By Bird Murray

Every year, millions of Americans are disappointed the day after the Super Bowl, knowing they will have to wait nearly eight months for their next glimpse at the gridiron. Fear not, America, for this year the XFL hoped to satiate your appetite for the most-watched sport in America (well, until a global pandemic cancelled all sports).

Though relatively unknown, the XFL is not a new organization. In 2001, professional wrestling billionaire Vince McMahon, the owner of WWE, set out to create a football league that would directly compete with the NFL. After coaches, teams, players, and locations were hastily thrown together, the 2001 XFL season began on February 3, 2001. Rather than being a traditional football league, the XFL took after its wrestling heritage to create a violent sport that was more comparable to gladiatorial combat than a professional football league.

For starters, rather than a coin toss to begin the game, one player from each team had to wrestle for possession of the football, and whoever won essentially “won the toss.” In addition to relaxed contact rules, players wore nicknames on the back of their jerseys, similar to the aliases and personalities created by those who fight in the wrestling ring. Since the league was nearly impossible to find on a mainstream sports broadcaster on television, there was a lack of viewership and finance, causing the league to collapse after the first season.

Skip forward to January 25, 2018, and Alpha Entertainment, owned by Vince McMahon, announced a resurgence of the once laughed-at XFL. Unlike the previous attempt at the league, McMahon gave the league a near two-year lead time to secure coaches, rosters, stadiums, and everything else that comes with running an independent football league. Haste of production was one of the greatest factors that took down the 2001 XFL, so the new league was already ahead of its predecessor. In addition, the XFL was no longer attempting to compete directly with the NFL. The 2020 XFL was planned as a developmental league for players hoping to make the jump into the NFL.

The XFL kicked off their first game day on Saturday, February 8. That weekend, there were close to 80,000 tickets sold in total for the four games taking place. This was great news for Alpha Entertainment, as that number dwarfed total season ticket sales for the Alliance of American Football (AAF), another development league that started in 2019 but collapsed before an entire season had been completed. The XFL modified rules to make the games more action-packed but not necessarily violent. These factors contributed to a league that seemed to be coming into its own.

Each of the eight teams in the league struggled to find great success on the field. Whether it be in a certain position, chemistry issues, or personal problems, each team definitely had to overcome challenges at the start of their season. The rising stars of the XFL were the DC Defenders, led by National Championship-winning, and previous NFL quarterback for the Los Angeles Chargers, Cardale Jones. Jones led the Defenders to a 3-2 season.

With dapper uniforms, a dedicated fan base, financial management, and a bright future, there is no reason the next season of the XFL, hopefully in 2021, couldn’t turn out even better. Strong attendance and solid players are enough for the XFL to be here to stay, and the future could be bright for this new and exciting league.

Featured image courtesy of the XFL.

Editor’s Note: Like all other professional sports this spring, the XFL cancelled its season on March 20 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.