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Vince McMahon’s 2020 has not gone as he had envisioned, and the XFL being derailed due to a global pandemic was not something he had braced for. Today, the XFL has suspended operations and laid off all employees, according to various pro football media entities and various social media accounts from now laid off XFL employees.
Although the league could conceivably restart next year if live and the economy return to normal and recover from the pandemic’s effects, going through two expensive launches instead of just one on back to back years during a time when stock prices for WWE are down and WWE revenues, taken for granted just two months ago, are now at risk with the instability of the economy and society due to COVID-19, including the complete loss of live ticket and merchandise sales, McMahon may be more risk averse than he was just weeks ago as the XFL season was starting.
Just one month ago, a Sports Illustrated headline read: “XFL Needs Ratings To Stabilize in ’21 or League’s Future Could Be In Doubt.” Through five weeks, XFL ratings dropped on a weekly basis. “While the numbers posted [for week five games] are respectable, after five straight weeks of declining viewership it begs to wonder when the slide will stop,” said the SI article.
The league’s future is far less clear if ratings continue to slide, [media rights consultant Patrick] Crakes said. Crakes suggested that from an investment perspective it’s important that the games not draw less than 750K on broadcast television or 500K on cable. “With the inventory they have right now and ratings below that level, it would be difficult to land a sizable broadcast deal.” If that becomes McMahon’s reality, there wouldn’t seem to be any reason for him to continue pouring money into the league.
The hope was the playoffs would draw bigger ratings and show McMahon that it was worth the early declines in viewership if he could deliver impressive numbers when the best teams played each other for the championship. The coronavirus led to the season being cancelled, and that wiped out the key data from the playoffs that would determine the viability of the league going into a second season.
One XFL player tested positive for COVID-19 two days before the XFL cancelled its season. The XFL press statement reads as follows:
A player for the Seattle Dragons has tested positive for COVID-19. The player participated in the March 7 game against the Roughnecks in Houston and was asymptomatic at that time. He self-reported to team medical staff on March 10 and has been in quarantine since. A test was administered as early as possible, with the results received March 13.
As planned, and following the league announcing on March 12 that regular season games will not be played, all Dragons players met with team medical staff on March 13 for exit physicals. Each player was screened for symptoms, educated on the CDC recommended guidelines, and offered free extended-stay housing for those that chose to self-quarantine.
The league is alerting players, staff, vendors and partners associated with the Dragons, Roughnecks, and BattleHawks, as this player also participated in the February 29 game in St. Louis. The XFL is monitoring the situation closely and taking every measure necessary in accordance with recommendations set forth by the CDC and the Washington State Department of Health.
Even after cancelling the rest of season one, the XFL released a statement optimistic about the future. “Your passion, your commitment to your favorite XFL team and your love of football made our season a success beyond our wildest dreams,” the league said in a statement. “We’re grateful for the incredible response and look forward to playing full seasons for you — and with you — in 2021 and beyond. When our teams return to the field, we’ll make every effort to ensure your faith in us is rewarded with even more fun and excitement.”
Today WWE released a statement: “Given the uncertainty of the current environment, the XFL has suspended operations and is evaluating next steps.”
An XFL staff member told ESPN that nothing official was said about a second season, but it sounded unlikely. ESPN’s source said a league executive on a conference call with employees stopped short of saying the league was going out of business, but the strong implication was clear. “It’s done,” the staffer told ESPN. “It’s not coming back.”
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Spring football leagues simply do not work because the demand isn’t there coming on the heels of the NFL season. You’ll get some hardcore fans, but it’s a niche market, and the ratings showed it. The writing was on the wall. Unfortunately this virus hastened things.