Some of the same old tired saws... sigh.
"Should have kept all 16 teams" - i.e. spend themselves into oblivion in season 1 to ensure there is no season 2
"People aren't happy with the hub model and demand teams practice in the home cities" - don't know who his people on the street are that he's talking to, but most agree that this model is better than the USFL's model last season and is still a good way to operate until they can sell teams to individual owners... again, not spend themselves into oblivion...
"Many fans still refer to them as the Gamblers"... Does anyone on here still call them that? I get Gamblenecks a bit on here, but haven't seen anyone straight-out call them 'Gamblers'.
"expand into cities and use MLS stadiums!" - at least he's not begging for the west coast immediately, but still it shows his lack of understanding that MLS stadiums, although the perfect size, aren't usually willing to share with such a rough sport.
And his solid point:
Move the Roughnecks back to the XFL when expanding and bring in two new USFL teams. I agree with that on the surface but when you look at expansion teams, you have to consider location. He mentions bringing in Philly and New Jersey and sparking a defining rivalry between them. It think keeping the Roughnecks in the USFL and bringing in New Orleans would be better for making that rivalry considering their closeness... Honestly Houston is less "Texas" and more "Gulf Region" and shares more with New Orleans in culture than it does Dallas or San Antonio. Texas is complicated, folks.
I’ve only seen Gamblers used derogatorily. “1-7, this team ain’t the roughnecks!” (Referring to the winning ways the roughnecks had in past seasons.) I haven’t seen criticism of the Roughnecks brand, itself. Better than Gamblers that’s for sure.
> "People aren't happy with the hub model and demand teams practice in the home cities"
Yeah... who is he talking to? Barely anyone shows up for the games, and he thinks people want to watch the teams **practice**? 😂
>"Many fans still refer to them as the Gamblers"
No one does this.
>"expand into cities and use MLS stadiums!"
The MLS teams don't want their pitch torn up.
This article is trash.
Totally agree with you on the MLS Stadium deal - just because someone has a nice card doesn't mean they will let you drive the fucker. Enough with the MLS Stadium plans - that shit is not happening. The MLS has outgrown the need to share a stadium with a spring football league.
The majority of people don’t even know that the teams don’t reside in the cities. I’m always so confused when I see people treat the hub as a huge hurdle. If you randomly polled people at the games you might get 50% who know they don’t practice in the cities, I would imagine that’s a single digit percent for if you asked viewers who watch on TV.
True Statement - Houston is it's own micro-state within Texas - The AMC movie theaters in Katy show Bollywood movies due to the huge South Asian population in Katy area.
As far as the Gamblers/Roughnecks debaucle goes here is my take on it fixing it.
-I like the idea the Gamblers is more of a NOLA feel then Houston. So the “Rough-Gamblers” are moved to New Orleans, and go all in with new colors and team mascot. My personal picks are the Voux-Deaux, LoupGarou, or something in these vein.
-bring the Roughnecks logo color scheme and sign back for TDECU Stadium for both decks(gotta bring back the beer snake)
I recall that with the 2020 version of the XFL, there were more Battlehawks coaches and player meet-and-greets around town. Which no longer seem to occur, and would be much more difficult given that the coaches and players are in Arlington during the week.
Yeah that’s the main issue is if they’re only in the cities they rep a couple nights for home games there’s really no time to get out in the community like they did in 2020.
Maybe they need to look into flying them out a couple days early even just once or twice a year and doing meet-and-greets and other local events.
The teams practicing in-market is good for local coverage (get local news to cover the practices and do interviews to promote the league). Some fans may be eventually interested but it is a bit early for that. Otherwise there's no good reason for it.
It's rare to read an article and think "I disagree with literally every single thing you've said". This is one of those times. Some of these suggestions are truly nuts. Moving Arlington out to the Frisco boonies? Kalamazoo?? Raising costs 7x just so fans in cities that already don't draw can watch teams....practice? What in the world?
This basically reads as some USFL fan who is upset the league merged and, frankly, integrated the more successful XFL in to the brand of the new league (e.g. the shots at Johnson, the Roughnecks, the Arlington practice hub, etc).
