XFL

XFL

Sport	American football
Founded	2000
Owner(s)	World Wrestling Federation (50%) (WWE Properties International Inc.)[1] NBCUniversal (50%)
Inaugural season	2001
No. of teams	8
Country	United States
Ceased	2001
Last champion(s)	Los Angeles Xtreme

XFL, LLC was a single entity professional American football league operated as the XFL, founded by World Wrestling Federation owner Vince McMahon. It was intended to be a major professional sports league complement to the offseason of the National Football League, but was unable to find an audience and ceased operation after its debut season in 2001.^[2][3] The XFL was widely ridiculed; McMahon conceded that the league was a "colossal failure".^[4]

Founding

Created as a 50–50 joint venture between NBCUniversal and WWF-owned subsidiary WWE Properties International, Inc.^[5] under the company name "XFL, LLC", the XFL was created as a "single-entity league", meaning that the teams were not individually owned and operated franchises (as in the NFL), but that the league was operated as a single business unit. Vince McMahon's original plan was to purchase the Canadian Football League (after the CFL initially approached him about purchasing the Toronto Argonauts),^[6] while NBC was moving ahead at the time with Time Warner to create a football league of their own.^[7]

The concept of the league was first announced by league commissioner Tyler Schueck on February 3, 2000. The XFL was originally conceived to build on the success of the NFL and professional wrestling. It combined the scoring system of the NFL with the kayfabe and stunts of the WWE. It was hyped as "real" football without penalties for roughness and with fewer rules in general. The loud games featured players and coaches with microphones and cameras in the huddle and in the locker rooms. Stadiums featured trash-talking public address announcers and scantily-clad cheerleaders. Instead of a pre-game coin toss, XFL officials put the ball on the ground and let a player from each team scramble for it to determine who received the kickoff option (the was dubbed "The Human Coin Toss" by commentators), which led to the first XFL injury.

The XFL chose unusual names for its franchises, most of which either referenced images of uncontrolled insanity (Maniax, Rage, Xtreme, Demons) or criminal activity (Enforcers [a reference to mob enforcers], Hitmen, Outlaws, and the Birmingham Blast). After outrage from Birmingham residents who noted that Birmingham had a history of notorious "blasts," including the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in 1963 and Eric Rudolph's 1998 bombing of a local abortion clinic, the XFL changed the name of the Birmingham team to the more benign "Birmingham Thunderbolts" (later shortened to "Bolts").^[8]

The XFL had impressive television coverage for an upstart league, with three games televised each week on NBC, UPN, and TNN.

Contrary to popular belief, the "X" in XFL did not stand for "extreme", as in "eXtreme Football League". When the league was first organized in 1999, it was originally supposed to stand for "Xtreme Football League"; however, there was already a league in formation at the same time with that name, and so promoters wanted to make sure that everyone knew that the "X" did not actually stand for anything (though McMahon would comment that "if the NFL stood for the 'No Fun League', the XFL will stand for the 'extra fun league'"^[9]). The other Xtreme Football League, which was also organized in 1999, merged with the Arena Football League's AF2 before ever fielding its first game.

Draft

The only main draft for the league took place over a three-day period from October 28, 2000 to October 30, 2000. A total of 475 players were selected initially, with 65 additional players then selected in a supplemental draft on December 29, 2000.

2001 season

The XFL's opening game took place on February 3, 2001, one year after the concept of the league was announced, and immediately following the NFL's Super Bowl. The first game was between the New York/New Jersey Hitmen and the Las Vegas Outlaws at Sam Boyd Stadium in Whitney, Nevada. The game ended with a 19–0 victory for the Outlaws, and was watched on NBC by an estimated 14 million viewers. During the telecast, NBC switched over to the game between the Orlando Rage and the Chicago Enforcers, which was a closer contest than the blowout taking place in Las Vegas. The opening night drew a 9.5 Nielsen rating.^[10]

Although the XFL began with better-than-expected TV ratings (the opening-week games actually delivered ratings double those of what NBC had promised advertisers and the Saturday broadcast had more viewers than the NFL Pro Bowl) and fair publicity, the audience declined sharply after the first week of the season, going from a 9.5 rating to a 4.6 in just one week,^[11] and the media attacked the league for what was perceived as a poor quality of play. A further problem was that the XFL itself was the brainchild of Vince McMahon, a man who was ridiculed by mainstream sports journalists due to the stigma attached to professional wrestling as being "fake"; many journalists even jokingly speculated whether any of the league's games were rigged, although nothing of this sort was ever seriously investigated.

