Bill Hambrecht has decided he will be the next entrepreneur to attempt to break through the NFL's near-monopoly on professional football in America. Hambrecht and his partner Tim Armstrong have decided to start up a rival league, the United Football League, and plan to begin playing games in the fall of 2008. The two men have decided on Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Mexico City as team sites so far. I doubt it's a coincidence that they have picked large sports markets that, as of now, do not have an NFL team. Los Angeles has been trying to get a team back to the City of Angels since they lost the Rams and the Raiders. All of the Big 4 leagues in US sports(MLB, NHL, NBA, and NFL) have been hesitant in the past to grant Las Vegas a team because of the gambling, despite a number of investors that are interested. Mexico City successfully hosts an NFL game each NFL preseason and definitely has the infrastructure for a professional team.
So far however, Hambrecht and Armstrong have only managed to arrange for one owner: Mark Cuban, who is, not surprisingly, interested in the team in Las Vegas. Cuban, who also owns the NBA's Dallas Mavericks, will no doubt be willing to spend the money to make the UFL a success, but whether it will be able to compete with the most successfull sports league in the country remains to be seen.
Some of you may remember the XFL from a few years back. The XFL, the brainchild of the WWE's Vince McMahon, was an 8 team league that attempted to compete with the NFL with what it called "real football." Promising a more fan-friendly experience, the XFL offered fewer personal foul and roughing penalties and fewer rules overall. Along with smack-talking announcers, cameras in the huddles and locker rooms, and best of all, cheerleaders wearing as few as clothes as possible. After playing just one season, the XFL folded.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment