The XFL, pro wrestling promoter Vince McMahon’s second attempt at launching an alternative football league, officially announced team names and unveiled its logos Wednesday ahead of the league’s expected inaugural season in 2020.
The members in the eight-team league are called the:
- Dallas Renegades
- DC Defenders
- Houston Roughnecks
- Los Angeles Wildcats
- New York Guardians
- Seattle Dragons
- St. Louis Battlehawks
- Tampa Bay Vipers
Unlike its gimmicky first incarnation, the new XFL says it will be focused more on creating a fast, simple product it hopes will eventually become a developmental league for NFL hopefuls while playing in the late winter and early spring, exploiting the gap in NFL and college football seasons.
Oliver Luck, a former NFL quarterback and NCAA executive (and the father of Indianapolis Colts QB Andrew Luck) is the league’s commissioner.
Former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Landry Jones is the first player to sign with the new league.
The original incarnation of the XFL lasted just one season in 2001.