Even longtime NBC sportscaster Bob Costas joined in the mocking of the league. In an appearance on Late Night with Conan O'Brien in February 2001, after the league's second week of play, Costas joked: "It has to be at least a decade since I first mused out loud, 'Why doesn't somebody combine mediocre high school football with a tawdry strip club?' Finally, somebody takes my idea and runs with it." He also said about the sharp drop in the television ratings in that second week: "I have to put the right spin on this because I'm also on NBC—apparently, it went through the toilet."^[12]

Teams

Eastern Division

Orlando Rage (2001)

Chicago Enforcers (2001)

New York/New Jersey Hitmen (2001)

Birmingham Thunderbolts (2001)

Western Division

Los Angeles Xtreme (2001)

San Francisco Demons (2001)

Memphis Maniax (2001)

Las Vegas Outlaws (2001)

2001 standings

Regular season Eastern Division Team Won Lost Orlando Rage 8 2 Chicago Enforcers 5 5 New York/New Jersey Hitmen 4 6 Birmingham Thunderbolts 2 8 Western Division Team Won Lost Los Angeles Xtreme 7 3 San Francisco Demons 5 5 Memphis Maniax 5 5 Las Vegas Outlaws 4 6

Playoffs Semifinals Million Dollar Game April 14 – Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles  W1  Los Angeles 33    E2  Chicago 16     April 21 – Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles      W1  Los Angeles 38    W2  San Francisco 6 April 15 – Citrus Bowl, Orlando  E1  Orlando 25  W2  San Francisco 26

Awards

• Most Valuable Player: Tommy Maddox, QB, Los Angeles Xtreme
• Million Dollar Game MVP: Jose Cortez, K, Los Angeles Xtreme
• Coach of the Year: Al Luginbill, Los Angeles Xtreme

Statistical leaders

• Rushing Attempts: 153 James Bostic (Birmingham Thunderbolts)
• Rushing Yards: 800 John Avery (Chicago Enforcers)
• Rushing Touchdowns: 7 Derrick Clark (Orlando Rage)

• Receiving Catches: 67 Jeremaine Copeland (Los Angeles Xtreme)
• Receiving Yards: 828 Stepfret Williams (Birmingham Thunderbolts)
• Receiving Touchdowns: 8 Darnell McDonald (Los Angeles Xtreme)

• Passing Attempts: 342 Tommy Maddox (Los Angeles Xtreme)
• Passing Completions: 196 Tommy Maddox (Los Angeles Xtreme)
• Passing Yards: 2,186 Tommy Maddox (Los Angeles Xtreme)
• Passing Touchdowns: 18 Tommy Maddox (Los Angeles Xtreme)
• Passing Interceptions: 10 Brian Kuklick (Orlando Rage)

• Interceptions: 5 Corey Ivy (Chicago Enforcers)
• Quarterback Sacks: 7 Antonio Edwards and Kelvin Kinney (both Las Vegas Outlaws)

Statistics

2001 Passing Leaders (over 100 pass attempts)
Name, Team	Att	Comp	%	Yards	YDs/Att	TD	TD %	INT	INT %	Long	Sacks/Yds Lost	Rating
Jeff Brohm, ORL	119	69	58.0	993	8.34	9	7.6	3	2.5	51t	11/78	99.9
Kevin McDougal, CHIC	134	81	60.4	1168	8.72	5	3.7	3	2.2	56	8/69	91.9
Casey Weldon, Birm	164	102	62.2	1228	7.49	7	4.3	5	3	80t	7/44	86.6
Jim Druckenmiller, Mem	199	109	54.8	1499	7.53	13	6.5	7	3.5	49	15/89	86.2
Ryan Clement, LV	138	78	56.5	805	5.83	9	6.5	4	2.9	46	10/59	83.2
Tommy Maddox, LA	342	196	57.3	2186	6.39	18	5.3	9	2.6	63	14/91	81.2
Mike Pawlawski, SF	297	186	62.6	1659	5.59	12	4	6	2	35	16/141	82.6
Wally Richardson, NY/NJ	142	83	58.5	812	5.72	6	4.2	6	4.2	33t	17/107	71.1
Brian Kuklick, ORL	122	68	55.7	994	8.15	6	4.9	10	8.2	81t	7/42	64.7

