XFL

XFL, LLC was a professional American football league operated as the XFL, founded by World Wrestling Federation (now World Wrestling Entertainment) owner Vince McMahon. With eight teams (all fully owned by the league corporation) in two divisions, it was intended to be a major professional sports league complement to the offseason of the National Football League, but was unable to find an audience and ceased operation after its debut season in 2001. The XFL was widely ridiculed; McMahon conceded that the league was a "colossal failure".

Founding

Created as a 50–50 joint venture between NBCUniversal and WWF-owned subsidiary WWE Properties International, Inc. under the company name "XFL, LLC", the XFL was created as a "single-entity league", meaning that the teams were not individually owned and operated franchises (as in the NFL), but that the league was operated as a single business unit. Vince McMahon's original plan was to purchase the Canadian Football League (after the CFL initially approached him about purchasing the Toronto Argonauts), while NBC was moving ahead at the time with Time Warner to create a football league of their own.