XFL 2023: Third Time's the Charm!

[Discrim]

On 2/27/2023 at 5:24 AM, MJWalker45 said:

At least Coan can hit a target.

AKA what I've been thinking for the last few years of the Graham Mertz Experience...being able to make all the throws is worthless when you make the right throw like once every three games.  Jack Coan's not gonna excite anybody, but he's generally not gonna be why you lost.

[TrueYankee26]

YES

[Sodboy13]

Yeah, this Vegas venue is a problem. I feel like I'm watching a high school game.

[tigers]

On 3/4/2023 at 8:14 AM, Sykotyk said:

Going back to markets... Whether a team is in LA or a team is in Omaha, with one-game-per-timeslot, you're relying on a lot of neutral fans from around the country to bump up the numbers. What can happen is a major city might completely drown out that there's even a game on. While football fans will watch from wherever just because there's football on. Same way that Kent State-Bowling Green gets watched on a Tuesday night. It's football. It's on. Football fans will find it.

 

So, in that case, smaller markets might actually work better in two ways: Much higher 'local' ratings draw more local support, ticket sales, merchandise, and recirculate eyeballs to return to more future games and the other games not featuring the local team.

 

And, to fans in general, who know the XFL is 'below NFL' expect it to fill the void where the NFL isn't. Instead, by putting USFL and XFL teams in NFL cities, you're just saturating an already crowded landscape for money and attention.

 

Orlando, San Antonio, Memphis, Birmingham, Omaha, Boise, San Diego, Portland, St. Louis, Raleigh, Norfolk, Hartford, etc are places that might do better being the 'only pro football in town' rather than 'that other team that's not the NFL'.

 

Do you think if the XFL had two extra teams next season they would play on a Friday or Thursday night?

 

I totally agree on the NFL city market saturation as well. They should of used ex-NFL cities or cities that would of welcomed pro football. 

How would Rochester, Columbus, Richmond or Norfolk-Virginia Beach, Louisville, Colorado Springs, San Jose, and even New York Island (Citi Field)

 

1 hour ago, Sodboy13 said:

Yeah, this Vegas venue is a problem. I feel like I'm watching a high school game.

 

Reminds me of that field in Far North Alaska, build it and they will come........ one day.

[McCall]

XFL

43 minutes ago, tigers said:

 

Do you think if the XFL had two extra teams next season they would play on a Friday or Thursday night?

 

I totally agree on the NFL city market saturation as well. They should of used ex-NFL cities or cities that would of welcomed pro football. 

How would Rochester, Columbus, Richmond or Norfolk-Virginia Beach, Louisville, Colorado Springs, San Jose, and even New York Island (Citi Field)

 

 

Reminds me of that field in Far North Alaska, build it and they will come........ one day.

Columbus, NYC and San Jose, maybe. (I’d say Columbus before the others as they have NFL teams nearby), but not the others. They’re not really desirable markets, plus no stadiums.

[tigers]

6 minutes ago, McCall said:

XFL

Columbus, NYC and San Jose, maybe. (I’d say Columbus before the others as they have NFL teams nearby), but not the others. They’re not really desirable markets, plus no stadiums.

 

Rochester- Bill Gray's

Richmond- Kickers 

Norfolk-Virginia Beach- Dick Price, Old Dominion, 

Louisville- Lynn Family, Cardinals, 

San Jose- Stanford, SJ Earthquakes stadium, SJ State.

 

[SSmith48]

Yeesh, I wouldn't be surprised if the XFL moves the Vipers out of Vegas. Everything just screams amateur-league, from the poorly maintained field, to the awkward stadium, to the awful attendance. It's a really bad look. Even the extreme camera angles make me feel uncomfortable.

[McCall]

43 minutes ago, tigers said:

 

Rochester- Bill Gray's

Richmond- Kickers 

Norfolk-Virginia Beach- Dick Price, Old Dominion, 

Louisville- Lynn Family, Cardinals, 

San Jose- Stanford, SJ Earthquakes stadium, SJ State.

 

First off, I listed San Jose as an option (though I think unlikely). The other ones are small stadiums in non-major markets. That is NOT their target.

[McCall]

I'd say Vegas should be in San Diego next year. Next 2 cities (either through relocation or expansion), could/should be Portland (Providence Park) and Columbus (Historic Crew Stadium). I'd venture to say even Toronto, but not sure if they'd want another team on that field, with Toronto FC starting about the same time and the Argos in the summer. A New York team actually IN New York City could maybe work. San Jose, possibly. But if they're using existing NFL markets, it's a far drop down to non-major league markets like Rochester, Hampton Roads and Richmond, who have no history of professional football. At least markets like Memphis and Birmingham are in a football hotbed down south, and have had a history of secondary football league teams.

[GDAWG]

2 hours ago, tigers said:

 

Do you think if the XFL had two extra teams next season they would play on a Friday or Thursday night?

 

I totally agree on the NFL city market saturation as well. They should of used ex-NFL cities or cities that would of welcomed pro football. 