Jeez that is one of the most poorly written uniformed articles ever. WTF. Really lost it when he said people refer to the Roughnecks as the Gamblers.. nobody does that lmao. We are all dumber for having read that.
I’m not a GM, but doesn’t it make sense to have everyone practice in the same city? That way you can easily trade players around and talk to other players and coaching staffs.
For a league centrally owned, it makes a LOT of sense to house/train centrally... logistics alone for support staff, therapists and facilities like weight training, ice baths or cryotherapy would save money.
I think doubling down and keeping the eight teams for next year is the smart move. They have to keep costs down while building better fan engagement. I think an expansion should be announced next year, but not take place for another year or two. Build more talent throughout the league and make sure that you can afford the expansion for bringing in new investors.
I think Memphis folds for now and gets replaced with either Philadelphia or a Florida team. Memphis just never seems to be able to draw any sizable crowd with spring football. Not with the AAF or UFL. Iirc even the Tennessee Titans struggled getting people to show up in Memphis. I also think the renegades get renamed back to the Dallas Renegades (better name recognition). It's also possible that one of the Texas teams get temporarily put in hibernation, I thought 3 Texas teams at once was a bit overkill and cannibalized the fan base. Feels like fan engagement in Texas was stronger with 2 teams than it us with 3 teams.
If they play it right, they can expand a 12 teams in a matter of 6-8 years. When they get to that number, they'll be able to break off into 4 divisions with 3 teams each, making the game a little more interesting.
Expansion cities I'd love to see in the next years: San Diego, Philadelphia, Orlando or TB, Cincinnati or Columbus. I think any of those would be able to build new or continue existing fan bases.
The Renegades get a free stadium deal for naming the team Arlington Instead of Dallas.The league is saving hundreds of thousands of dollars per year. They won't be using the Dallas moniker anytime soon
I keep hearing the argument of too many Texas teams and cannibalization and I have to wonder has anyone that says that ever lived in Texas. Because if you have ever lived in Texas, you would appreciate how big the state is and the rivalries between the big cities such that trust me, if you deleted Arlington/Dallas, Houston, or San Antonio, the remaining teams would not gain from it and you will lose the city you deleted.
At this point, given the piss poor planning and marketing this year, I think all markets get a pass, with 2025 being a critical year for Memphis and maybe Michigan. Houston, I think will turn back around with a better product on the field and getting back to UH vs playing at Rice.
I think expansion comes sooner than 6-8 years, but likely won't happen for 2025.
The Texas stadiums just look emptier than they used to in the earlier XFL and even AAF. I'm hoping the poor marketing really is the main culprit. I don't mind 3 Texas teams, I just didn't agree with 3 at the start. They'll definitely have to expand their footprint in other markets.
Also meant expanding by four teams over the ~course~ of 6 - 8 years.
Whatever they decide, as long as it keeps spring football alive I'll be relatively happy.
Copy all! I think getting a second full year done in San Antonio will do wonders down there, especially if they can retain Wade Phillips. Houston I think really had a venue problem. Arlington is a special case with an awkward but cheap venue.
Thanks for clarifying the expansion comment. I suspect we won't see expansion until 2026.
Unless they need content for TV and the number for TV drive expansion. Maybe this thing never turns the corner and draws fans to the stadium but is a worthwhile money maker from the TV side of things.
Agree...if we do see expansion for 2025 then I think it will be the direct result of Fox wanting to fill the Friday night slot that comes open with the WWE contract loss.
That is straight up truth - You have a slot there - and the UFL costs pretty much nothing to produce. Gives you something for football friday night -then throw in a few expansion teams so you have a middle class. I am betting the TV numbers for a Fox Football Friday night would be reasonable.
There’s zero options in San Diego. That stadium has 4 tenants and you’re not squeezing a football team in there for the same reason Portland won’t get one either. The closest city to SD that has a chance is in Los Angeles but that’s not a football town.
Philadelphia has more possibilities but it won’t come cheap. It also has some options in the suburbs but again if the lease was cheap then USFL would have had a hub there.
