Washington DC-- September 1982.
In a crowded conference room in the Washington DC downtown Marriot, the press were invited to witness a birth, the birth of a new professional football league. The United States Football League proposes to offer football fans a whole new season of America's beloved sport. The league, which plans to operate
with teams in 12 cities, will begin play in March, with a Spring and Summer season which will extend into July.
While details were somewhat lacking in the initial press conference, led by Commissioner Chet Simmons, former ABC, NBC and ESPN executive, there are rumored to be some pretty deep pockets behind the new USFL, including former WFL leader David Dixon, and television contracts are in the works as well. Cities confirmed as founding franchises for the new league include Boston, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, Tampa Bay, Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, and Oakland. A New York team is also planned, though it is not certain whether they will play in the city at either Shea Stadium or Yankee Stadium, or if they will join their NFL cousins in New Jersey. The remaining 3 cities for the 12-team league have not yet been named, but it is clear that the league is not shying away from either NFL markets or competition from Major League Baseball.
Nearly 10 years after the demise of the short-lived World Football League, it seems that the dream of an alternative football league is alive and well, and with a Spring schedule which does not clash with either NFL or NCAA football, the leaders of this movement are hoping they can corner the market of diehard football fans during the long gap between January Super Bowls and the start of the NCAA and NFL seasons in September. Only time will tell if this new upstart league has what it needs to survive in a tough sports market, going head to head with Major League Baseball, NBA and NHL playoffs and the national phenomenon of March Madness.
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