How would Rochester, Columbus, Richmond or Norfolk-Virginia Beach, Louisville, Colorado Springs, San Jose, and even New York Island (Citi Field)

 

 

Reminds me of that field in Far North Alaska, build it and they will come........ one day.

 

Rochester = No.  

Columbus= Yes

Norfolk/Virginia Beach = Yes

Louisville = Yes

Colorado Springs = No

San Jose = Yes

New York (inside the city limits, somewhere in the Five Boroughs)= Maybe.  Does the XFL want to put a football team at Yankee Stadium?  If not, the only option might be Columbia University, which has a 25,000 seat stadium.  

[McCall]

23 minutes ago, GDAWG said:

 

Rochester = No.  

Columbus= Yes

Norfolk/Virginia Beach = Yes

Louisville = Yes

Colorado Springs = No

San Jose = Yes

New York (inside the city limits, somewhere in the Five Boroughs)= Maybe.  Does the XFL want to put a football team at Yankee Stadium?  If not, the only option might be Columbia University, which has a 25,000 seat stadium.  

I can't see a scenario where Hampton Roads gets a team. I think they'd target either NFL or former/near-NFL markets (i.e., St. Louis, San Diego, San Antonio). Portland and Columbus are major league markets that probably aren't getting NFL teams, but still make some sense (especially Columbus given Ohio has two NFL teams, plus Ohio State). Portland also has a stadium suitable for XFL in a market that's more in line with what they're doing. Hampton Roads is on par with Rochester, Richmond, Colorado Springs, etc. Louisville is somewhere in the middle, but, in my opinion, they're not high up on the list.

[SSmith48]

Colorado Springs would be overshadowed by Denver for an XFL team, but either way I don't see that happening in Colorado. In Denver, they would probably only be able to play out of Mile High (don't know if this would be doable price-wise, but I could see it happening given that it's hosted the Outlaws, Rapids, etc.) or Dick's Sporting Goods Park, which is more manageable capacity-wise, but always sees some of the lowest attendances in the MLS. It's hard to get people out to Commerce City (and IMO, as much as the stadium's roof is cool, it's way outpaced in terms of fan atmosphere and the Rapids would benefit from a venue closer to downtown, both in terms of attendance and just general relevancy in the Colorado sports market).

 

Not only that, but the XFL would probably want other warmer markets or new locations before Denver. Especially around February/March, the Denver weather can do some freaky stuff.

[GDAWG]

1 hour ago, McCall said:

I can't see a scenario where Hampton Roads gets a team. I think they'd target either NFL or former/near-NFL markets (i.e., St. Louis, San Diego, San Antonio). Portland and Columbus are major league markets that probably aren't getting NFL teams, but still make some sense (especially Columbus given Ohio has two NFL teams, plus Ohio State). Portland also has a stadium suitable for XFL in a market that's more in line with what they're doing. Hampton Roads is on par with Rochester, Richmond, Colorado Springs, etc. Louisville is somewhere in the middle, but, in my opinion, they're not high up on the list.

 

Louisville could be a major league market if the MLS expands to 40 teams.  It shouldn't be just NFL markets or former/near NFL markets.  If they want to one up the USFL, go after markets with major league teams but no NFL teams.  They already have that with Orlando, St. Louis and San Antonio.  Louisville could fit if they ever join MLS (and they should, I'd prefer them over Las Vegas).  

[Cujo]

1 hour ago, SSmith48 said:

Colorado Springs would be overshadowed by Denver for an XFL team, but either way I don't see that happening in Colorado.

 

Oh no. The turnout in Colorado Springs would be on par with Vegas, if not worse. CS is not a football thirsty city. I'm sure Air Force games rarely sell out. I don't know if locals even care. It's just not a football town.

 

On the other hand, Denver would tryyy to support an XFL team if given one. Speaking for myself, I would go to a game to see what it's all about. But to ask fans to sit in below-freezing springtime weather to watch minor-league football is a bit of a task. Check the attendance at Coors Field in April and you'll catch my drift.

[DustDevil61]

If I remember correctly the Vipers and Cashman Field have a 2-year lease. If the Vipers home games continue to look disastrous, I don’t see the XFL staying around for the duration of that lease.

 

As other markets go, I’m definitely on board with former/plausible NFL markets as the priority, depending on the availability of venues—San Diego, Portland, Omaha, and Salt Lake come to mind. (If not for the USFL, I’d also include Birmingham and Memphis on that list). I also think a couple more NFL markets could work, like Denver and Chicago (especially if the Bears move out of Soldier Field to Arlington Heights).

 

Edited March 5, 2023 by DustDevil61

[tBBP]

Louisville is a funny case, in that it's almost big enough to work, BUT...UofL runs that town as far as sports goes, and the XFL (or any other spring league) would have to hope the owners of Lynn Family Stadium would let them play there. That said, Louisville would be a better market for an NBA team, IMO...if not for, again, the UofL's control of the KFC Yum! Center.