2001 Passing Leaders (under 100 pass attempts)
Name, Team	Att	Comp	%	Yards	YDs/Att	TD	TD %	INT	INT %	Long	Sacks/Yds Lost	Rating
Craig Whelihan, CHIC/Mem	5	4	80.0	30	6	0	0	0	0	12	0/0	91.7
Tim Lester, CHIC	77	40	51.9	581	7.55	4	5.2	5	6.5	68t	13/68	67.1
Charles Puleri, NY/NJ	64	29	45.3	411	6.42	2	3.1	2	3.1	77t	4/39	64.0
Marcus Crandell, Mem	69	33	47.8	473	6.86	1	1.4	2	2.9	53	9/62	63.3
Pat Barnes, SF	80	36	45.0	379	4.74	3	3.8	2	2.5	34	5/38	61.4
Corte McGuffey, NY/NJ	48	25	52.1	329	6.85	0	0	2	4.2	54	5/38	56.7
Mark Grieb, LV	78	37	47.4	408	5.23	3	3.8	4	5.1	41t	5/44	54.9
Jay Barker, Birm	65	37	56.9	425	6.54	1	1.5	5	7.7	92t	10/64	49.8
Mike Cawley, LV	38	17	44.7	180	4.74	1	2.6	2	5.3	26	10/83	45.9
Paul Failla, CHIC	5	1	20.0	5	1	0	0	0	0	5	2/12	39.6
Graham Leigh, Birm	97	44	45.4	499	5.14	1	1	6	6.2	36	8/62	39.0
Scott Milanovich, LA	9	2	22.2	45	5	0	0	1	11.1	39	0/0	8.3

2001 Rushing Leaders
Name, Team	Att	Yds	Ave.	Long	TDs
John Avery, Chi	150	800	5.3	73t	5
Rod Smart, LV	146	555	3.8	31	3
James Bostic, Birm	153	536	3.5	56	2
Rashaan Salaam, Mem	114	528	4.6	39t	5
Derrick Clark, Orl	94	395	4.2	19	7
Saladin McCullough, LA	88	384	4.4	22	5
Joe Aska, NY/NJ	82	329	4.0	42	3
Micheal Black, Orl	83	320	3.9	20	0
LeShon Johnson, Chi	72	287	4.0	41	6
Rashaan Shehee, LA	61	242	4.0	28	0
Kelvin Anderson, SF	53	231	4.4	39	1
Jim Druckenmiller, Mem	31	208	6.7	36	0
Juan Johnson, SF	33	172	5.2	19	0
Wally Richardson, NY/NJ	26	148	5.7	24	0

2001 Receiving Yardage Leaders (over 175 yards)
Name, Team	Rec	Yds	Ave.	Long	TDs
Stepfret Williams, Birm	51	828	16.2	92t	2
Charles Jordan, Mem	45	823	18.3	49	4
Jeremaine Copeland, LA	67	755	11.3	34	5
Dialleo Burks, ORL	34	659	19.4	81t	7
Aaron Bailey, CHIC	32	546	17.1	50	3
Quincy Jackson, Birm	45	531	11.8	36t	6
Darnell McDonald, LA	34	456	13.4	39	8
Daryl Hobbs, Mem	30	419	14	49t	5
Jimmy Cunningham, SF	50	408	8.2	26	3
Kirby Dar Dar, NY/NJ	22	405	18.4	77t	2
Kevin Swayne, ORL	27	400	14.8	51t	2
Brian Roberson, SF	36	395	11	35	2
Kevin Prentiss, Mem	25	383	15.3	53	0
Mario Bailey, ORL	27	379	14	49t	3
Zola Davis, NY/NJ	29	378	13	26	4
James Hundon, SF	28	357	12.8	34	0
Zechariah Lord, CHIC	20	301	15.1	46	0
John Avery, CHIC	17	297	17.5	68t	2
Yo Murphy, LV	27	273	10.1	35	3
Anthony DiCosmo, NY/NJ	26	268	10.3	30	0
Latario Rachal, LA	24	254	10.6	24	0
Rod Smart, LV	27	245	9.1	46	0
Mike Furrey, LV	18	242	13.4	41t	1
Ed Smith, Birm	25	195	7.8	16	1

XFL rule changes

Despite boasts by WWF promoters of a "rules-light" game and universally negative reviews from the mainstream sports media early on, the XFL played a brand of 11-man outdoor football that was recognizable, aside from the opening game sprint to determine possession and some other changes, some modified during the season.

