The Return of the USFL - Coming in 2022

[Plankton]

https://www.si.com/nfl/2021/06/03/usfl-planning-to-return-spring-2022

The United States Football League announced Thursday that it plans on returning in the spring of 2022.

The league, which initially launched in 1983 but halted its operations after the '85 season, will target a minimum of eight teams instead of the 12 it initially consisted of and will utilize Fox Sports as its broadcast partner.

Fox Sports, according to the official release, also owns a minority equity stake in the company that owns the USFL.

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I loved the first go around of this league - Herschel Walker, Kelvin Bryant, Jim Kelly, Steve Young, and the Steve Spurrier led Tampa Bay Bandits. It was a fun league. Not expecting this same this time around, though.

 

[tyke1doe]

I'll give it two years tops.

 

[CowboyMort]

Is there a worse way to invest than dropping money into alternative football leagues in the US. Haven't fact checked, but it seems that no one makes any money investing in a new league.

Believe me, I would love more football throughout the year, but I agree with the poster who said, "two years tops".

 

[CouchCoach]

I'll give it two years tops.

What an optimist. If the ratings aren't there, Fox will bow out in one.

 

[Rack]

https://www.si.com/nfl/2021/06/03/usfl-planning-to-return-spring-2022

The United States Football League announced Thursday that it plans on returning in the spring of 2022.

The league, which initially launched in 1983 but halted its operations after the '85 season, will target a minimum of eight teams instead of the 12 it initially consisted of and will utilize Fox Sports as its broadcast partner.

Fox Sports, according to the official release, also owns a minority equity stake in the company that owns the USFL.

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I loved the first go around of this league - Herschel Walker, Kelvin Bryant, Jim Kelly, Steve Young, and the Steve Spurrier led Tampa Bay Bandits. It was a fun league. Not expecting this same this time around, though.

If it's a de-wussified version of the NFL I'll watch it.

 

[Doomsday101]

USFL of the past was the closest thing to being NFL quality, look at the players they drafted Hershel Walker, Steve Young, Jim Kelly just to name a few yet despite getting quality players they still could not generate the fan base needed to sustain the league.

 

[CouchCoach]

Fact: there is not enough talent available to field 32 teams and there is not any position 32 deep, including the P and PK. The USFL can afford to pay the backups better than they're getting from the NFL? No NFL star is going for anything less than the personal services contract Herschel Walker got.

Spring football is a novelty and cannot sustain itself. It's a flanking move and the only way to even come close to being an annoyance of the NFL is head to head and good luck with getting the venues to do that.

 

[Typhus]

The world needs more football, someone with a vision build a solid platform, their should be an NFL association like a very limited farming system that can be controlled by the CBA.
This league could exist but the NFL brand squashes them, they need a handshake that benefits both in order to succeed.

 

[RustyBourneHorse]

Oh dang it! I just posted a thread cuz I didn't see this one. This site is really quick at finding news.

 

[ShortRound]

The current cartel won't allow another league to flourish

 

[Jake]

There will never be a second league success like the AFL, and to some extent the original USFL, because the NFL is the richest sports league in the world now.

There will be no bidding wars for stars. Just a bunch of guys who aren't good enough to play in the NFL.

 

[RustyBourneHorse]

Is there a worse way to invest than dropping money into alternative football leagues in the US. Haven't fact checked, but it seems that no one makes any money investing in a new league.

Believe me, I would love more football throughout the year, but I agree with the poster who said, "two years tops".

Agreed. They may as well invest in new airlines. We need more of those anyway.

 

[aikemirv]

Good, maybe it will let all these college players who feel exploited just go there straight from High School.

 

[aikemirv]

Fact: there is not enough talent available to field 32 teams and there is not any position 32 deep, including the P and PK. The USFL can afford to pay the backups better than they're getting from the NFL? No NFL star is going for anything less than the personal services contract Herschel Walker got.

Spring football is a novelty and cannot sustain itself. It's a flanking move and the only way to even come close to being an annoyance of the NFL is head to head and good luck with getting the venues to do that.

Everything is relative. Talent is not the problem at all, it is fans base. College football thrives with much less talent.

 

[Ranched]

I think it will last longer then it did the first time. What killed it was having the games in the fall when the NFL games were on.

Having the USFL in the spring will break up the momnatiny no doubt. I recall several players who went on to have successful NFL careers, including Herschel Walker, Steve Young & Flutie.

 

[jazzcat22]

Can we get another Herschel Walker from it, and can we get another blockbuster trade also.

 

[DandyDon52]

it could last if Fox will air the games.
Also if the people running it are not morons lol.
What they need is to implement some things that the nfl no longer has,
like real on sides kicks, and some other things.

Have old NFL type uniforms, not the new wave nike crap.
Have good mascot names, be funny if they had a wash team and they chose Commanders for the name! It would get some free publicity !
But if a team is named the Dallas Buckaroo's, and have some high school uniforms , then that hurts the product.

Start the season right after the SB , dont compete with nfl teams, and give edge to offenses so there is a lot of scoring.
Be able to last 5 years, as it would take awhile to gather fans.

 

[Doomsday101]

I loved how t

it could last if Fox will air the games.
Also if the people running it are not morons lol.
What they need is to implement some things that the nfl no longer has,
like real on sides kicks, and some other things.

Have old NFL type uniforms, not the new wave nike crap.
Have good mascot names, be funny if they had a wash team and they chose Commanders for the name! It would get some free publicity !
But if a team is named the Dallas Buckaroo's, and have some high school uniforms , then that hurts the product.

Start the season right after the SB , dont compete with nfl teams, and give edge to offenses so there is a lot of scoring.
Be able to last 5 years, as it would take awhile to gather fans.

Thing is when the USFL started it used the same rules of the NFL and started in the spring. They had several players who would later play in the NFL and some who were in the NFL who went to USFL. They had TV contracts with ABC and yet still could not generate the fan fair needed. Finally they sued the NFL

This I always found funny, the USFL wins the law suite and is awarded 1 dollar. lol

A six-person jury today found the National Football League liable for one antitrust violation, but ordered the league to pay only one dollar in damages to the rival United States Football League, which had sought $1.69 billion.

In a stunning blow to the USFL, the jury found that the NFL used monopoly power to damage the younger league and to retain control of the professional football market, but determined that the damage incurred by the USFL was virtually nonexistent.

The jury cleared the NFL on all eight other charges, including the key charge of the case -- that the NFL had denied the USFL access to a network television contract. Commissioner Pete Rozelle of the NFL also was found not liable by the jury, which consisted of five women and one man.

Since all damage awards in an antitrust suit are trebled, the NFL owes the three-year-old USFL $3. "A clean sweep," Rozelle said today. "All the jury said was what I had testified: that we are a natural monopoly. In my view, all professional sports leagues are that and have been since before the turn of the century. Now we can go back to playing football."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/arch...nst-nfl/42dfac77-c55b-4e5f-818e-7ea27d1e6301/

 

[aikemirv]

They need to figure out a way to create a fan base.

Maybe tie themselves to the college game by creating teams based on the conference that the individuals played for.

So have a Big 10, SEC, ACC,Big 12 and so forth. Now these teams are not going to be evenly matched at the beginning but I bet it would draw a big fan base watching players from conferences play other conference more than smaller market cities!

If you could get home games rotating at different bigger college sites they might be able to get some fan bases really strong.

 

[Miller]

Just bring back the sweetest helmet ever