Angel City was one of the first leagues in
Southern California to become a member of the
Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA), joining in December 2007. The Hollywood Scarlets represent Angel City at the WFTDA competitive level and play for international rankings in the organization. The Scarlets qualified as the 10th seed for the
WFTDA West Region Playoffs in 2009, taking 8th place. In 2013, the Scarlets rose significantly in the rankings, paralleled with the WFTDA's shift from a regional structure to a division-based structure. The Scarlets qualified for the 2013 WFTDA Playoffs ranked #5 overall. With the withdrawal of the
Oly Rollers from the Playoffs, they entered the
Women's Flat Track Derby Association Division 1 Playoffs in
Richmond, Virginia, as the top seed. They finished in 3rd place, thus qualifying for the 2013
WFTDA Championships in
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, for the first time in the history of the Angel City Derby Girls. The Scarlets matched up against
Rocky Mountain Rollergirls in the first round at Championships and after defeating them 298–228, moved on to play the
Denver Roller Dolls, but lost in the second round of the bracket and were knocked out of the
single-elimination style tournament. In 2014, the Scarlets, ranked #7 overall, entered the Division 1 Playoffs in Salt Lake City as a #2 seed and left at the same position, qualifying them for the Championship Tournament in
Nashville, Tennessee. They faced the 2013 Championship runners-up, the
Texas Rollergirls in the first round of the tournament. This was the first time Angel City played against the heralded "godmothers of roller derby" and Texas was victorious. In 2015, the Scarlets entered the competitive play season with their most aggressive games to date. They defeated
Santa Cruz Derby Girls,
Arizona Roller Derby,
Tampa Roller Derby,
Atlanta Rollergirls, and
Jacksonville RollerGirls in the Spring, and moving into summer bested Rocky Mountain,
Minnesota RollerGirls and long-time rivals at
B.ay A.rea D.erby Girls, but fell to Texas and
London Rollergirls. They entered the 2015 Playoff cycle at #8 overall, placing them in Omaha in the #2 seed position where they again faced Minnesota for the chance to take on the perennial champions in the final game,
Gotham Girls Roller Derby. Though Angel City lost, they did score more points against Gotham than any team had during the course of the season, and qualified for the Championship in
Saint Paul, Minnesota. At the 2015 Championship the Scarlets met the
Rat City Rollergirls in the first round, and after defeating them, faced London in the quarter-finals, where London edged out a win. The Scarlets started the 2016 season ranked #6 overall, scheduled games against Texas, Denver,
Victorian Roller Derby League,
Rose City Rollers (the 2015 WFTDA Champions), Rat City, Bay Area, and
Terminal City Rollergirls. At Division 1 Playoffs in Vancouver, Angel City finished in 2nd place for the third straight year, and again advanced to Championships. At the final tournament in Portland, Angel City defeated
Montreal Roller Derby in their opening game, but then fell in the quarterfinal bout against Gotham, 197–168. In 2017, Angel City was the second seed at D1 Playoffs in
Seattle, Washington, and won their quarterfinal against
Tampa Bay Derby, 287–87. Angel City then defeated Rat City Rollergirls 224–142 in the semifinal, before losing the final to Rose City Rollers, 224–142. At Champs, Angel City won their opening game against Minnesota 281–144, but was then knocked out of the medal round by Denver, 196–165. Angel City then won their consolation game against Rat City, 219–94. In 2018, Angel City qualified for WFTDA Playoffs in
A Coruña, Spain where they took the bronze medal with a 174–146 victory over
Rainy City Roller Derby. At WFTDA Championships in New Orleans, Angel City won their opening game against Jacksonville before losing to Victoria in the quarterfinals, and ended their weekend with a consolation round victory over Montreal, 199–118. In 2019, Angel City maintained the #7 spot for much of the season, sending the Hollywood Scarlets to the WFTDA playoffs as a second seed at Winston-Salem, NC in September 2019. They secured victory in their first game against Bear City from Berlin, Germany, 268–76. The semi-final saw them re-match Rainy City Roller Derby after almost exactly a year, doubling their margin of victory with a final score of 162-106 and securing their spot in the finals. The final game, as seeding would predict, was against the #1 seed Texas Rollergirls (#6 in the world). The Scarlets played a low-scoring, physical game against the Texecutioners, securing their gold medal with a final score of 120–73. A series of team injuries in the post-season would influence their bumpy road to Championships in Montreal, November 13–15, 2019. They faced old rivals Victorian Roller Derby League, and Denver Roller Derby, both of whom defeated the Scarlets. Angel City entered the 2020 season ranked #7 in the world by WFTDA. Shortly after 2020 season tryouts, the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the league. Angel City began to reassemble training sessions in mid-2022, with an eye toward a 2023 competitive season. Simultaneously, the WFTDA shifted the Playoffs and Championship season structure to a 2-year cycle, with gameplay counting toward a November 2024 Championship. The Hollywood Scarlets made a successful run in the West Region, defeating Calgary and Rose City Axles of Annihilation to qualify for a spot at Global Championships for an 8th consecutive time. At the 2024 Global Championships in Portland, OR November 1-3, the Scarlets defeated Toulouse Roller Derby in the first round 171-127. They went on to narrowly lose to Arch Rival Roller Derby (130-151), who would move on to the Championship game against the Rose City Rollers. Angel City enters the 2025-2026 season ranked #5.
WFTDA rankings •
CR = consolation round •
GUR = Geographically Unrestricted Region The 2020 - 2022 seasons were canceled due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. Starting in 2023, the WFTDA shifted to a 2 year cycle for playoff and championship tournaments. Official playoff and championships would only be held in even number years. ==References==