 

I'll throw out a wildcard I haven't seen mentioned yet: Albuquerque. You wanna talk about an consistently overlooked "big" City? There you go. And I bet they'd—shoot, I'd bet New Mexico period—would chomp at the bit for some half-major pro sports in town aside from the Isotopes and that new USL team, especially considering there's nothing else around for what, 260 miles at best? (That'd be El Paso...ABQ is about equidistant from Phoenix and Denver at just over 400 miles.) Granted I've only been there twice, so I can't speak to the economy of the place, but I think they defintiely have enough people to draw. (Total but maybe relevant tangent: is that UFC training base still out there? I half-remember some pretty big names training there back in the day.)

[GDAWG]

2 hours ago, tBBP said:

Louisville is a funny case, in that it's almost big enough to work, BUT...UofL runs that town as far as sports goes, and the XFL (or any other spring league) would have to hope the owners of Lynn Family Stadium would let them play there. That said, Louisville would be a better market for an NBA team, IMO...if not for, again, the UofL's control of the KFC Yum! Center.

 

I'll throw out a wildcard I haven't seen mentioned yet: Albuquerque. You wanna talk about an consistently overlooked "big" City? There you go. And I bet they'd—shoot, I'd bet New Mexico period—would chomp at the bit for some half-major pro sports in town aside from the Isotopes and that new USL team, especially considering there's nothing else around for what, 260 miles at best? (That'd be El Paso...ABQ is about equidistant from Phoenix and Denver at just over 400 miles.) Granted I've only been there twice, so I can't speak to the economy of the place, but I think they defintiely have enough people to draw. (Total but maybe relevant tangent: is that UFC training base still out there? I half-remember some pretty big names training there back in the day.)

 

Albuquerque is one of those cities that has been tabbed by a lot of people as having its soccer team (New Mexico United) going to MLS if they can get a brand new stadium (playing at the Isotopes Stadium right now) and a huge financial backer to join the ownership group.  They may not go to MLS as team 30-32, but could if the MLS goes to 40.  The New Mexico United going to MLS would be a hot ticket in town, because the people of ABQ will now say "we are a major league city now."     

 

As a fan of cities getting their first Major League team, I am all on board Louisville and ABQ getting their first via MLS.  I did not like how Austin got their first with Austin FC (but I did like that Austin got their first major league team) and liked when Vegas got the Golden Knights but that ended when they got the Raiders (I was fine with them getting the Aces).  

 

I think Louisville's best shot as a major league city is having Lou City FC going to MLS.  Lynn Family Stadium is expandable to 15,000, so they have the stadium.  All they need is someone with a lot of money to join the ownership group and they likely move in the front of the line for MLS expansion.  

[gosioux76]

14 hours ago, McCall said:

I'd say Vegas should be in San Diego next year. Next 2 cities (either through relocation or expansion), could/should be Portland (Providence Park) and Columbus (Historic Crew Stadium).

The Timbers pushed to have Portland State University football relocated from Providence Park to a suburban stadium because they didn’t want the wear and tear on the turf. The XFL would be a nonstarter there.

[gosioux76]

1 hour ago, GDAWG said:

 

Albuquerque is one of those cities that has been tabbed by a lot of people as having its soccer team (New Mexico United) going to MLS if they can get a brand new stadium (playing at the Isotopes Stadium right now) and a huge financial backer to join the ownership group.  They may not go to MLS as team 30-32, but could if the MLS goes to 40.  The New Mexico United going to MLS would be a hot ticket in town, because the people of ABQ will now say "we are a major league city now."     

 

As a fan of cities getting their first Major League team, I am all on board Louisville and ABQ getting their first via MLS.  I did not like how Austin got their first with Austin FC (but I did like that Austin got their first major league team) and liked when Vegas got the Golden Knights but that ended when they got the Raiders (I was fine with them getting the Aces).  

 

I think Louisville's best shot as a major league city is having Lou City FC going to MLS.  Lynn Family Stadium is expandable to 15,000, so they have the stadium.  All they need is someone with a lot of money to join the ownership group and they likely move in the front of the line for MLS expansion.  

I’m with you on all of this. I spent 5 years in Albuquerque and I love the investment and support they’ve given NM United. It would be a fantastic MLS market that would also be a worthwhile target for the XFL.

[Cujo]

5 hours ago, tBBP said:

I'll throw out a wildcard I haven't seen mentioned yet: Albuquerque. You wanna talk about an consistently overlooked "big" City? There you go. And I bet they'd—shoot, I'd bet New Mexico period—would chomp at the bit for some half-major pro sports in town

 

As a former New Mexico local, I would be thrilled to see them get their real-ish pro sports team, esp since it would give me an actual XFL team to get behind. I know they've thrown a lot of support behind the new soccer team, but other sports are a flop in Albuquerque. Nobody goes to Isotopes games. Same goes for UNM football. The Lobos only draw when their basketball team is winning, which is once every four seasons. Total coin flip if XFL would work in ABQ. If the XFL ever expands to 16, perhapsss they'd be on the radar for an expansion team.