The Meteoric Rise and Sudden Collapse of the Alliance of American Football (AAF)
The Meteoric Rise and Sudden Collapse of the Alliance of ...
By Jocelyn Alano July 29, 2024 05:42
Launched by Charlie Ebersol and former NFL executive Bill Polian, the Alliance of American Football (AAF) was announced in March 2018. The AAF was poised to revolutionize spring football, drawing lessons from the failed attempts of predecessors like the XFL. Their mission was twofold: to provide an exciting alternative during the NFL's offseason and to serve as a developmental league for emerging talent.
A Promising Start
The AAF debuted in February 2019 with stories on the front pages of newspapers around the country. Two games shown that weekend on CBS averaging 3.25 million viewers each outviewed a national NBA telecast only days earlier. Among the innovations that have drawn strong reviews from fans and media were a series of player safety tweaks highlighted by eliminating kickoffs and emphasizing transparency with updated calls on officiating decisions.
The AAF has also lined up several major corporate partnerships, including an agreement with MGM Resorts to incorporate sports betting into its game broadcasts and a deal with Turner Sports in which TNT will air one game per week. The signings of players such as Trent Richardson and Christian Hackenberg also generated great interest at a time when headlines around player contracts were beginning to make news.
Factors Driving Early Success
The Fast Start For 3 Reasons The AAF got off to such a fast start for three main reasons:
Innovative Gameplay Rules
This starkly contrasted the NFL and other football leagues, which heavily emphasized player safety, such as eliminating kickoffs and examining officiating decisions to better engage fans.
Broadcast Partnerships
The AAF's partnerships with CBS, Turner Sports, and MGM Resorts would have delivered the league considerable exposure and potential revenue opportunities that could have led fans deeper into fandom.
Player and Fan Appeal
Fans tuned in, lured by the league's attracting names and interesting brand of fast-paced football filling a void during an NFL offseason.
The Downfall of the AAF
The AAF was held in high regard from its inception, but the fledgling league lasted only a year before it collapsed.
Financial Struggles
While the AAF had grievances, financial instability was largely to blame for anything wrong. The league had very high operating fees, particularly the actual salaries.
Involvement of Tom Dundon
The AAF brought in Tom Dundon, owner of the Carolina Hurricanes, as a controlling investor with $250 million in funding provided in February 2019. Yet Dundon almost immediately had doubts about the league's finances and soon decided to pull the plug on his involvement.
Clash of Visions
During the AAF's final days, public tensions between Charlie Ebersol and Tom Dundon manifested in real-time, with Ebersol battling to keep the warm-bodied lights on as long as possible while Dundon not only wanted out but felt dumping it earlier was better than squeezing their last penny. This clash of outlooks and interests only exercised the already precarious position more destabilized for AAF.
No Fan Retention
The AAF enjoyed a splash early on that captivated football fans, but it faded and failed to hold onto the attention of casuals. The league needed help finding its footing as a consistent draw for viewers or a compelling product.
Lessons Learned
The rise and fall of the AAF is a warning message to any potential new sports startup, illustrating that you can't start with small oil without a financial strategy, thinking about how they're going keep it sustained over time, knowing what their ultimate challenge will be in bringing in fans.
It failed to remind the industry that spring football leagues like itself and other past iterations, including the XFL, which was co-owned by Ebersol's father Charlie in 2001, have faced immense challenges as well. The demise of the AAF raised speculation that the XFL could be revived, an idea realized when WWE chairman Vince McMahon announced in 2020 that he would resurrect it.
The AAF serves as a reminder of the obstacles facing leagues in such an expansive sports market blanketed by monoliths like the NFL, what boundaries startup novel sports entities should push through, and how they need ample funding beyond just making payroll or playing at one location.
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