{"id":12571,"date":"2026-07-04T19:15:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-04T23:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportsengine-develop.go-vip.net\/fortwaynefc\/?page_id=12571"},"modified":"2026-08-08T22:12:48","modified_gmt":"2026-08-09T02:12:48","slug":"thegoalrilla","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sportsengine-develop.go-vip.net\/fortwaynefc\/thegoalrilla\/","title":{"rendered":"Friendly, the Goalrilla mascot"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Naturalists, cryptozoologists, and soccer fans had been mystified for years by what had been lurking around Northeast Indiana.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sounds had been heard, calls like \u201cOl\u00e9\u201d \u2026 \u201cAllez\u201d \u2026 \u201cPress\u201d and \u201cGoooooooal.\u201d Fur had been collected, though the coloring mystified scientists, unable to identify what sort of species could possibly have Autumn Gold-colored mohawk fur.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Children have always been more adept at seeing this strange creature. One reported seeing it at The Old Fort, one of the area\u2019s most famous landmarks, watching what appeared to be USL Cup soccer action on a cellphone. Another kid alleged to have seen an animal with soccer ball-patterned fur doing the backstroke in the Maumee River with a sign that read: \u201cJust enjoying my hydration break.\u201d And a child at the Foellinger-Freimann Botanical Conservatory swore to her disbelieving parents that she saw a creature practicing bicycle kicks deep in the foliage.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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It wasn\u2019t until a Fort Wayne Football Club staff member found the creature nesting at Ruoff Mortgage Stadium that at least one big piece came into focus: He was a fan of Fort Wayne Football Club.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No one is quite sure where he comes from, and while he shares characteristics with a gorilla, he is something quite different \u2013 a GOALRILLA<\/strong>, a highly energetic, soccer-obsessed species. And he\u2019s found his home at 6411 Bass Road, where he\u2019ll be a fixture delighting fans, young and old, and cheering on Northeast Indiana\u2019s newest professional sports team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are theories that he\u2019s from another world, sent to Earth \u2013 Fort Wayne, to be exact \u2013 after broadcasts of \u201cPlanet of the Apes\u201d movies were viewed on his home world. Charleton Heston\u2019s character in the original movie, George Taylor, was from Fort Wayne, and that character\u2019s origins have been referenced in multiple subsequent films, so sending an ape to Fort Wayne just made perfect sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Others believe the Goalrilla is something else, a previously undiscovered species drawn to Fort Wayne by the confluence of the Maumee, St. Mary\u2019s and St. Joseph Rivers. While scientists haven\u2019t been able to confirm there\u2019s much truth to magical properties of the waterways, the Goalrilla boasts that upon first dipping his toes into Fort Wayne waters he was immediately bestowed with encyclopedic knowledge of soccer and world-class footballing ability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Goalrilla chose the name FRIENDLY<\/strong> because it\u2019s his favorite term in soccer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Something he loves about soccer is the camaraderie, that it\u2019s a universal language, a sport that needs little more than a ball to unite people from every culture and every corner of the world. A friendly competition is an exhibition between two teams, sometime from very different levels of play, and as a Goalrilla who dreams of getting on the pitch against professional players, while entertaining the sport\u2019s youngest fans, the name just made sense to him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Friendly is capable of playing all positions on the pitch, and he has a knack for scoring goals with a deceptively hard strike, but he is very passionate about goalkeeping, too \u2013 as evidenced by the four-fingered goalkeeper gloves he refuses to take off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His favorite player is DaMarcus Beasley, a native of Fort Wayne, Fort Wayne FC\u2019s Co-owner and Director of Football Operations, and the only man to play in four World Cup competitions for the U.S. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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