The Return of the XFL

[BLPOG]

Slated for 2020. Read for yourself.

I can't wait to see the follow-up to He Hate Me.

[BLPOG]

Although I'm not sure I like the sound of it as described here. "Gimmick-free?" The gimmicks were the best part of the XFL.

[BD80]

Does "He [still] Hate Me?"

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Does "He [still] Hate Me?"

I Still Hate Me? (ESPN 30 For 30?)

[left_hook_lacey]

Although I'm not sure I like the sound of it as described here. "Gimmick-free?" The gimmicks were the best part of the XFL.

Agree. No fair catch, nicknames on Jersey's, scantily clad cheerleaders. The gimmicks were the reason it got the ratings it did.

[BeachBlueDevil]

Vince McMahon is fantastic businessman. What he's done with WWE is amazing. He took something that was on the surface of mainstream for years and took it mainstream. He has the longest running episodic television show (Monday Night Raw) to his name. He has reality shows on E! and USA. WWE has a movie studio and a successful streaming service. It's really remarkable what he's done in the last 20 years... Aside from the first XFL failure he's done great.

I watched the press conference yesterday and I like most of what he said. Particularly when he said he's going to make the game faster (2 hr run time) and I imagine that they might shorten the field length to 80 yards and I could see 10 minute quarters with a running for the first 8 minutes of each quarter. All of which would mean a faster pace of play and a shorter field (should mean) more scoring... I mean who doesn't love seeing high scoring shootouts. He also mentioned making the game safer which means I could see kickoffs being eliminated.

Now my biggest thing I dislike is the fact where going to be inundated with football. As soon as the NFL ends, this will start. I'd like for it to start late February and run until mid-April. At least this way you get a little breathing time between Super Bowl and the XFL start. I think one of the biggest things against the XFL will be the over saturation of football. The first time around the NFL wasn't the juggernaut that it is today.

So it will certainly be interesting to see how this goes this time around. Especially how the XFL can use and leverage social media this time around.

[CDu]

I watched the press conference yesterday and I like most of what he said. Particularly when he said he's going to make the game faster (2 hr run time) and I imagine that they might shorten the field length to 80 yards and I could see 10 minute quarters with a running for the first 8 minutes of each quarter. All of which would mean a faster pace of play and a shorter field (should mean) more scoring... I mean who doesn't love seeing high scoring shootouts. He also mentioned making the game safer which means I could see kickoffs being eliminated.

The problem is that we already have this. It's called the Arena Football League. Shorter fields, higher scoring, spring season. And it isn't terribly popular. Not sure why we'd expect the XFL to do better.

McMahon is a marketing genius who revolutionized professional wrestling. He deserves a lot of credit for that, and has made his fortune off of it accordingly. But I fear he's repeating another failure here with the return of the XFL.

[BeachBlueDevil]

The problem is that we already have this. It's called the Arena Football League. Shorter fields, higher scoring, spring season. And it isn't terribly popular. Not sure why we'd expect the XFL to do better.

McMahon is a marketing genius who revolutionized professional wrestling. He deserves a lot of credit for that, and has made his fortune off of it accordingly. But I fear he's repeating another failure here with the return of the XFL.

Is arena football league on TV anymore? I haven't seen it in ages. The marketing that he's used to grow WWE is going to be used here. I know he said no crossover but I can almost guarantee that some of the marquee stars of the WWE will be tweeting and posting stuff on Instagram about the XFL. It will make people curious and they will tune in but it will be the leagues job to keep them at that point.

I guess the biggest question is what will mean this is successful? Vince turning a profit? Lasting longer than a season? Expansion? He's got 2 years to figure it out and the first time around it was pretty much a rush job.

[CDu]

Is arena football league on TV anymore? I haven't seen it in ages. The marketing that he's used to grow WWE is going to be used here. I know he said no crossover but I can almost guarantee that some of the marquee stars of the WWE will be tweeting and posting stuff on Instagram about the XFL. It will make people curious and they will tune in but it will be the leagues job to keep them at that point.

I guess the biggest question is what will mean this is successful? Vince turning a profit? Lasting longer than a season? Expansion? He's got 2 years to figure it out and the first time around it was pretty much a rush job.

