43°
Oh right, the Washington Commanders.
A potentially winning professional football team is heading to the region as the XFL gears up for its latest reboot with the DC Defenders - changed from the Washington Defenders - dubbed as one of eight teams to kick off Dwayne Johnson’s new league.
The Defenders will be led by head coach Reggie Barlow at Audi Field at Buzzard Point in Washington, DC.
“Coming out of the nation’s capital, the DC Defenders protect their city with unparalleled purpose and drive, impenetrable, bold, and brave, the Defenders defend the DMV with pride,” the XFL announced when changing the team's name.
The Defenders will be joined in the XFL by seven other teams, including the:
- Arlington Renegades (rebranding as Arlington from Dallas);
- Houston Roughnecks;
- Orlando Guardians (moved from New York to Orlando);
- San Antonio Brahmas;
- Seattle Sea Dragons;
- St. Louis Battle Hawks;
- Vegas Vipers (moved from Tampa Bay).
“Every one of these logos has a unique energy, intensity, and electricity that each team and their fans will bring on game day. Now is the time for our fans to get behind a team – THEIR team – and wear these logos and represent their city with pride,” Johnson said.
The XFL has a tumultuous history.
Once a pet project of former WWE head honcho Vince McMahon in 2001, it later folded, only to relaunch in 2020 and get squashed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
In August 2020, Johnson and his longtime business partner Dany Garcia announced that they were purchasing the XFL for $15 million as an experimental league that will begin following the NFL season.
“We could not be more excited to unveil our new team identities. Countless hours of creative sessions and collaboration went into bringing these team brands to life,” Garcia stated.
“Each team’s identity represents the fabric of their local community while also embodying the XFL’s vision and ethos: they are authentic, dynamic, modern, and unapologetically bold.”
The XFL season is scheduled to launch its new season in February 2023 and will be broadcast by the Walt Disney Company and ESPN.
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