The XFL could eventually be the ex-FL, again. For now, though, the spring league will keep moving forward.
While there’s no panic yet from new ownership that features Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, the third iteration of the league founded by Vince McMahon in 2001 lost $60 million in 2023, according to Jabari Young of Forbes.com.
For 2024, Young reports that the XFL projects revenue of $100 million, with $20 million coming from ESPN.
“We’re extremely well-capitalized for the long-term,” XFL co-owner Dany Garcia said. “This is our new WWE. The next massive live property.”
XFL co-owner Gerry Cardinale “expects the XFL to become cash-flow positive by 2027,” and that the metrics from the 2023 season “suggest that the league is on its way.”
It’s still hard to sell football when it’s not football season. Although the availability of pro football on TV (especially over-the-air networks) will generate decent numbers in comparison to alternate programming, spring football is a long way from being a happening.
Alternate leagues have been trying to make that happen for years. From the original USFL to the NFL-owned World League (under various names) to the original XFL to the AAF to XFL 2.0 to USFL 2.0 to XFL 3.0, nothing has truly taken root.
A minor league arguably would have a better chance of making it during football season. And it’s surprising that no one has decided to dust off the old NFL rulebook of the ‘80s and ‘90s and embrace full-contract, old-school, rough-and-tumble football.
Setting aside the ethical dilemma of re-introducing brutality and big, dangerous hits into the game, it could be the only way to create a “massive live property” that is sufficiently different from the type of football to which we’re all accustomed.
Above all else, it remains to be seen whether either the XFL or the NFL can make enough money over the long haul to keep going.