Grass stadiums

All XFL teams had to play in outdoor stadiums with grass surfaces.^[13] No artificial turf fields or stadiums with domed or retractable roofs were allowed. In addition, every XFL field was designed identically, with no individual team branding on the field. Each end zone and 50-yard line was decorated with the XFL logo. In the league's two northernmost markets, Chicago and New York/New Jersey (the latter of which played in Giants Stadium during a brief window in which the stadium's usual artificial turf had been replaced by natural grass), the combination of the all-grass requirement, midwinter playing season and the fact that the XFL followed shortly after the NFL had used both fields for a full season caused significant damage to the playing fields; at Chicago's Soldier Field, the wear and tear on the field was such that by midseason, the midfield logo of the Enforcers' cross-league rivals the Chicago Bears was clearly visible amid a stretch of dirt and dead grass. Giants Stadium would have its artificial turf restored in 2003; Soldier Field was renovated extensively in 2002 but remained a grass field.

Opening scramble

Replacing the coin toss at the beginning of each game was an event in which one player from each team fought to recover a football 20 yards away in order to determine possession. Both players lined up side-by-side on one of the 30-yard lines, with the ball being placed at the 50-yard line. At the whistle, the two players would run toward the ball and attempt to gain possession; whichever player gained possession first was allowed to choose possession (as if he had won a coin toss in other leagues). The XFL's first injury infamously resulted from the opening scramble; Orlando free safety Hassan Shamsid-Deen suffered a separated shoulder prior to the Rage's 33–29 season-opening win over the Chicago Enforcers at Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium on February 3.^[14] He ended up missing the remainder of the campaign.^[15]

No PAT (point after touchdown) kicks

After touchdowns there were no extra point kicks, due to the XFL's perception that an extra point kick was a "guaranteed point." To earn a point after a touchdown, teams ran a single offensive down from the two-yard line (functionally identical to the NFL/NCAA/CFL two-point conversion), but for just a single point. By the playoffs, two-point and three-point conversions had been added to the rules. Teams could opt for the bonus points by playing the conversion farther back from the goal line.

This rule, as originally implemented, was similar to the WFL's "Action Point," and was identical to a 1968 "Pressure Point" experiment by the NFL and American Football League, used only in preseason interleague games that year.

Overtime

Ties were resolved in similar fashion to the NCAA and present-day CFL game, with at least one possession by each team, starting from the opponent's 20-yard line. There were differences: there were no first downs – teams had to score within four downs, and the team that had possession first in overtime could not attempt a field goal until fourth down. If that team managed to score a touchdown in fewer than four downs, the second team would only have that same number of downs to match or beat the result. If the score was still tied after one overtime period, the team that played second on offense in the first OT would start on offense in the second OT.

Bump and run

The XFL allowed full bump and run coverage early in the season. Defensive backs were allowed to hit wide receivers any time before the quarterback released the ball, as long as the hit came from the front or the side (similar to the NCAA). In an effort to increase offensive production, bump and run was restricted to the first five yards from the line of scrimmage (similar to NFL) following the fourth week of the season.

Forward motion

Unlike the NFL, but like the World Football League and Arena Football League before it, the XFL allowed one offensive player to move toward the line of scrimmage once he was outside the tackles.

Halo rule / live punts

The heavily-hyped "no fair catch" rule was paired with a five-yard zone excluding players of the kicking team around potential returners before the ball touched them or the ground, similar to rules in Canadian football, rugby union, and contemporary NCAA rules (where the term "halo" was applied, though the XFL called it instead the "danger zone"). But instead of making punt returns more exciting, it often had the opposite effect, since the XFL players' inexperience with the rule caused a high number of game-delaying penalties.

The fair catch had previously been abolished from Canadian football, NCAA rules (but only for the 1950 season), and rugby league.

Another difference was that after touching ground 25 yards or more beyond the line of scrimmage, punts could be recovered and advanced by all players of the kicking team. This led to more quick kicks being taken on third-down-and-long situations in the one season of the small league than had been seen in the NFL over several preceding decades of longer seasons. This XFL rule was similar to a rule that had been in effect in American football in the 1910s and part of the 1920s.

XFL penalized 10 yards from the succeeding spot for punts going out of bounds, even if they first touched the ground (but not a player of the receiving team). The changes practically eliminated the coffin corner kicking style, in which a good punter could pin an opposing offense deep in its own territory by precisely kicking a ball out of bounds a few yards from the end zone.