Wow I was calling for the Breakers to go to Providence Park in Portland but you’re right they already have 3 spring tenants that’s rough for the UFL. Would’ve been great to expand with Portland Breakers & Seattle SeaDragons to solidify west coast teams in states with no tax. I also agree ppl need to let go of San Diego for that same reason. Honestly Cali in general right now should be avoided to save money.
The ufl shouldn't expand too quickly. They should bring back all the old usfl and xfl teams but only in pairs so that way the divisions have equal amount of teams and they wouldn't have to do the legal jargon of making a brand new team (assuming they still own the copyright or whatever it is to the old teams).
By expansion, I also meant with old franchise names. Sorry I didn't make that clear. I only would want new names if the original name wasn't popular. Like the Vipers for TB, that whole theme seemed unpopular as well as the Jerseys.
I think they need to and will focus on older franchises, but throwing a newbie in would add variety and interest. Maybe if they add in pairs they could do an established franchise and a new one.
Just my ideas. I just want the league to survive in general and hopefully get a team near me.
Texas is a big place. The fans showing up for Brahmas games probably aren't going to roll 10 hours, there and back, to a Dallas game.
Hell, if the population would support it (i.e. attendance), we could probably have a team in El Paso.
If the UFL
Makes two more
Seasons. I’d be very shocked. They must be losing piles of money. Stadiums are pretty empty.
I like it myself. But it’s hemmeraging money.
The USFL played 2 seasons to empty stadiums are were said to be breaking even or close to it. If they can get enough commercial revenue, sponsors, and social media follows they could carve out a niche. The CFL still loses $15-20M annually, which is basically nothing spread across 9 teams.
Some of the same old tired saws... sigh. "Should have kept all 16 teams" - i.e. spend themselves into oblivion in season 1 to ensure there is no season 2 "People aren't happy with the hub model and demand teams practice in the home cities" - don't know who his people on the street are that he's talking to, but most agree that this model is better than the USFL's model last season and is still a good way to operate until they can sell teams to individual owners... again, not spend themselves into oblivion... "Many fans still refer to them as the Gamblers"... Does anyone on here still call them that? I get Gamblenecks a bit on here, but haven't seen anyone straight-out call them 'Gamblers'. "expand into cities and use MLS stadiums!" - at least he's not begging for the west coast immediately, but still it shows his lack of understanding that MLS stadiums, although the perfect size, aren't usually willing to share with such a rough sport. And his solid point: Move the Roughnecks back to the XFL when expanding and bring in two new USFL teams. I agree with that on the surface but when you look at expansion teams, you have to consider location. He mentions bringing in Philly and New Jersey and sparking a defining rivalry between them. It think keeping the Roughnecks in the USFL and bringing in New Orleans would be better for making that rivalry considering their closeness... Honestly Houston is less "Texas" and more "Gulf Region" and shares more with New Orleans in culture than it does Dallas or San Antonio. Texas is complicated, folks.
Casual fans have no clue the Roughnecks are the gamblers, literally no one is saying that lmao
Casual sports fan hardly know that the UFL exists!
I’ve only seen Gamblers used derogatorily. “1-7, this team ain’t the roughnecks!” (Referring to the winning ways the roughnecks had in past seasons.) I haven’t seen criticism of the Roughnecks brand, itself. Better than Gamblers that’s for sure.
> "People aren't happy with the hub model and demand teams practice in the home cities" Yeah... who is he talking to? Barely anyone shows up for the games, and he thinks people want to watch the teams **practice**? 😂 >"Many fans still refer to them as the Gamblers" No one does this. >"expand into cities and use MLS stadiums!" The MLS teams don't want their pitch torn up. This article is trash.
Totally agree with you on the MLS Stadium deal - just because someone has a nice card doesn't mean they will let you drive the fucker. Enough with the MLS Stadium plans - that shit is not happening. The MLS has outgrown the need to share a stadium with a spring football league.
The majority of people don’t even know that the teams don’t reside in the cities. I’m always so confused when I see people treat the hub as a huge hurdle. If you randomly polled people at the games you might get 50% who know they don’t practice in the cities, I would imagine that’s a single digit percent for if you asked viewers who watch on TV.
