The U.S. can’t get enough of the NFL, but the country’s appetite for professional football alternatives is highly questionable. Despite the collapse of the USFL, the first iteration of the XFL, and other challengers, there are now three ambitious spring football leagues in development. 
On Thursday, Ricky Williams, Terrell Owens, and other former NFL notables announced the formation of the Freedom Football League, a league that vows to give players an opportunity to speak out on social injustice while providing fans with an opportunity to become full-fledged shareholders. The FFL also intends to focus on player wellness with “support on and off the field.”
The FFL says it will have teams in San Diego, Oklahoma City, Portland, Texas, Ohio, Florida, Birmingham, St. Louis, Connecticut, and Oakland, but what it doesn’t have is a concrete launch date or a broadcasting deal like the American Alliance of Football. It’s also unclear whether it has the financial backing to match the returning XFL, which is owned by billionaire Vince McMahon.
These three leagues will fight for the biggest slice of a pie that may not be all that big in the first place. One could argue that the AAF – which boasts a roster of coaches including Brad Childress, Mike Singletary, Steve Spurrier, and Mike Martz – has the best chance for survival, though McMahon seems driven to eclipse the memory of his one-and-done football experiment of 2001. We don’t know much about the FFL, but we do know that it will be playing catchup when and if it launches.
Which spring league will reign supreme? Cast your vote below (link for app users) and head to the comment section to let us know whether you think large-scale spring football can be viable.
None of them is my vote
Never bet against Vince McMahon. Particularly since he failed once and can learn from those. The key is for the leagues to know their place and not think they are going to knock off the NFL
What’s ‘He Hate Me’ up to these days?
Working the drive through at Burger King…
The FFL already lost my business. I want to see teams play, not talk politics.
Exactly
FFL are just roaching of the kap. Drama. They hope by latching on to his stuff. All the bullshit media that can’t get enough of the kap. drama will give them coverage. Sad part is it will work nobody will watch but it will be a non stop cycle on sports channels.
Whicher league garners a fantasy football deal
Americans are tired of seeing the Tyrone’s take a knee. The ratings have clearly shown that. Now a league will be created where it’s encouraged? Only a moron would invest in this!
“The Tyrone’s” code for “the blacks”?
FFL should partner with Tide for advertising, seeing all the grass stains that are goimng to be on their knees during the games.
None of the above.
The AAF because it seems to be enbracing being more of a developmental league and working with the NFL.
I don’t see any of them surviving more than a year or two. Doubt we see the FFL ever kick-off.
This isn’t thirty-five years ago when the USFL launched. There is so much more competition for sports entertainment dollars in pretty much every medium to large market.
AAF & XFL will merge and become spring league for NFL, just like Europe used to be
FFL first player signed – Kaepernick
I was trying to check the cities for the AAF and clicked on the AAF Nation website. Not what I was expecting there but got a laugh out of it anyway. I think there is a demand for more live football on par with minor league baseball, but I think all three of these happening at the same time could make none of them succeed. I also found it curious that so many of the cities already have NFL teams, especially in the XFL.
My money is on the XFL. Don’t ever bet against Vince McMahon not to mention he is the sole owner of all the teams so what happened in the previous regime of the XFL where all the owners wanted out cannot happen here.
Never bet against the guy who has been a complete failure at this before. Obviously.
Who wants to start a spring football league with me? I just found some loose change inside my couch.
I wish they all get together and pool resources. Three crappy startups will all lose a fortune and fail miserably. One well thought out plan might succeed. It’s a shame there’s so many baseball minors that work, hockey and basketball thrive overseas as well, but football it’s either the NFL or not much else for the same exact product.
There’s also the CFL which sucks up quite a bit of the waste product from the NFL (player who are talented but either too small or too slow for the NFL).
True, but the CFL of today has roster limits on “imports”, and the salaries aren’t all that high.
Baseball minors are completely different because they’re affiliated with the big league club and players are owned by the big league club
It’s going to be all about timing. No one wants to watch a lower league of football right after the NFL is over. It needs to happen after the NFL draft and before the NFL Preseason when most of us are dying to watch at least some sort of football.
That being said, none of them will work lol
Just another platform to extend the career of Johnny Football!
The team that has the best TV revenue package is gonna have the advantage
So basically all 3 leagues are hoping to work out a deal with the Cartoon Network.
Better than the Comedy Channel huh?