For the initial weeks of the season, the XFL forbade all players on the kicking team from going downfield before a kick was made from scrimmage on that down, similarly to a rule the NFL considered in 1974. For the rest of the season the XFL modified it to allow one player closest to each sideline downfield ahead of the kick, the same modification the NFL adopted to their change just before their 1974 exhibition games started.

The purpose of these provisions was to keep play going after the ball was punted, encouraging the kicking team to make the ball playable and the receiving team to run it back.

Play clock

The XFL used a 35-second play clock, five seconds shorter than the contemporary NFL play clock of 40 seconds, in an effort to speed up the game.

Roster and salaries

The XFL limited each team to an unusually low 38 players, as opposed to 53 on NFL teams and 80 or more on unlimited college rosters. This was similar to the CFL, which had a comparable 40-man roster limit in 2001. This resulted, most commonly, in each team only carrying two quarterbacks and one kicker who doubled as the punter.

The XFL paid standardized player salaries. Quarterbacks earned US$5,000 per week, kickers earned $3,500, and all other uniformed players earned $4,500 per week, though a few players got around these restrictions (Los Angeles Xtreme players Noel Prefontaine, the league's lone punting specialist, and Matt Malloy, a wide receiver) by having themselves listed as backup quarterbacks. Players on a winning team received a bonus of $2,500 for the week, $7,500 for winning a playoff game. The team that won the championship game split $1,000,000 (roughly $25,000 per player). Players did not receive any fringe benefits, and had to pay for their own health insurance.

Broadcast overview

Sky cam

Although the XFL was not the first football league to feature the "sky cam",^[16][16] which enables TV viewers to see behind the offensive unit, it helped to popularize its unique capabilities. For the first several weeks, the league used the sky cam and on-field cameramen extensively, giving the television broadcasts a perspective similar to video games such as the Madden series.

After the XFL's failure, the use of aerial blimps, the sky cam was adopted by the NFL's broadcasters; the device has subsequently come into use on all major networks. (It is not as widely used in most NFL broadcasts as it was in the XFL, except on NBC Sunday Night Football.)

Broadcast schedule

At the beginning of the season, NBC showed a feature game at 8 p.m. Eastern Time on Saturday nights, also taping a second game. The second game, in some weeks, would air in the visiting team's home market and be put on the air nationally if the feature game was a blowout (as was the case in week one) or encountered technical difficulties (as was the case in week two). Two games were shown each Sunday: one at 4 p.m. Eastern on TNN (now Spike TV) and another at 7 p.m. Eastern on UPN (which has since merged with The WB to form The CW).

In a notable departure from the NFL, in which any references to sports betting, including point spreads, are strictly prohibited on league broadcasts, XFL announcers were free to discuss point spreads during the game and did so frequently.

The XFL also had a fairly extensive local radio presence, often using nationally recognized disc jockeys. The morning radio duo of Rick and Bubba, for instance, was the radio broadcast team for the Birmingham Thunderbolts, while Opie and Anthony had covered pregame for NBC. Super Dave Osborne was a sideline reporter for Los Angeles Xtreme broadcasts on KLSX; WMVP carried Chicago Enforcers games.

In the third week of the season, the games were sped up through changes in the playing rules, and broadcasts were subjected to increased time constraints. The reason was the reaction of Lorne Michaels, creator and executive producer of Saturday Night Live, to the length of the Los Angeles Xtreme versus Chicago Enforcers game that went into double overtime. This caused the start of Saturday Night Live to be pushed back from 11:30 p.m. Eastern Time to 12:15 a.m. Sunday morning.^[11] This angered Michaels, who expected high ratings with Jennifer Lopez as the show's host.^[11] For the rest of the season, the XFL cut off coverage at 11:00 Eastern Time, regardless of whether or not the game was over.

In the face of declining ratings, the XFL announced prior to week 6's game between the Orlando Rage and the Las Vegas Outlaws that they would be entering the Rage's cheerleaders' locker room during halftime.^[17] The heavily promoted event was, in fact, a stunt: instead of showing an entry into the room, viewers instead saw a sketch in which the cameraman knocked himself unconscious by running into the locker room door, followed by a "dream sequence" with only slightly suggestive content. Vince McMahon appeared at the beginning and the end of the sketch, berating the cameraman for his failure.

