Should The NHL Be Worried About The XFL?

There’s a new sports league in town. The NHL shouldn’t be worried, but hopefully, they took notice.

This past weekend saw the new XFL kickoff to seemingly rave reviews. While my attention is turned to the sport on ice, what about other fans? What does the NHL think? With the XFL as a new player in the sports market, should the NHL be worried?’

I know what you’re probably thinking, that they are two entirely different sports so why would one fandom affect the other. While the XFL most likely won’t even be a blip on the radar of die-hard NHL fans, especially those who don’t bother to pay attention to the NFL, what about casual hockey fans?

After the Super Bowl, there’s a roughly one or two-month window before baseball season begins where basketball and hockey are the only major sports in season. Those who only have a fleeting interest in hockey might tune into some NHL games, or even buy tickets to one.

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With the XFL in town, attention might be turned elsewhere. If you’re a football fan before anything else, after your beloved NFL throws in the towel for a few months, you’re more likely to tune into the XFL and give that a try than hockey.

Next take a look at where the XFL has teams. Right now the XFL only has eight teams (nine including a league-wide practice squad), six of which share locales with NHL teams (Houston being the lone exception).

One city, Seattle, is slated to be the recipient of the NHL’s 32nd franchise. Considering how enthusiastic their fan base is for a team that hasn’t even revealed their name yet and has a history of minor and junior hockey in the area, I wouldn’t be too worried.

Although the XFL hasn’t announced any expansion plans, Canada doesn’t seem to be on the horizon anytime soon. That hasn’t stopped the XFL from reaching a Canadian broadcast deal with TSN. The NFL has long had connections to Canada. For example, the Buffalo Bills have played games in Toronto and rumored to even move there. Canada also has their own historic Canadian Football League, but unlike the XFL, a majority of their season doesn’t overlap the NHL’s.

The XFL’s television contracts are a mixed bag for the NHL. The XFL reached a broadcast agreement with both Fox and Disney (via their ABC and ESPN channels) for television rights, including nationally televised games. The NHL has long struggled for American television exposure, so seeing big companies immediately embrace an almost unproven XFL product might be of some concern.

On the other hand, the NHL shouldn’t be that afraid of the XFL’s television presence. For one, the XFL only broadcasts on weekends, for a maximum of two game days a week, compared to the NHL’s spread out schedule. In addition the NHL’s main American television broadcast partner, NBC, currently has no hand in the XFL.

The XFL is still a huge bet on the part of Vince McMahon and company. Even if the first one claims to be a success, it’s still a very small sample size and there’s still a lot of time for things to go wrong (remember last year’s AAF and the original XFL?) The NHL shouldn’t be alarmed, but they should keep an eye on the seemingly emerging league.

So far seems so good for the XFL. The league put together satisfying ratings for their opening week. While it’s not a given, if the XFL continues to succeed, the NHL might have another competitor on the block fighting for the post Super Bowl sports fan.