Lol the sixers practice in camden. That’s where the Ai statue is. Nobody in philly cares. Mans made a non-point
I think the most silly thing is his desire to move the Renegades to Frisco. I'm pretty sure the league has offices at Chocktaw
True Statement - Houston is it's own micro-state within Texas - The AMC movie theaters in Katy show Bollywood movies due to the huge South Asian population in Katy area.
And you live there! Even before Katrina, Houston had that bayou culture going for it. Shoot, most of the Piney Woods feels like Louisiana than Texas
As far as the Gamblers/Roughnecks debaucle goes here is my take on it fixing it. -I like the idea the Gamblers is more of a NOLA feel then Houston. So the “Rough-Gamblers” are moved to New Orleans, and go all in with new colors and team mascot. My personal picks are the Voux-Deaux, LoupGarou, or something in these vein. -bring the Roughnecks logo color scheme and sign back for TDECU Stadium for both decks(gotta bring back the beer snake)
Why would anyone give a shit where they practice 🤣
I recall that with the 2020 version of the XFL, there were more Battlehawks coaches and player meet-and-greets around town. Which no longer seem to occur, and would be much more difficult given that the coaches and players are in Arlington during the week.
Yeah that’s the main issue is if they’re only in the cities they rep a couple nights for home games there’s really no time to get out in the community like they did in 2020. Maybe they need to look into flying them out a couple days early even just once or twice a year and doing meet-and-greets and other local events.
The teams practicing in-market is good for local coverage (get local news to cover the practices and do interviews to promote the league). Some fans may be eventually interested but it is a bit early for that. Otherwise there's no good reason for it.
It's rare to read an article and think "I disagree with literally every single thing you've said". This is one of those times. Some of these suggestions are truly nuts. Moving Arlington out to the Frisco boonies? Kalamazoo?? Raising costs 7x just so fans in cities that already don't draw can watch teams....practice? What in the world? This basically reads as some USFL fan who is upset the league merged and, frankly, integrated the more successful XFL in to the brand of the new league (e.g. the shots at Johnson, the Roughnecks, the Arlington practice hub, etc).
Jeez that is one of the most poorly written uniformed articles ever. WTF. Really lost it when he said people refer to the Roughnecks as the Gamblers.. nobody does that lmao. We are all dumber for having read that.
Agreed. I posted it cause I thought we'd all have a good laugh.
I’m not a GM, but doesn’t it make sense to have everyone practice in the same city? That way you can easily trade players around and talk to other players and coaching staffs.
For a league centrally owned, it makes a LOT of sense to house/train centrally... logistics alone for support staff, therapists and facilities like weight training, ice baths or cryotherapy would save money.
They do need to consider making the teams an actual part of the communities they play in. Aside from DC none of the teams are in a high COL area
Dallas is getting there but otherwise, yeah.
so the unsupported opinions of a random jackass with no credentials. Got it
Yeah, I had a good laugh at this article. Thought everyone here would get a kick out of it too.
I think doubling down and keeping the eight teams for next year is the smart move. They have to keep costs down while building better fan engagement. I think an expansion should be announced next year, but not take place for another year or two. Build more talent throughout the league and make sure that you can afford the expansion for bringing in new investors. I think Memphis folds for now and gets replaced with either Philadelphia or a Florida team. Memphis just never seems to be able to draw any sizable crowd with spring football. Not with the AAF or UFL. Iirc even the Tennessee Titans struggled getting people to show up in Memphis. I also think the renegades get renamed back to the Dallas Renegades (better name recognition). It's also possible that one of the Texas teams get temporarily put in hibernation, I thought 3 Texas teams at once was a bit overkill and cannibalized the fan base. Feels like fan engagement in Texas was stronger with 2 teams than it us with 3 teams. If they play it right, they can expand a 12 teams in a matter of 6-8 years. When they get to that number, they'll be able to break off into 4 divisions with 3 teams each, making the game a little more interesting. Expansion cities I'd love to see in the next years: San Diego, Philadelphia, Orlando or TB, Cincinnati or Columbus. I think any of those would be able to build new or continue existing fan bases.