Broadcast teams

• NBC (first team): Matt Vasgersian, Jesse Ventura, Fred Roggin and Mike Adamle were the opening week announcers. From week two to week five, Jim Ross replaced Vasgersian. Adamle moved to the booth late in the season.
• NBC (second team): Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler and Jonathan Coachman was the opening-week team. From week two to week five, Vasgersian replaced Ross. Lawler left the XFL (and WWE) in protest after week five in the aftermath of the firing of his then-wife, Stacy Carter. Dick Butkus filled in for the rest of the season.
• TNN: Craig Minervini, Bob Golic, Lee Reherman and Kip Lewis.
• UPN: Chris Marlowe, Brian Bosworth, Chris Wragge and Michael Barkann.

Media reception

The XFL aimed to attract two distinct audiences: wrestling fans and football fans. The XFL also tried to attract fans from other areas of entertainment (e.g., movies).

Many football fans distrusted the league because of its relationship to pro wrestling. They had a hard time accepting that a close, come-from-behind win or a controversial ending had not been scripted in advance, although there was no evidence to support this (it did not help that the league's opening-night telecast began with a high-octane pep talk by WWE wrestler The Rock and with Vince McMahon addressing the stadium crowd during the pre-game ceremony with the bombast typical of his "Mr. McMahon" character on WWE telecasts).^[18]

The league was panned by critics as boring football with a tawdry broadcast style, although the broadcasts on TNN and to a lesser extent UPN and the Matt Vasgersian–helmed NBC coverage were considered comparatively professional. Longtime WWE play-by-play man Jim Ross got the bulk of the criticism for his play-by-play calls of XFL games despite his 30+ years of experience in calling wrestling matches as well as calling play-by-play for the NFL's Atlanta Falcons in the early 1990s.

Scoring was so scarce that bookmakers could not set the over-under total low enough. Gamblers who took the under, often in the mid 30s, would win consistently; they could even parlay the under for all four games in a weekend and win on a regular basis. Towards the end of the season, bookies needed to make the totals in the upper 20s, highly unusual in pro football gambling circles. The league was forced to change rules during the season to afford receivers more protection, but the mid-season rule changes did little to bolster league credibility.

In 2000, before the XFL's launch, the league aired a series of cheerleader commercials on NBC, featuring adult models such as Pennelope Jimenez, Karen McDougal, and Rachel Sterling. The most famous one featured them as some of the cheerleaders taking a shower in the locker room. Using camera angles and strategically placed objects, the commercial gave viewers the illusion that the cheerleaders were nude in the shower. The commercials caused controversy and were deemed too risqué by the media, and they were quickly withdrawn before the debut of the league.

End of season and failure

The WWE and NBC each lost a reported $35 million.^[19] On April 21, 2001, the season concluded as the Los Angeles Xtreme defeated the San Francisco Demons 38–6 in the XFL Championship Game (which was originally given the Zen-like moniker "The Big Game at the End of the Season", but was later dubbed the Million Dollar Game, after the amount of money awarded to the winning team).

Though paid attendance at games remained respectable, if unimpressive (overall attendance was only 10% below what the league's goal had been at the start of the season), the XFL ceased operations after just one season due to low TV ratings.^[20][21] Facing stiff competition from the NCAA Basketball Tournament, the NBC telecast of the Chicago/NY-NJ game on March 31 received a 1.5 rating, at that time the lowest ever for any major network primetime weekend first-run sports television broadcast in the United States.

Despite initially agreeing to broadcast XFL games for two years and owning half of the league, NBC announced it would not broadcast a second XFL season, admitting failure in its attempt at airing replacement pro football. WWE Chairman Vince McMahon initially announced that the XFL would continue, as it still had UPN and TNN as broadcast outlets.^[22] In fact, expansion teams were being explored for cities such as Washington, D.C. and Detroit. However, in order to continue broadcasting XFL games, UPN demanded that WWE SmackDown! broadcasts be cut from two hours to one and a half hours.^[22] McMahon found these terms unacceptable and he announced the XFL's closure on May 10, 2001.^[20][21] McMahon's chief adviser, a perplexed Nathan Livian, was quoted as saying "the situation is, indeed, very bad".

