You would think once would be enough. But no, we’re getting a revamp — another go-around of the ridiculous XFL, whose inaugural season will kick off on Saturday.
Almost 20 years removed from the original debacle, pro wrestling guru Vince McMahon is getting back into the football business.
https://twitter.com/mrudi19/status/1225238309959426048
Back in the late 1990s, McMahon considered making an offer to purchase the Minnesota Vikings (yeah, seriously) but eventually decided against it.
Why? Well, what’s better than owning an NFL franchise? Owning your own football league, that’s what! The XFL was born!
Coach Tom Luginbill, who led the Los Angeles Xtreme to the first and only XFL championship, commented:
It was a lot of fun, it was like a football game with a rock concert going on around it, but it wasn’t presented on television as real football.
What could possibly go wrong? A lot, it would seem. After a single season, the XFL was no more. Written off as a “carnival of sex, booze, and sleaze” by the New York Post , the football league that promised cheerleader locker-room cameras and game analysis by Jesse “The Body” Ventura was gone.
Or so we thought.
So what’s different? This time around, the league is selling itself as being fan-friendly. Tickets will start at a mere $20. It also promises “less stall, more ball,” whatever that means.
There are several somewhat interesting rule changes, but by and large, it’s still football, which is what matters, right?
There will be eight participating teams in the league. These will include the Dallas Renegades, Houston Roughnecks, and the Los Angeles Wildcats.
And get this, there’ll be a ninth team that doesn’t actually play any games .
But wait, there’s more! You’ve probably never heard of any of the players – except maybe Landry Jones.
Anyone hoping to see Antonio Brown appear like a surprise entrant in the Royal Rumble, or Johnny Manziel be outed as the dastardly Commissioner will be disappointed.
There’s just no way this is going to end any better than the original XFL. Or the Alliance of American Football (AAF), which flamed out less than 12 months ago.
I get that ownership is looking to “do things right” this time around. More concentration on football, friendly prices, more action, and less stalling. All of that is great, but this is still just a crappy version of the real thing.
https://twitter.com/xfl2020/status/1225142706361511936
I admit that I will be watching for the first week. But I can’t imagine that I – or most other average football fans – will tune in much longer than that.
Stick to selling us semi-naked men pretending to fight each other, Vince! We’re good when it comes to football.