I don't give a rat's ass about any professional sports. I never really have. With the current cancel culture and PC run amok, there is no reason to start. Sure, The Rock was a great wrestler and an entertaining character who was a lot of fun to watch. Dwayne Johnson only stars in the worst movies. The Rundown was a GREAT film, and the Rock was great in it. Everything else has just sucked. Fast Five was very good, but Rock didn't star and the Furious films since have gone all comic book.
Hopefully, DJ will be so busy trying to keep the XFL afloat that he can take a break from making big budget crap, and won't have time tonrun with Kanye, Oprah, and Tom Hanks in 2024.
As I die hard football fan, I am thrilled. We really need a development league. With each NFL team only able to carry a 53 man roster, they simply cannot take chances on development projects. There are talented players that go undrafted because they mature/develop late and don't make a prominent college starting roster by 18 or 19 years old.
Shit, after just 5 weeks of play NFL teams signed 4 players from XFL rosters when the startup collapsed. Imagine if there was a full season of play to develop and evaluate hidden jewels?
I am thrilled about the notion of spring ball. I hope they open a team close enough for me to root for or even go see in person.
I"m not thinking that The Rock has made a good investment there. How many failed pro football leagues have tried over the years ? XFL twice, WFL, USFL, etc.
First off - The Rock’s best movie was The Game Plan. None of his other films show his depth of acting range like that movie.
I’m hoping The Rock isn’t one with similar investment luck to The Juice. I agree, folks are starved for competitive football. The chances of college football being played on a large scale - in 2020 - are minimal. Keeping the NFL cash cow alive to fill the pockets of team owners and star players is also going to be a challenge.
If they could market the XFL as a feeder league - like minor league baseball - and use it to provide pro football fans with a much less expensive experience - it might help?
If they can get it going quickly - they could hire out of work strippers as cheerleaders - and that might help fill some seats? It’s outdoors - and that is safer. If they allow fans to tip the cheerleaders - I might go to see a few games...
IMHO one of the problems is that they have historically focused a lot on markets that do not have huge college football TV viewership, like L.A., DC and NY. Shit in DC and L.A. they barely care about their pro teams, nevermind a minor league. It's the college football fans largely in the South and Midwest who are most likely to be early adopters of the XFL rather than purely NFL fans, especially when they can continue to watch their favorite undrafted college players.
IMHO they also need to start by developing local rooting interests in these big college areas. It starts by recruiting kids who played in the colleges in the same areas.
McMahon's problem is that he wanted to be too many things to too many people too quickly. He lacked the patience to build this thing right from the ground up. Hopefully DJ and Co. will have the insight and patience to approach this more surgically.
Well.... I agree... bad investment move because it has been tried before.
But if they actually try to make it a "development" league it maybe could work. But the sad part is that with football many can't "develop" into a player. They either are or are not by the time they leave college level. Unlike baseball where people need time to develop or catch up to the speed of the game. Or other sports.
But you never know what could happen. But to me... I think from the history it doesn't look good.
Paying 15 million dollars for a professional sports league is like paying $1 for a haircut. It sounds great until you look closely at what you got. I wonder what the WNBA would sell for.
I guess there's a reason why every pro sport only has one league and it's almost always been that way.
I actually liked the USFL way back in the day; and I also liked the European league (I recall that is where Troy Aikman got his start as a broadcaster)
I think The Rock is a mediocre actor yet he's made a fortune from it - goes to show how great America is and how it's the land of opportunity like no other.
There is certainly a market for spring football but even the NFL could not make it work (WLAF, NFL Europe, and NFL Europa).
The idea of a minor football league might work if the prices were minor league and the quality of the game was above average.
McMahon's business model of paying meager football wages to attract NFL roster cuts and fringe players was going resulted in subpar football, would require patience to grow the brand.
Overall, he put too much into branding and not nearly enough into the product, hoping flashy comercials, plenty of social media, catchy nicknames (the LA Wildcats withstanding) and logos would overshadow mediocre football.
And with bad football even all the gimmics and marketing were not going to save this league (the ratings were on a downward trend and attandance numbers were embarassing, except for St Louis).
