XFL Update Timeline Since Bankruptcy Sale, Latest From Dany Garcia

Recently, we have had very little in terms of substantial updates from the league. But when you look at the whole picture, considering the plan isn’t to play until 2023, we have been kept apprised of steady work being done.

Starting right after the purchase of the league was made official on September 1st, the 3-part group announced their plans to get the 3rd version off the ground. From that initial report, we mentioned:

“Buying any business out of bankruptcy takes time, let alone an entire pro football league worth in the millions. Have no fear, there is action happening but it is all behind the scenes for now.”

On October 27th, 2020 the report was released where Garcia went into a little more detail about the plans moving forward. Of course, this was before any discussions were made about the possible merger between the XFL and CFL, but this is what was said about the work that was happening at the time:

“We’re actually going through a download now with players and our coaches to see what actually did work, and what didn’t work, and if there were things that were a little bit rough.”

Dany Garcia

Making sure they accurately debrief all involved takes time, and the last thing anyone wants from a league that plays in the spring is to be rushed and make mistakes. This seems to be hint number 2 that things were going to to take some time.

February 1st, 2021 another announcement was released, Garcia detailed her way of going about building the league, and how important it was to bring her past business ventures into the sport, and using that experience to help create the best version of the XFL possible. Once again showing that rushing into getting on the field was not a priority.

“Football is a sport absent of the idea of taking care of everyone involved or responsibility for how that experience is to the fan or the audience. All of my passion, perspective, and expertise is taking care of people. It’s advancing the human experience. So the XFL is the largest-scale opportunity I have to utilize everything I’ve done to date to impact people in amazing ways—to really get in there, create incredible gameplay, and deliver excellence in football, but to also bring a female interpretation of excellence in football.”

Dany Garcia

The next announcement came in March of 2021, announcing the discussions with the CFL. These talks never left the boardroom, and NDA’s keep people from talking about what happens inside those offices, and we know they ended without an agreement. But we know from CFL Commissioner Randy Ambrosie that talks could continue from this statement:

“We both decided and agreed that we would go back to our respective businesses and focus on our own leagues, for now. We haven’t set any plans to reconnect. But because the relationship was positive, the door was left open for the possibility that we talk again down the road. But today and for the foreseeable future, it’s all CFL all the time.”

Randy Ambrosie

It was also released shortly after that the league would be planning for a 2023 return to the field.

June 8th, 2021 released a statement from Garcia about how being the first female owner of a major sports league has been life-changing. She also mentioned how serious they were taking the venture and making the most out of what they had in store for the fans.

“The enormity of relaunching this league combined with the complex strategy and partnerships executions we are cultivating for the benefit of our athletes and audiences is a 24/7 impacting event.While it is no small task and we are months from hitting the field, it’s humbling to see that following my passions has had such a positive impact in other people’s lives. It gives me joy to hear that this acquisition inspired others to take a leap in their own careers.”

Dany Garcia

Subtle hints have never been out of the ordinary for the XFL, especially the faces of the league – Dwayne Johnson, and Dany Garcia – so it’s been n surprise that these Instagram photos with the little references have popped up from time to time.

Maybe the biggest piece of news to come out of this was the interview that Managing Partner Rob Klein had on the In Visible Podcast, in which Klein details the reasons why the league is moving so slowly, to make sure no mistakes are made, the correct partners are obtained, and that promises aren’t given, and taken away:

“We delayed it, clearly to make sure the foundations are in place. When I say foundations, we’re talking about things like media rights and distribution and sponsorship and franchises in different markets and what families or institutions may want to participate in franchises.“

Rob Klein

And then the most recent little hint from Dany, which continues to show that they are working on a steady basis:

Dwayne and Dany may be the faces of the league, but RedBird Capital is the bank. They will be controlling the finding of what happens once the XFL does kick-off.

And is any of the rumors I’ve heard about the USFL downsizing workouts from 5-2, playing in hub cities like The Spring League did, and pushing back news from September to October, taking the slow approach is probably the best decision that could’ve been made.

So while it seems like we haven’t received a lot of news from the league, the issue might be that we haven’t gotten the news that we wanted to hear. Because there have been steady updates. I’d just keep being patient. No need to rush just yet.