Fantasy Focus on the United Football League (UFL)

Fantasy Focus on UFL

UFL or the United Football League is an upcoming American Football league. The league will have its premier season this October 2009 and will last until Thanksgiving with a championship game. There are currently four teams signed up to be part of the league which represents various cities around the country: Las Vegas, New York, Orlando and San Francisco. Because there are only four teams in the league, there will only be six games. This explains the short season.

Former Buffalo Bill, JP Losman, Now Playing with the UFL's Las Vegas Franchise

Competition
Before anyone dismisses the league as another competitor for the NFL, the league essentially has a small niche that might allow it to survive. The operations are relatively small, which means control of the league is relatively easy. The upper management of the league are also experienced NFL managers and part owners which means they know how to improve the image of the league and not just make it another cash cow and run.

Player Salaries
The most impressive feature of the UFL is actually on its salary. The maximum salary allowed per year is only $620,000 which is a little bit above the minimum of the NFL. The minimum salary would be $35,000 and possible bonuses based on performance and additional agreement between the player and the management. $35,000 in just six games is actually not bad for those who wanted to prove their worth. The game might not be about the money anymore but on performance.

The UFL acknowledges the minimal operation of the league. In fact, the team acknowledges that it will tank if the league places itself in direct contention with the NFL. To avoid competition, games will only be played every Thursdays and Fridays. Although NFL will start their Thursday night games in the middle of the UFL’s conference, the UFL is nearing its end which should be interesting as teams will already post their wins and losses.

Further boosting the chances of success for the UFL is that it prides itself as the 2nd option for professional American football players. In fact, former players from NFL will be part of the league. Some even opted to sign to UFL because they were benched in NFL. They can use the UFL as the proving ground that they are improved athletes and should receive better offers. The most anticipated player that could end up in UFL is none other than Michael Vick, the Falcons QB. Since his federal sentence could end up before the start of UFL and NFL is not keen in getting him back, his best shot to prove his capacity is to take on the offer of UFL.

UFL and Fantasy
As a fantasy sports player, what do you get from the league? Simple: another stage where you can practice your number game for the big league called the NFL. The UFL may not be a big league yet, but the commissioner and team owners are ambitious. Learn more about the “small brother” of NFL so that you’ll have a better roster once UFL kicks off its initial season. With or without Michael Vick, this league should be interesting to watch every week.