Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic featured franchises for the first time, with the overall aim of increasing the public profile of the sport in New Zealand. The inaugural competition was contested between ten teams, including the Waikato Wildcats and the Bay of Plenty Magic. At the end of the first season both teams finished at the bottom of the ladder, with the Wildcats 9th and the Bay of Plenty Magic last. Both teams decided to merge for the 1999 season: a new franchise was developed adopting the team name from Bay of Plenty and the colours of Waikato, becoming the Waikato/Bay of Plenty Magic. Bay
Radio Bay of Plenty station, broadcasting throughout the Bay Of Plenty on 93.7 MHz and at Ohope Beach on 100.1 MHz, with an additional frequency in Wanaka in the South Island on 93.0 MHz. It also streams online.Its programming includes Bayrock Breakfast with LJ, a Bayrock Workday themed show, a drive show, the Bayrock Hard Show every evening, and a late night Killa Kiwi and Midnight Metal shows. The station was previously broadcast throughout the Bay of Plenty of 97.7 and in Ohope Beach on 99.3. In summer 1993/1994 1XX ran an album rock format station, Bayrock 97.7FM. Bayrock went on the air on