The Renegades get a free stadium deal for naming the team Arlington Instead of Dallas.The league is saving hundreds of thousands of dollars per year. They won't be using the Dallas moniker anytime soon
And got paid i believe 10 million by the city itself. They will be arlington for as long as they operate without an owner
I keep hearing the argument of too many Texas teams and cannibalization and I have to wonder has anyone that says that ever lived in Texas. Because if you have ever lived in Texas, you would appreciate how big the state is and the rivalries between the big cities such that trust me, if you deleted Arlington/Dallas, Houston, or San Antonio, the remaining teams would not gain from it and you will lose the city you deleted. At this point, given the piss poor planning and marketing this year, I think all markets get a pass, with 2025 being a critical year for Memphis and maybe Michigan. Houston, I think will turn back around with a better product on the field and getting back to UH vs playing at Rice. I think expansion comes sooner than 6-8 years, but likely won't happen for 2025.
The Texas stadiums just look emptier than they used to in the earlier XFL and even AAF. I'm hoping the poor marketing really is the main culprit. I don't mind 3 Texas teams, I just didn't agree with 3 at the start. They'll definitely have to expand their footprint in other markets. Also meant expanding by four teams over the ~course~ of 6 - 8 years. Whatever they decide, as long as it keeps spring football alive I'll be relatively happy.
Copy all! I think getting a second full year done in San Antonio will do wonders down there, especially if they can retain Wade Phillips. Houston I think really had a venue problem. Arlington is a special case with an awkward but cheap venue. Thanks for clarifying the expansion comment. I suspect we won't see expansion until 2026.
Unless they need content for TV and the number for TV drive expansion. Maybe this thing never turns the corner and draws fans to the stadium but is a worthwhile money maker from the TV side of things.
Agree...if we do see expansion for 2025 then I think it will be the direct result of Fox wanting to fill the Friday night slot that comes open with the WWE contract loss.
That is straight up truth - You have a slot there - and the UFL costs pretty much nothing to produce. Gives you something for football friday night -then throw in a few expansion teams so you have a middle class. I am betting the TV numbers for a Fox Football Friday night would be reasonable.
Where are they playing in SD and Philly? Orlando I can see because you have a stadium for rent.
There’s zero options in San Diego. That stadium has 4 tenants and you’re not squeezing a football team in there for the same reason Portland won’t get one either. The closest city to SD that has a chance is in Los Angeles but that’s not a football town. Philadelphia has more possibilities but it won’t come cheap. It also has some options in the suburbs but again if the lease was cheap then USFL would have had a hub there.
Wow I was calling for the Breakers to go to Providence Park in Portland but you’re right they already have 3 spring tenants that’s rough for the UFL. Would’ve been great to expand with Portland Breakers & Seattle SeaDragons to solidify west coast teams in states with no tax. I also agree ppl need to let go of San Diego for that same reason. Honestly Cali in general right now should be avoided to save money.
I'm a west coast guy so it breaks my heart to agree with you. I'd love to see a team out here but I also realize it's a logistical nightmare.
Philly has 1 option in the city. The other option is in chester or rugers in camdem
The ufl shouldn't expand too quickly. They should bring back all the old usfl and xfl teams but only in pairs so that way the divisions have equal amount of teams and they wouldn't have to do the legal jargon of making a brand new team (assuming they still own the copyright or whatever it is to the old teams).
By expansion, I also meant with old franchise names. Sorry I didn't make that clear. I only would want new names if the original name wasn't popular. Like the Vipers for TB, that whole theme seemed unpopular as well as the Jerseys. I think they need to and will focus on older franchises, but throwing a newbie in would add variety and interest. Maybe if they add in pairs they could do an established franchise and a new one. Just my ideas. I just want the league to survive in general and hopefully get a team near me.
Texas is a big place. The fans showing up for Brahmas games probably aren't going to roll 10 hours, there and back, to a Dallas game. Hell, if the population would support it (i.e. attendance), we could probably have a team in El Paso.
If the UFL Makes two more Seasons. I’d be very shocked. They must be losing piles of money. Stadiums are pretty empty. I like it myself. But it’s hemmeraging money.
The USFL played 2 seasons to empty stadiums are were said to be breaking even or close to it. If they can get enough commercial revenue, sponsors, and social media follows they could carve out a niche. The CFL still loses $15-20M annually, which is basically nothing spread across 9 teams.