The XFL is still two years away from its second inaugural season, as Vince McMahon’s return to the world of football is taking its time this go around to try and build a better foundation for the league when it kicks off in 2020.
On Tuesday, the XFL made its first big announcement since, well, the big announcement the league was coming back, as former NFL and NCAA executive Oliver Luck — father of Colts quarterback Andrew Luck — was named the new commissioner of the league. Luck seems like a pretty strong hire given his lengthy background at the highest levels of competitive football.
Luck was most recently the NCAA’s vice president of regulatory affairs, while also being a member of the first ever College Football Playoff committee. He spent a decade with the NFL overseeing NFL Europe, which seems like reasonably strong work experience in helming a fledgling football league.
We are proud to announce that former #NFL and #NCAA executive and quarterback @OliverLuckXFL has been named the #XFL Commissioner & CEO. pic.twitter.com/ROzr027Bld
— UFL (@XFL2023) June 5, 2018
Luck is buying in on McMahon’s vision this time around and is convinced he’s learned his lessons from the first failure of the league.
Just spoke with Oliver Luck on his move the XFL. To sum up: He was assured the league will be a more serious endeavor this time around. McMahon learned from mistakes of first edition. It's a chance to re-imagine football and how it is consumed. And league is well capitalized.
— Ralph D. Russo (@ralphDrussoAP) June 5, 2018
Whether the XFL can pull off what has to this point been impossible and find its market share alongside the NFL remains to be seen. Many leagues have tried and failed to take on the NFL, but a symbiotic relationship would likely benefit the XFL the most — and if they can tap into markets that are currently underserved by the NFL.
