Report: XFL incurred staggering losses during 2023 season, but anticipates turning a profit next year

The XFL lost an estimated $60 million in 2023, according to industry sources. They even had to cut some jobs. That’s obviously horrible news for fans of the league and everybody associated with it. The XFL did just about everything imaginable to put together a very solid product out on the field in 2023. But, they are projected to earn $100 million in revenue in 2024, according to some people with knowledge of the league’s finances.

That all was recently revealed in a lengthy report from Jabari Young of Forbes Magazine. Perhaps one of the more surprising announcements from the article was that not only will there be a second season of XFL, but ownership told Forbes the XFL “has capital commitments in place for years one through four.” The league has also signed sponsorship deals with national brands like Progressive and Under Armour.

While that all sounds good and great, revealing a loss of $60 million dollars after the first year makes it a miracle the league even made it to a second season. Also, “projections” are just that. Projections. Businesses don’t survive based on projections. They survive based on real, tangible numbers. Do we really believe the league can flip the switch from a $60 million loss to $100 million in profit in one year? That’s really dreaming. So, we’ll just have to see how much longer the XFL lasts. Regardless, it’s been an excellent effort by “The Rock” and everybody else that helped revive the league for another cycle.

One of the most fitting lines of the report in Forbes by Young was, “If spring leagues had a graveyard, the XFL would have two tombstones.” Vince McMahon was involved in funding the league during both of those ventures. Network TV reportedly lost $50 million on it and the league had to close after one year. Then, McMahon spent over $200 million to relaunch the league. He also reportedly committed another $500 million to fund it, while adding Fox and ESPN as partners. Then the Covid-19 pandemic hit and shortened their 2021 season. For the restart of the XFL, that was their only launch.

Startup professional football leagues have failed time and time again over the years. Will the XFL be able to survive?

The United States Football League started in 1983, but folded two years later. It was brought back to life back in 2021 and they’re in the second season of its second resurrection. The Alliance of American Football tried in 2019. That league needed $250 million just one week into its’ inaugural season. The AAF only lasted two months.

The most successful out of all the leagues was the Arena Football League, which had a 30-year run. The league featured famous rock stars as owners like Jon Bon Jovi and Gene Simmons. Then the success story of Kurt Warner is one of the most notable underdog stories in sports’ history. He went from the AFL all the way to becoming the two-time NFL MVP. That Arena Football League folded in 2019, but plans to return in 2024.