One reason for the failure of the league to catch on, despite its financial solvency and massive visibility, was the lack of respect for the league in the sports media. XFL games were rarely treated as sports contests, but rather more like WWE-like sensationalized events. With few NFL-quality players, save Tommy Maddox, the league's MVP, and with little thoughtful analysis or even consideration by sports columnists, the XFL never gained the necessary recognition to be regarded as a viable league. The fact that the league was co-owned by NBC made ESPN (which was part of the same corporation as ABC) and Fox Sports Net (owned by Fox TV) disinclined to report on the XFL, though Time Warner properties such as Sports Illustrated, as well as the Associated Press, devoted coverage to the league (Sports Illustrated even featured the XFL on the cover of its February 12, 2001, edition, albeit with the description of it being "sleazy gimmicks and low-rent football"). Many local TV newscasts and newspapers (even in XFL cities) did not report league scores or show highlights. This led to many football fans treating the XFL as a joke, rather than competition to the NFL. Other problems included the scantily-clad cheerleaders, trash-talking announcers, and the lack of penalties for roughness.

The XFL ranked No. 3 on TV Guide‍ '​s list of the TV Guide's worst TV shows of all time in July 2002, as well as No. 2 on ESPN's list of biggest flops in sports, behind Ryan Leaf.^[23][24] In 2010, TV Guide Network also listed the show at No. 21 on their list of 25 Biggest TV Blunders.^[25]

Many stories recapping the history of the XFL show photos of the crash of its promotional blimp, portraying it retrospectively as an ill-omen for the league. The incident occurred a month before the opening game, when its pilot and a student pilot with him, lost control of the airship and were forced to evacuate. The ground crew were unable to secure the vehicle and the "unattended blimp then floated five miles north over the Oakland Estuary, at one point reaching 1,600 feet, until its gondola caught on a sailboat mast in the Central Basin marina. It draped over the roof of the Oyster Reef restaurant -- next to where the boat was moored -- and a nearby power line."^[26] While the pilot was hospitalized no other major injuries were reported. The blimp needed $2.5 million in repairs, the sailboat and restaurant had only minor damages. Also before the season started, a fictional XFL game appeared in the Schwarzenegger movie The 6th Day set in 2015.^[27]

Legacy

Despite its unimpressive showing among the TV audience, the XFL finished the entire schedule without a franchise folding.

The league popularized "in-game" interviews: Today, National Hockey League players are interviewed between commercial breaks and Major League Baseball has managers and coaches being interviewed. The National Basketball Association also often features in-game interviews with coaches on games televised on ESPN and TNT following the 1st quarter of certain games.

NBC continued airing professional league football beyond the demise of the XFL, starting with the Arena Football League television coverage from 2003 to 2006. In 2006, NBC returned to coverage of NFL games with NBC Sunday Night Football. The occasional use of the "sky-cam" and sideline interviews are the only features common to both the NFL and XFL coverage.

XFL team names and logos sometimes appear in movies and television where professional football needs to be dramatized, as licensing for NFL logos may be cost prohibitive (such as in the Arnold Schwarzenegger starring sci-fi film The 6th Day).

The United Football League later placed all four of its inaugural franchises in former XFL markets and stadiums. However, the UFL drew far fewer fans than the XFL average: For example, the XFL's San Francisco Demons drew an average of 35,000 fans, while the UFL's California Redwoods drew an average of 6,000, despite both playing in the same ballpark. Three of the four charter teams, including the Redwoods, moved to other markets by the time of the UFL's third season.

Notable players

Notable players included league MVP and Los Angeles quarterback Tommy Maddox, who signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers after the XFL folded (Maddox later became the starting quarterback for the Steelers in 2002 and led them to that year's playoffs, as well as continuing to start for them into 2004). Los Angeles used the first pick in the XFL draft to select a former NFL quarterback, Scott Milanovich. Milanovich lost the starting quarterback job to Maddox, who was placed on the Xtreme as one of a handful of players put on each team due to geographic distance between the player's college and the team's hometown. Another of the better-known players was Las Vegas running back Rod Smart, who first gained popularity because the name on the back of his jersey read "He Hate Me." Smart, who was only picked 357th in the draft, later went on to play for the Philadelphia Eagles, Carolina Panthers, and the Oakland Raiders. His Panther teammate Jake Delhomme named his newborn horse "She Hate Me" as a reference to him.^[28] Smart played in Super Bowl XXXVIII becoming one of seven XFL players to play in a Super Bowl. Receiver Yo Murphy also achieved this as a member of the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI).^[29] Tommy Maddox played for a Super Bowl team (with the Pittsburgh Steelers) in Super Bowl XL in Detroit, (although Maddox, by then a third-string quarterback, did not play in the game, which turned out to be his last appearance in uniform before retiring). Lastly, Las Vegas Outlaws DB Kelly Herndon played in Super Bowl XL with the Seattle Seahawks in 2005, where he is remembered for intercepting a pass and returning it a then-record 76 yards. Although he did not play for an NFL team after the XFL's lone season, former Las Vegas Outlaw offensive guard Isaac Davis also had a notable NFL career, playing in 58 games over a six-year career. Davis started for the San Diego Chargers in Super Bowl XXIX.^[30]