Yep, on ESPN. But their ratings are awful. Largely because the on-field product just isn't that interesting. And probably because folks have moved on from football by that point. They just don't appear to be as interested in watching bad football in the spring.

I have no doubt that McMahon will market the heck out of this. But, ultimately, will people care? It's going to be a very watered-down product, and at a time when folks are moving on to baseball and college basketball.

The XFL was unsuccessful, and that's despite his marketing genius and some clever ideas. This seems to be avoiding the clever ideas part and relying heavily on the marketing. It just doesn't seem destined to succeed.

[Natty_B]

Wouldn't be surprised to see this fail to get off the ground. By 2020 I don't think there will be much of an appetite for a more head injury prone type of football (and yes I know Vince said it would be "safe" but then he laid out a bunch of changes - faster play, no halftime that would surely make the game less safe). His base audience is clearly going to be the Trump type fans and those dudes, like Trump himself, want more violence. The whole XFL was very popular on fringe right wing twitter yesterday because of the "I'll make them stand for the anthem" statement (gross).

Course I think pro wrestling is garbage and the McMahon's are garbage people. YMMV.

[Natty_B]

Yep, on ESPN. But their ratings are awful. Largely because the on-field product just isn't that interesting. And probably because folks have moved on from football by that point. They just don't appear to be as interested in watching bad football in the spring.

I have no doubt that McMahon will market the heck out of this. But, ultimately, will people care? It's going to be a very watered-down product, and at a time when folks are moving on to baseball and college basketball.

The XFL was unsuccessful, and that's despite his marketing genius and some clever ideas. This seems to be avoiding the clever ideas part and relying heavily on the marketing. It just doesn't seem destined to succeed.

There are only 5 Arena football teams left - the league is on whatever after life support is.

[CDu]

There are only 5 Arena football teams left - the league is on whatever after life support is.

Yep, that's my point. It's all of the things that are being described here (fast-paced, high-scoring, not competing with the NFL, etc.), and it is failing miserably.

[left_hook_lacey]

Yep, on ESPN. But their ratings are awful. Largely because the on-field product just isn't that interesting. And probably because folks have moved on from football by that point. They just don't appear to be as interested in watching bad football in the spring.

I have no doubt that McMahon will market the heck out of this. But, ultimately, will people care? It's going to be a very watered-down product, and at a time when folks are moving on to baseball and college basketball.

The XFL was unsuccessful, and that's despite his marketing genius and some clever ideas. This seems to be avoiding the clever ideas part and relying heavily on the marketing. It just doesn't seem destined to succeed.

What I gathered in the article was that the XFL was garnering some ratings. What doomed it, according to the article, was McMahon rushing the final product before it was ready, coupled with his risque', albeit clever, gimmicks like the cheerleaders, no fair catch, etc. He moved the needle on some of the rules mid-season, that, coupled with the gimmicks, made his NBC partners uncomfortable at the direction the product was going so they pulled their support. That, is what killed it.

Fast forward to 2018, and there's no way they can incorporate those things into anything in sports without risk of law suits. So, he's going to have to be really clever to get people to take notice again.

I did find it interesting that he said they would take measures to ensure there were no political controversies, alluding to protests, etc., and that there would be rules in place to make sure that doesn't happen. Could he find his audience in those that are boycotting NFL because of protests? At least partially? If he played that card right, it could be interesting as that is still a hot-button issue. I can't see the NFL getting through the superbowl without offending one side or both sides of that issue. McMahon might be able to pick up on that and run with it in advertising for the XFL.

[CDu]

I did find it interesting that he said they would take measures to ensure there were no political controversies, alluding to protests, etc., and that there would be rules in place to make sure that doesn't happen. Could he find his audience in those that are boycotting NFL because of protests? At least partially? If he played that card right, it could be interesting as that is still a hot-button issue. I can't see the NFL getting through the superbowl without offending one side or both sides of that issue. McMahon might be able to pick up on that and run with it in advertising for the XFL.

I heard that, and it's amusing because by bringing that up he is clearly making it political (otherwise, there'd be no reason to bring it up). But I agree that it does appear that he is dog whistling to those offended by NFL protests.