I suspect McMahon was glad COVID-19 shut down his league before he had to admit his mistake and shut down the league (just like the AAF).
And that is one of the problems: how do you build a league with mediocre players playing below average football and try to make a profit short term and build the sport and brand long term.
The MLS required more than 20 years to became stable and grow and become profitable, I doubt the Rock's investment group has that type of patience and viewpoint.
I wish the Rock good luck but my bet is he threw away his money (he is a partner in the investment group, do the $15 million was not all his money).
Yeah - I doubt The Rock put up $15-mil - there were 3 entities involved - if they split it up equally he can probably afford to lose the 5-mil w/o affecting his lifestyle - although one has to wonder how much $$$ they may lose trying to get the league running.
I’ve always been a fan of the Rock even back in his wrestling days, he was one of the best bad guys ever. I agree with above though, I think it could have success in the right markets. Certain smaller markets you got NOTHING goin on. NYC/LA/Chicago/Boston/Philly stay the hell out of there focus on places where the XFL will actually matter.
To a guy with 3-400 million dollars at his disposal, 5-15 million is a better gamble than a dollar spent on a lottery ticket, the odds are better and it's really nothing more than a shot in the dark.
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Hopefully, DJ will be so busy trying to keep the XFL afloat that he can take a break from making big budget crap, and won't have time tonrun with Kanye, Oprah, and Tom Hanks in 2024.
Shit, after just 5 weeks of play NFL teams signed 4 players from XFL rosters when the startup collapsed. Imagine if there was a full season of play to develop and evaluate hidden jewels?
I am thrilled about the notion of spring ball. I hope they open a team close enough for me to root for or even go see in person.
I’m hoping The Rock isn’t one with similar investment luck to The Juice. I agree, folks are starved for competitive football. The chances of college football being played on a large scale - in 2020 - are minimal. Keeping the NFL cash cow alive to fill the pockets of team owners and star players is also going to be a challenge.
If they could market the XFL as a feeder league - like minor league baseball - and use it to provide pro football fans with a much less expensive experience - it might help?
If they can get it going quickly - they could hire out of work strippers as cheerleaders - and that might help fill some seats? It’s outdoors - and that is safer. If they allow fans to tip the cheerleaders - I might go to see a few games...
IMHO they also need to start by developing local rooting interests in these big college areas. It starts by recruiting kids who played in the colleges in the same areas.
McMahon's problem is that he wanted to be too many things to too many people too quickly. He lacked the patience to build this thing right from the ground up. Hopefully DJ and Co. will have the insight and patience to approach this more surgically.
But if they actually try to make it a "development" league it maybe could work. But the sad part is that with football many can't "develop" into a player. They either are or are not by the time they leave college level. Unlike baseball where people need time to develop or catch up to the speed of the game. Or other sports.
But you never know what could happen. But to me... I think from the history it doesn't look good.
I actually liked the USFL way back in the day; and I also liked the European league (I recall that is where Troy Aikman got his start as a broadcaster)
The idea of a minor football league might work if the prices were minor league and the quality of the game was above average.
McMahon's business model of paying meager football wages to attract NFL roster cuts and fringe players was going resulted in subpar football, would require patience to grow the brand.
Overall, he put too much into branding and not nearly enough into the product, hoping flashy comercials, plenty of social media, catchy nicknames (the LA Wildcats withstanding) and logos would overshadow mediocre football.
And with bad football even all the gimmics and marketing were not going to save this league (the ratings were on a downward trend and attandance numbers were embarassing, except for St Louis).
I suspect McMahon was glad COVID-19 shut down his league before he had to admit his mistake and shut down the league (just like the AAF).
And that is one of the problems: how do you build a league with mediocre players playing below average football and try to make a profit short term and build the sport and brand long term.
The MLS required more than 20 years to became stable and grow and become profitable, I doubt the Rock's investment group has that type of patience and viewpoint.
I wish the Rock good luck but my bet is he threw away his money (he is a partner in the investment group, do the $15 million was not all his money).