in the medical field for the past 10 years. First having worked at Cook County Hospital as an Occupational Therapist, and then at Merck Pharmaceuticals as a Sales Representative before becoming Vice President of Operations at Medstar Laboratory. Raj's medical background has allowed Medstar to keep up with the rapid growth experienced by the company allowing the internal operations to maintain a steady and efficient workflow.

"We are extremely excited to bring PBL basketball to one of the best basketball cities and fan bases in America. We are looking forward to taking our business experience and not only making this a team about the fans and the community, but a successful business venture as well," commented Urmil Patel in a morning interview.

The Premier Basketball League's new regional model allows for local team fans to travel to away games to support their hometown team. Additionally, a regional play model makes it more financially viable for new team owners to maintain a low travel budget for the 2012 season. The Muscle's leadership team have been in talks with multiple venues in the Chicago market to host home games during the 2012 season.

During the upcoming season the Chicago Muscle and the Premier Basketball League will be broadcasting their games across America through the @SportsTV Network (www.atsportstv.com). This makes the PBL the first minor league sports organization to broadcast regular season games live online and on television.

For more information about the Chicago Muscle contact Urmil Patel at (847) 849-7676 or www.ChicagoMusclePBL.com

For more information about the Premier Basketball League visit www.thePBL.com or contact Brij M. Desai at (773) 794-4958

SOURCE Premier Basketball League