On Facecrack there is an official United Football League page. Being a big-time fan of Alternative football leagues I am a member. That being said... I had to laugh at what some people are saying.
I was/am involved in an argument about the merits of the UFL and how I believe that a 5 team 8 game league is not very credible...
A few people during this debate/conversation had brought up the idea of the UFL and CFL playing games against each other... possibly for a "World title". In regards to this idea I had to mention that the CFL has a rich history and is well established and that, as cool as it might sound (even for me), it would never fly. Simply put... the CFL has NOTHING TO gain.
So this is where the doozy comes in...
Some dude says "The CFL is more established but the UFL is playing better football".
LMFAO!
I mean, I suffer from Canadianism I admit. I get ticked off when Americans know nothing about us and/or the CFL. So this obviously makes me tick. The general feeling with all of them is that the UFL really does have better talent. Boggles my mind.
Anyways, that's my rant. Bet some of you are wishing I had never come back to this site! hahaha...
Would a league be more credible if it had, say, 6 teams, and each team played the others 14 times per season? And four of the six teams made the playoffs?
Are you telling me that having 5 teams and playing only 8 games makes the UFL "legit"?
I want the UFL to do well. There are more than enough quality football players to go around, however, when your season is 3 months long and consists of 4 home games... how do you have time to build legit rivalries and create momentum for your league?
I am a die-hard CFL fan but I'd love another outdoor football league to cheer for.
In my ideal dream world someone would buy the XFL brand from Vince McSham and rock that. I think the name alone would create a real healthy buzz.
No. But if all we consider is the size of the league, it's a fine line between leagues like the original six NHL, the eight team CFL, the twelve team Scottish Premier League, and the UFL. I think you're right that tradition and rivalry do a lot to develop credibility among fans. The first three leagues I named all have 100+ years of tradition behind them, even if the leagues themselves are not that old.
I'd be fine with a 5 team league if it were regional...
Here are my beefs...
Has not had the same team membership for any season yet,
There are no geographical rivalries... so there's no "Instant Hate",
There are only 4 home games,
How many legit players want to play a short-season? It just turns the league into a pit-stop for players trying to get a few games and then go to the Big Show... creating no player-fan chemistry.
The CFL works because...
The 8 teams have all been the same since Montreal moved from Baltimore... the only exception being a failed Ottawa team that played a few seasons in there.
Geographical rivalries! So even a team like Hamilton when we were cellar-dwellers could always have something to cheer for (beating the Argos).
9 home games plus an Exhibition game gives fans enough game to really get involved in the season.
Veterans have been in the league for YEARS and are entrenched as CFLers... creating a player-fan loyalty.
I have seen quite a few UFL games since 2009 when it started. From what I can see most of them are below CFL talent. Former Ticat Zeke Moreno played last season with the Sacramento Mountain Lions and was pretty dominant. I saw him play 3 games and he certainly looked a lot less challenged to do a great deal better than he did in the CFL. Almost like it was too easy for him.
The UFL's worst problem though is attendance. Some games were as low as 4,000 and the highest attendance in 2 seasons was only about 18,000 and that was for the championship. The average player only makes a little over half the CFL minimum salary. On top of these 2 big issues they also play when both the NFL and CFL are in season. Based on how things are in the UFL I could only imagine an american player choosing it over the CFL if he didn't want to leave the US to play. The money and talent are far better up here. Period.
I am also a big fan of alternative football if thats what we are calling it and thats why I know so much about the UFL. It's safe to say it's even more small potatoes than the USFL or WLAF/NFL Euro let alone the CFL.
Speaking realistically without personal fan bias but rather just about facts.. the CFL takes a solid second only to the NFL when it comes to pro ball.
No doubt… the CFL is the second best football league in the world.
I also agree that the only reason a player would choose the UFL over the CFL is because he doesn’t want to leave America, however, money talks and the CFL pays more. Also… once these athletes learn about our game, see our game and speak with players about our game… they know it’s better. Most pro athletes want to play at the highest level possible.
I’m sure that by now players in the NCAA and fringe-NFL players talk about the CFL and genuinely believe that it’s a viable alternative to playing in the NFL.
The growing number of CFL scouts at NCAA and NFL camps/practices combined with an increase in CFL players being signed down south after a great year up here can only help the CFL's credibility. I know a lot don't end up making it down there still but there are way more CFL players signed by NFL teams now compared to even just 5 years ago.
Guys like Cam Wake that not only made it down there but lead the league in sacks are great examples. He started a bit of a trend where some NFL scouts are starting to look at the faster DE up here and convert them to a hybrid OL/Rush End guy like Wake is used in Miami. When Garret McIntyre was signed by the Jets a month or so ago he told both TSN and Drew Edwards that their intention for him was very similar. Not that they specifically mentioned Wake but he described the exact same role/position.
Canadian university football is also rapidly improving in overall game and player quality. The future looks good for the CFL and Canadian players in general right now.
I decided to post some interesting screen shots I took of a couple of the UFL games I have since we are on the topic.
This is Week 1 2009 and the Florida Tuskers first ever home game right after kickoff. Normally the first home game a franchise ever plays and it's attendance show the true interest of the locals. This image speaks volumes for the lack of interest in the UFL:
Some CFL teams like the Als could be about any NFL team on any given night I would say especially playing Canadian rules. But that's just my opinion of course.
I know there were some games on HDNET the first year. Didn't notice whether they were still there last year.
Don't get HDNET on Bell any more, so I probably won't notice it this year either.
I get HDNET up at the cottage and I noticed there was a game on this year, watched it for a few minutes horrible crowd and pretty crappy game if I remember correctly.
