Wow Vince got some bad news today
Today (Mar. 20) in New York, Charlie Ebersol, the son of McMahon’s partner in the original XFL, NBC executive Dick Ebersol, and the director of ESPN’s “30 For 30” documentary on that league, announced plans for the Alliance of American Football (AAF) to launch next year. Not only will his league start a year earlier than Vince’s, Ebersol already has a broadcasting partner attached in CBS, and a line-up of well-known NFL names attached to the project.
A report from ESPN’s Darren Rovell highlights the management team. Former Indianapolis Colts executive and Buffalo Bills and Carolina Panthers General Manager Bill Polian will help Ebersol “steer” the league, and former Pittsburgh Steeler All-Pro Troy Polamalu will oversee the players while former college and pro wide receiver John McKay, Jr. will manage the eight teams in the league. NFL veterans Hines Ward and Justin Tuck are advisors, and investors already on-board include former Minnesota Vikings linebacker Jared Allen, Founders Fund (Hulk Hogan-backer Peter Thiel’s venture capital firm) and Barstool Sports shareholder The Chernin Group.
The AAF’s premiere will happen on Feb. 9, 2019, the week after Super Bowl 53, and be broadcast on CBS, as will its championship game a few months later. In between, one game will air on CBS Sports Network during each week of their ten week schedule, with others available on a league app. Ebersol said fantasy league play will be intergrated into broadcasts, as keeping NFL fantasy players engaged is key to their 7 - 10 year business plan.
Eight host cities will be announced in the next three months, and regional drafts will be held so those teams can protect former college players from the area who will be known in each market. Ebersol is confident there are enough good players not signed to the NFL to put on entertaining games, and they’re changing up the format to help by cutting back on commercials, eliminating kickoffs, speeding up the play clock and more. You can see the full launch presentation and get more information on the AAF on their website here.
All together, it’s a much more developed plan than the XFL’s “we’re gonna listen to the fans” - and it’s getting the jump on them and presumably leaving them with a third-string of quality talent to fill McMahon’s league’s rosters.
It will be interesting to see how this changes the XFL 2020 plan, and what impact that could have on Vince’s overall strategy. Alpha Entertainment is separate from WWE, so this won’t have an impact on the negotiations for his core business’ next television contract. But could it motivate him to sell WWE to raise capital to help his football venture deal with a new competitor?