Played in the NFL

• Joe Aska
• John Avery
• Aaron Bailey
• Pat Barnes
• Stuart Pearman
• Jeff Brohm
• José Cortéz
• Kirby Dar Dar
• Isaac Davis
• Jim Druckenmiller
• Keith Elias
• Eric England
• Leomont Evans
• Mike Furrey
• Steve Gleason
• Kelly Herndon
• Daryl Hobbs
• James Hundon
• Corey Ivy
• LeShon Johnson
• Charles Jordan
• Kevin Kaesviharn
• Paris Lenon (last former XFL player on an NFL roster, 2013)
• Tommy Maddox
• Yo Murphy
• Latario Rachal
• David Richie
• Angel Rubio
• Rashaan Salaam
• Nicky Savoie
• Rashaan Shehee
• Kevin Swayne
• Rod Smart
• Ed Smith
• Brad Trout
• Casey Weldon
• Craig Whelihan
• Stepfret Williams

Played in the Super Bowl

• Ron Carpenter (Super Bowl XXXIV, St. Louis Rams)
• Isaac Davis (Super Bowl XXIX, San Diego Chargers)
• Kelly Herndon (Super Bowl XL, Seattle Seahawks)
• Corey Ivy (Super Bowl XXXVII, Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
• Paris Lenon (Super Bowl XLVIII, Denver Broncos)
• Tommy Maddox (Super Bowl XL, Pittsburgh Steelers)
• Yo Murphy (Super Bowl XXXVI, St. Louis Rams)
• Bobby Singh (Super Bowl XXXIV, St. Louis Rams)
• Rod Smart (Super Bowl XXXVIII, Carolina Panthers)

Won a Super Bowl

• Ron Carpenter (Super Bowl XXXIV, St. Louis Rams)
• Fred Coleman (Super Bowl XXXVI, New England Patriots)
• Corey Ivy (Super Bowl XXXVII, Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
• Tommy Maddox (Super Bowl XL, Pittsburgh Steelers)
• Bobby Singh (Super Bowl XXXIV, St. Louis Rams)

Won both an XFL Championship and Super Bowl

• Ron Carpenter (Super Bowl XXXIV, St. Louis Rams)
• Tommy Maddox (Super Bowl XL, Pittsburgh Steelers)
• David Richie (Super Bowl XXXII, Denver Broncos)
• Bobby Singh (Super Bowl XXXIV, St. Louis Rams)

Won an XFL Championship, Super Bowl and Grey Cup

• Bobby Singh

Played in the CFL

• Kelvin Anderson
• John Avery
• Duane Butler
• Jeremaine Copeland
• Marcus Crandell
• Reggie Durden
• Eric England
• Daryl Hobbs
• Paul McCallum
• Yo Murphy
• Noel Prefontaine
• Bobby Singh
• Rod Smart
• Scott Milanovich

Played in the AFL

• Jerry Crafts
• Eric England
• Mark Grieb
• Tommy Maddox
• Craig Whelihan
• Rod Smart
• Kelvin Kinney

Wrestled for WWE

• Richard Young (Ricky Ortiz)

Current status

XFL games are now part of the WWE Video Library. Comcast, the current owners of NBCUniversal, would also presumably co-own distribution rights to XFL games along with WWE.

In September 2012, WWE attempted to file a new XFL trademark for use in wrestling and football which was previously filed in 2009 under XFL LLC. The application is still pending since WWE have not put together a "Statement of Use" for the trademark. WWE could consider abandoning the old application and file the new one under WWE Inc.^[31] As of 2014, the trademark status is "response after non-final action" meaning it likely remains active.^[32]

Notes

References

• Forrest, Brett (2002). Long Bomb: How the XFL Became TV's Biggest Fiasco. New York: Crown Publishing. ISBN 0-609-60992-0. OCLC 49260464. 

External links

• Remember the XFL
• X years after - SportsBusiness Journal

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