In the last few years, the alternative football scene has evolved at a rapid pace. We’ve seen many leagues come and go, but there are a few new ones getting off the ground now. Every player’s ultimate ambition is to play in the NFL at the best level possible. Each squad in the East/West XFL is split evenly between professional and semi-pro football teams. A ten-game regular season is played by each team, with four teams continuing to the playoffs in order to crown a season champion. Greenwich, Connecticut, serves as the company’s home base.
It was launched in 2018 by Vince McMahon as a reboot and successor to the 2001 league of the same name that McMahon founded. As an alternative to the National Football League (NFL) and with none of the former league’s professional wrestling-inspired characteristics or entertainment elements, McMahon re-established the XFL. McMahon’s Alpha Entertainment was the original owner of the league and its teams. All of the franchises are located in cities that have previously hosted an NFL franchise. Dwayne Johnson and longtime business partner Dany Garcia established a group with Gerry Cardinale’s RedBird Capital to purchase the XFL for $15 million on August 3, 2020, only hours before an auction could take place. At this time, the league expects to return in February of 2023.
The Canadian Football League (CFL) and the XFL have come to an end in their conversations over a possible partnership in 2021. Their belief in and dedication to creating the XFL for international spring football was strengthened as a result of this endeavor. They even wish to see live streaming options included. Throughout the decades, the NFL has taken a keen interest in promoting American football’s global appeal, with different programs targeted at increasing the number of European and other international athletes in the league. Unfortunately, most European players are unable to adapt to the talent level gap.
As long as leagues like the XFL, which have talked about their global vision several times, support international leagues like the European League of Football, the path from Europe to the NFL could become clearer than it’s ever been before. Because of this, it is possible to see some reciprocal benefits if these two leagues work together.
The European League of Football (ELF)
If you’re not familiar, the European League of Football is an American football league with 12 clubs spread across five European countries that aim to develop local players into NFL prospects. They have a lot of success in this regard. In its first season in 2021, the league had eight clubs and expects to grow to at least 24 in the following years. The top two teams in the Championship are promoted to the Premier League each year. There is a playoff competition for the teams finishing 3rd to 6th in the regular season. The team that wins this tournament is promoted directly to the Premier League. In the Championship, the three worst teams are relegated. It is the ninth-richest level in Europe and the tenth-highest-attended division in world football’s non-top tier, the Championship.
Conclusion
However, even if both of these leagues are still very much in their infancy, it is plain to see where they want their leagues to go. Europe’s counterpart to the National Football League is on its way, and it is called the European Football League (EFL). Instead, the XFL seeks year-round programming that targets a worldwide audience interested in spring football and can be distributed across multiple continents. I believe they can work together to attain their goals.