But my question is this: how many folks actually gave up on the NFL because of the protests? TV ratings were down 5-10% this year, but how much of that was the on-field product (lots of injured star players)? How much was due to general decline in TV viewership?

I just don't think that there is a significant enough population of anti-protest NFL quitters to build a league-wide fanbase upon, especially given the substantial reduction in quality of the on-field product.

[left_hook_lacey]

I heard that, and it's amusing because by bringing that up he is clearly making it political (otherwise, there'd be no reason to bring it up). But I agree that it does appear that he is dog whistling to those offended by NFL protests.

But my question is this: how many folks actually gave up on the NFL because of the protests? TV ratings were down 5-10% this year, but how much of that was the on-field product (lots of injured star players)? How much was due to general decline in TV viewership?

I just don't think that there is a significant enough population of anti-protest NFL quitters to build a league-wide fanbase upon, especially given the substantial reduction in quality of the on-field product.

I don't know. I don't think anyone has been able to put an accurate number on it. The only thing we do know, is that they have dropped for the last two years.

http://money.cnn.com/2018/01/04/medi...son/index.html

My only point was, it's still a ratings monster in America, so if I'm building a new football league and want to get as many viewers as I can, I'm going after every viewer I can get that has turned their back on the NFL or is thinking about it. I'll give them their football fix.

The article says ratings were down 9-11%, and 10% the year before that. If I can steal even a quarter of those viewers, that's a bolster for a new league trying to get off the ground.

[Natty_B]

this about sums it up for me:

https://deadspin.com/the-new-xfl-is-...tua-1822447469

[Matches]

But my question is this: how many folks actually gave up on the NFL because of the protests? TV ratings were down 5-10% this year, but how much of that was the on-field product (lots of injured star players)? How much was due to general decline in TV viewership?

If my Facebook timeline is any indication, lots of people said they were ditching the NFL because of the protests. The only ones who actually followed through, though, were people who didn't watch much if any football to begin with. And by 2020, a good chunk of even the people who still care NOW won't anymore.

I think the Deadspin article has it right. This is highly unlikely to actually happen.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Paul Newberry says the XFL won't work, but offers up some ideas on how Spring football could.

http://www.wralsportsfan.com/column-...swer/17290868/

[left_hook_lacey]

If my Facebook timeline is any indication, lots of people said they were ditching the NFL because of the protests. The only ones who actually followed through, though, were people who didn't watch much if any football to begin with. And by 2020, a good chunk of even the people who still care NOW won't anymore.

I think the Deadspin article has it right. This is highly unlikely to actually happen.

I think it all depends on how the NFL handles this during this Superbowl and during the off season. I would be willing to bet my paycheck that this off season will see some procedural changes to take the issue out of the public view next year. The easiest thing to do is to have the teams stay in the locker room during the anthem. It let's the NFL off the hook without choosing a side, and ensures MOST fans will forget about it over time. Only then will this go away.

I can tell you from personal experience, i know a lot of people that were die hard fans that haven't watched a snap this year. I have others that had a good run, but buckled and watched the playoffs.

If the NFL makes this "out of sight out of mind", it'll go away pretty quickly. If they don't, it won't. I wouldn't underestimate the true size of that demographic. That's how so many people were shocked on election night.

It says this entity will be completely separate from WWE, unlike the first attempt. He sold off WWE stock to fund it. I wonder if he had any other sponsors or partners behind the scenes?

Linda Mcmahon is in Trump's cabinet. Wonder if trump is going to pony up?

[duke74]

I can tell you from personal experience, i know a lot of people that were die hard fans that haven't watched a snap this year. I have others that had a good run, but buckled and watched the playoffs.

I know bordering on PPB, but only in response to this comment (no worse than equating President Trump with violence as was done above by a poster):

I am one of them, without the “buckling.” And actually from last year. (Was a season ticket holder for years)

To me the NFL took sides by inaction. Merely hiding the players to avoid bad looks will not change my activities. Players have a right to protest, but so do I.

Amazing what 6-10 incremental free hours can help one accomplish in a week.

I just don’t care about the NFL anymore.