Reports have emerged that Vince McMahon is considering bringing back the XFL, and I’ve spent a portion of today wondering why the idea resonates with me.

I can’t claim to be some uber-Vince / wrestling fan. That time in my life came to an end as a 12 year-old on April 5th, 1992 when there wasn’t a Hogan / Flair Main Event at WrestleMania VIII lol.

That said, I do respect McMahon’s ability as a marketer. 

In the ’80’s he had the vision to see what the wrestling business could be. Instead of the existing model of numerous segmented regional promotions; he could build a National power.  In the ’90’s, he faced down a true competitor, that for awhile had gotten the best of him. He reinvented his product, and eventually positioned his company to eliminate any competition.

In recent years, he’s been ahead of the curve with the launch of the WWE Network.

By any measure, his publicly traded company is a successful empire which has been built and sustained by his creativity.

For someone who has had his success, the perceived failure of the XFL must be gnawing.

(You can discuss this on the BSL Board here.)

This past February, ESPN had a 30 for 30 which recapped the XFL’s lone 2001 season.  The 30 for 30 description, “A bold challenge, a fearless experiment and ultimately, a spectacular failure. In 2001, sports entertainment titans Dick Ebersol and Vince McMahon used the marketing behemoths of their respective companies — NBC and WWE — and launched the XFL. It captured headlines and a sense of undeniable anticipation about what was to come.”

Presumably, McMahon has spent these subsequent years thinking about what he would have done differently.

We can also guess that like the rest of us; that over the past five years McMahon has watched the NFL go from the unquestioned King of American sports to an entity that shows some signs of vulnerability.

If McMahon moves forward with XFL 2.0, obviously it’s because he believes there is now an opportunity. 

Can XFL 2.0 be successful? 

Forbes has declared it’s even less likely to succeed in today’s climate.

My guess is that McMahon won’t care what naysayers have to say.

Ultimately that is what appeals to me about this idea. In that sense, it’s similar to what I’m trying to do with BSL. I’m certainly not claiming to have his backing, knowledge, or expertise; but I can relate to the idea of wanting to build something from nothing and buck some conventional wisdom.

I like the guy that says I don’t care that this hasn’t been done before. Or the guy that says I see what you’ve done, but I can do it better.

If McMahon believes in his vision, he will give it another go. Admittedly the odds are stacked long against him; but given what he has accomplished previously, and the lessons he would have learned in the initial iteration – dismissing him out of hand seems foolish.

20 Unsolicited Initial Suggestions For McMahon:

1) Find 12 viable Markets, and bring-in 12 Super Friends (Fellow Billionaires) who are willing to lose money for years.

Some possible markets: Austin, Chicago (Toyota Park), Columbus (Mapfre Stadium), Los Angeles (Bank of California Stadium), Louisville, Memphis, New York (Red Bull Arena), Oakland, Omaha, Orlando (Orlando City Stadium), Philadelphia (Talen Energy Stadium), Salt Lake (Rio Tinto Stadium), St. Louis, San Diego, San Jose (Avaya Stadium), San Antonio, Washington DC (Audi Field).

2) I imagine XFL 2.0 would have streaming capabilities (maybe an option through the existing WWE Network); but the league would need a long-term TV partner. Someone like TBS / TNT.  While not  broadcast, it’s an easy to find channel that most Americans have.

3) The advertising partners should be competitors to existing NFL advertisers, who are willing to come-on as long-term sponsors. They have to believe in the overall vision.

4) You have to have a willingness to directly compete for draft talent. The NFL has a Salary Cap and Rookie Compensation Pool. Take advantage of that.

5) Go after the NFL practice squad, and training camp talent.

6) Don’t initially go after the NFL Free Agent high-end talent. Do compete for roster depth.

7) Take the best talent from the CFL and Arena Leagues.

8) You don’t have to look equal to the NFL in the first decade, but you have to look like clearly the 2nd best league, and have teams that are a clear step up from the best of college.

9) You have to have a product which improves annually.

10) The Owners need to be committed to building out high quality Front Offices and Coaching staffs.

11) Don’t label yourself as a developmental league, but be one. The first decade needs to be about serving as a training ground for players, Coaches, and Front Office types.

12) Partner with Major League Soccer. Place teams ideally in markets with existing Soccer Specific Stadiums. The product will look better if you have full stadiums of 20,000 people, vs. 20k people in 80k stadiums.

12a) The second part of those MLS partnerships, would be utilizing their Marketing / Sales staffs.

12b) MLS gains a cash-infusion.

12c) Negotiate subsequent TV deals together with MLS – giving you larger bargaining power.

13) Do full season Hard Knocks type shows, which take you inside.

14) Use WWE’s relationship with 2K Sports, to create a video game for the league. Vs. just providing licensing, provide funding to 2K Sports. Develop a game that gamers love, and is universally seen as an improvement over existing football games.

14a) Hire the most prominent eSports ‘players’ and sponsor the premier eSports events.

15) In Baltimore, Britt Ghiroli covers the Orioles through MLB / Orioles.comJohn Eisenberg covers the Ravens at BaltimoreRavens.com. In every market, there needs to be a recognized professional writer, who provides legitimacy, and will provide high quality content on a consistent basis.

16) The impact of Fantasy and Gambling helping to propel interest in the NFL is clear. XFL 1.0 embraced gambling. I imagine that would be the same with 2.0. Fantasy interest has only increased in the intervening years. The difficulty there (at-least initially) would be the lack of familiarity with the rosters. Hiring recognized Fantasy Experts, and launching a quality Fantasy product would help.

17) Another thing XFL 1.0 did well was experiment. I liked the differing camera angles. You want a product which looks familiar to what consumers expect, but also provides new vantage points.

17a) Try new things, but avoid the overly cheesy.  Be professional.

18) Embrace Analytics, with partnerships with Pro Football Focus, and Football Outsiders. (Add elements of those relationships to the video game.) Make some analysts from those sites part of your own TV and web coverage.

19) Do a weekly studio show which discusses the league at a high level.  Partner with Bill Simmons for this. It’s his vehicle as host, and his responsibility to fill out his panel. You’ll gain quality content, coverage in The Ringer, and Simmons’ social audience. You want the show to also discuss the NFL, and College – because it can serve as a gateway for people to learn about the XFL.

20) Don’t start this venture if you (and other potential league owners) aren’t prepared to build teams that could legitimately compete with NFL teams by Year 10 of the league.

Chris Stoner
Chris Stoner

Owner

Chris Stoner founded Baltimore Sports and Life in 2009. He has appeared as a radio guest with 1090 WBAL, 105.7 The Fan, CBS 1300, Q1370, WOYK 1350, WKAV 1400, and WNST 1570. He has also been interviewed by The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore Business Journal, and PressBox (TV). As Owner, his responsibilities include serving as the Managing Editor, Publicist, & Sales Director.

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