Player 54: First entertainment content from XFL airs tonight

What time is the XFL documentary on tonight?

  • Date: Thursday, Feb. 16
  • Time: 5 p.m. ET | 2 p.m. ET

The XFL docuseries "Player 54: Chasing the XFL Dream" is set to be broadcast for the first time at 5 p.m. ET (2 p.m. PT) on Thursday. That will be just two days before the 2023 XFL season starts with a matchup between the Vegas Vipers and Arlington Renegades on Saturday.

This will be the first of nine episodes to air on ESPN's family of networks. The others will be created and broadcast during the XFL's 2023 season.

What channel is the XFL documentary on tonight?

  • Channel: ESPN2
  • Time: 5 p.m. ET | 2 p.m. ET
  • Live stream: fuboTV | ESPN+

The first episode of "Player 54: Chasing the XFL Dream" will air on ESPN2 at 5 p.m. ET (2 p.m. PT) on Thursday. The docuseries episode will also air on ABC an hour ahead of the XFL season opener between the Vipers and Renegades on Saturday.

Viewers will be able to stream the XFL documentary, as well as all 43 games during the season using fuboTV, which comes with a free trial. After airing, the docuseries episode will also be available to stream exclusively on ESPN+ once it first airs at 5 p.m. ET on Thursday.

The documentary will likely be used in lieu of pregame coverage by ESPN and its family of networks throughout the season. That would be similar to the approach used by Fox and NBC for its USFL games during the 2022 spring-league season.

MORE: Full schedule, dates, times for 2023 XFL games

Where is the XFL documentary streaming?

As mentioned, the XFL documentary will be able to stream as it airs using fuboTV, which comes with a free trial. FuboTV also comes with access to ESPN, ESPN2, ABC and FX, which will air all 43 XFL games during the 2023 season.

After airing, "Player 54: Chasing the XFL Dream" will only be available to stream on ESPN+. Viewers will be able to watch it as it airs live on ESPN2 and ABC over the next few days, but anyone wanting to watch it on demand will have to be subscribed to ESPN+ to see it.

What is the XFL documentary 'Player 54: Chasing the XFL Dream' about?

The XFL's docuseries will chronicle "the human stories that exist within the XFL on and off the field," per a press release from the league. This will include players battling for roster spots, fighting to earn starting jobs and dealing with obstacles throughout the season as a whole.

"Player 54 is a deeply personal reality for me," XFL owner Dwayne Johnson said via the press release. "There are 53 players on an NFL roster ā€“ I was number 54. I was good, but not good enough. I was ready, I was hungry, and I waited for that NFL phone call that never came. I never got that shot to prove myself. And that seminal moment in my life put a chip on my shoulder that has never and will never go away.

"Years later, life has brought me to the XFL today, and Iā€™m grateful to share my experience with our players ā€” all of whom have that same chip on their shoulders. I hope everyone enjoys watching our XFL process as much as Iā€™ve enjoyed this 'life comes full circle' ride."

2 Likes

wadda ya mean by tonight. It is still wednesday here :slight_smile:

1 Like

Hehe. Iā€™m sure you will figure it out :slight_smile:

Has anyone given this watch? Anyone tuned into this? Not my thing - I donā€™t do the reality TV for the most part but this type of thing seems to be one of the content streams that the XFL is putting together. Just curious as to if anyone is watching this?

i didnā€™t even know about it til i just saw this thread but now i want to track it down and watch it.

2 Likes

You guys killed the ā€œChicagoā€ thread now I am digging through the discard pile to see what we have there.

1 Like

hey that wasnā€™t me!

I watched episode 1 and thought it was really well done. Unfortunately, it only airs on ESPN2 Thursdays at 5PM Eastern, so Iā€™m never home in time to watch it. I also donā€™t subscribe to ESPN+ anymore so I canā€™t even watch the replay of it.

2 Likes

hereā€™s the trailer. looks awesome

2 Likes

I typically don't pay much attention to Youtube "stars" but I've got to say, I really enjoyed this. Over 2 million views as well. I know the XFL had him on the sidelines doing an interview at the Vegas game a week or 2 ago, but they really should try to leverage him and his audience more going forward.

3 Likes

Still burns me. What a missed opportunity for the CFL to let successful individuals like these just walk way without finding "Something" to work together towards.

1 Like

I wouldnā€™t be surprised if they have a relationship behind closed doors. There was a lot of heat during the original talks from diehard fans of both leagues. Itā€™s interesting that both leagues has a relationship with Genius Sports.

In order for the XFL to be taken seriously by the CFL fans, they would have to prove that they can stay alive for a minimum of 3 years. The really diehards are saying 10 years but thatā€™s a little silly.

Second thing they would have to do is improve player talent. Right now itā€™s 8 expansion teams. Theyā€™ll need to take a couple of years to gel together. People like the guy who runs the BC Lions ā€œRoar Reportā€ on Twitter are saying things like ā€œif a CFL team played an XFL team, the CFL team would win 70 to 0.ā€ Probably not true but the QB play has to improve for sure.

Years from now when people feel that the XFL would be competitive with the CFL, there might be whatever the CFL is planning to do with the LFA in Mexico in the future. Then weā€™ll see what happens after that occurrence.

1 Like

How many games would Dave Dickenson or Mike Oā€™Shea win with the XFL team from DC or St Louis playing in the CFL? Those are not teams that would go 4-14 with CFL coaching.

2 Likes

I agree but the arrogance still remains. :wink:

2 Likes

lol that guy is basically a cheer leader

3 Likes

CXFL needs to be a thing down the road for both leagues to survive and grow more IMO. maritime expansion isn't just dead, it never was.

2 Likes

I think that things are heading that direction, everyone flips out about the CFL playing in the winter months after the Superbowl. I think that the XFL would switch seasons in a heartbeat to a late spring schedule and have the CXFL wrapped up by late August early September.

3 Likes

Like the MLS by having teams in warmer climate it allows ou a lot of flexibility with scheduling. I wonā€™t comment on the constant Atlantic Canada bashing from people who have never stepped foot here and in many cases canā€™t name anything other than the provincial Capitals.

2 Likes