Does the USA Need Another Football League?
We're down in New Jersey visiting my parents in their lovely home in Blawenburg. Mom's garden is luscious, and in full bloom. One thing I love about visiting here is how many fascinating newspapers and magazines are all around us. I picked up the NY Times Sunday sports magazine and read a piece by Joe Nocera about a new professional football league being planned for 2008. It's a long shot and the path is littered with failed endeavors: remember the pathetic USFL, or the wrestling style XFL?
Nocera interviews Bill Hambrecht, and describes him as "a rich old Wall Street guy, who has made his money tilting at windmills and disrupting the establishment." He scans the horizon of today's NFL and identifies some weakness--in 21 of the top 50 markets, there is no NFL team. So these are the target cities for the new United Football League.
The other question is talent, but this hurdle is easier to overcome than it appears. According to Bill Walsh, the legendary SF coach, "the last 20 players cut from every team were almost interchangeable with the last 20 players to make the team." So there will not be a problem getting good talent on the field.
The other opening being exploited by the new league is a 1961 law prohibiting NFL games on Friday nights. That was to preserve the traditional high school football games. But the UFL can jump in and possibly televise their games on a nationwide cable network like USA, TNT or Versus, owned by Comcast.
Hambrecht has another ace in the hole: outspoken and super rich Dallas Mavs owner Mark Cuban wants to be an owner. Nothing Cuban does goes unnoticed, which will mean good publicity. The UFL's scheme is to have each owner put up $30 million and the public buys shares for the same amount. So the owner, the league and the fans will all be owners.
Nocera interviews Bill Hambrecht, and describes him as "a rich old Wall Street guy, who has made his money tilting at windmills and disrupting the establishment." He scans the horizon of today's NFL and identifies some weakness--in 21 of the top 50 markets, there is no NFL team. So these are the target cities for the new United Football League.
The other question is talent, but this hurdle is easier to overcome than it appears. According to Bill Walsh, the legendary SF coach, "the last 20 players cut from every team were almost interchangeable with the last 20 players to make the team." So there will not be a problem getting good talent on the field.
The other opening being exploited by the new league is a 1961 law prohibiting NFL games on Friday nights. That was to preserve the traditional high school football games. But the UFL can jump in and possibly televise their games on a nationwide cable network like USA, TNT or Versus, owned by Comcast.
Hambrecht has another ace in the hole: outspoken and super rich Dallas Mavs owner Mark Cuban wants to be an owner. Nothing Cuban does goes unnoticed, which will mean good publicity. The UFL's scheme is to have each owner put up $30 million and the public buys shares for the same amount. So the owner, the league and the fans will all be owners.
Labels: Hambrecht, Mark Cuban, NFL, UFL
posted by Max Hartshorne at 11:08 AM
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