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Following the spectacular collapse of the Alliance of American Football in 2019, expectations for the reborn XFL were incredibly low, and many fans and analysts expected Vince McMahon’s football league to quickly fold, just as it did the first time around in 2001. Those naysayers were proven right on Monday, as the league’s parent company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after being forced to suspend operations due to the coronavirus pandemic. The XFL has not yet conceded that the league will not return in the future, but it seems incredibly unlikely at this point.
The news is heartbreaking for the hundreds of players who agreed to play for low wages just for the chance to get back to football, and for all the team staffers who lost their jobs amid an economic crisis. The league may be dead due to the extraordinary circumstances of our time, but it died after proving that a secondary football league can absolutely work in the United States. The new XFL was poised to be a success, and its legacy will be the innovation it brought to the game – which could eventually lead to changes in NFL rules.
The XFL dared to be different, for better and worse. We’re never going to see a camera crew follow an NFL team into the locker room to be yelled at by a coach, and we probably won’t get a live feed of Andy Reid talking to Patrick Mahomes via his headset, but there’s plenty the NFL can learn from the XFL. The transparent booth reviews were beloved by fans, and the altered kickoff setup added excitement to the game while also reducing the risk of injury. Make it happen, Roger Goodell.
Tuesday’s Big Winner: WWE
According to Orange County mayor Jerry Demings, WWE has somehow been deemed an “essential business” in Florida by governor Ron DeSantis and will be allowed to stage live shows despite the state’s shelter-in-place order. WWE had been airing pre-taped footage that was shot just before the order went into effect, but will now have full authority to move ahead with episodes of Raw, SmackDown and NXT without an audience. After Demings confirmed the news, Braun Strowman released him from a fireman’s carry and assured the mayor he was just kidding about powerslamming him.
Quick hits: LeBron James, Tiger Woods, Dog linebacker
– Lakers star LeBron James has been letting his beard grow out during the coronavirus lockdown, and he showed off his James Harden-esque look during an Instagram Live session with Diddy.
– The Masters shared some awesome behind-the-scenes photos from the 2019 tournament won by Tiger Woods, and revealed that Phil Mickelson wrote Woods a thoughtful note on a napkin to congratulate him on his win.
– If you haven’t seen this video of a dog executing a perfect tackle on a little kid running around during an Easter egg hunt, you’re missing out.