They played their home games at Carver Arena, part of the Peoria Civic Center in Illinois, and were coached by Mike Hohensee and Bruce Cowdrey.

[2] After the move, the Pirates won ArenaCup III over the Florida Firecats, but couldn't repeat their performance the following year.

After losing ArenaCup V to the Firecats, the franchise moved to United Indoor Football (UIF) and became the Peoria Rough Riders.

[clarification needed] However, their IFL and AF2 success did not translate with their move to United Indoor Football, as they finished 6–9, then 0–15.

[citation needed] On September 7, 2009, the Pirates announced that they were closing down, would not play in 2010, and were selling off the team equipment later in the week.