Uniquely Alabama: Pro Football Courting Birmingham Again

"Uniquely Alabama" is an occasional series where Patch tries to find the answers to questions about life in Alabama. Have a question about the Yellowhammer State that needs answering? Send it to michael.seale@patch.com.

Football fans in Alabama have heard this probably too many times before. Professional football may come to the state in another off-brand football league. That's right, a new version of the United States Football League has its eyes on Birmingham. Again.

I do not want to be negative. But let's face it, you can't blame me (or anyone in Alabama, for that matter) for being skeptical regarding the potential success of this new football venture. We have been through the World Football League, the initial USFL, the Canadian Football League, the World League of American Football, Arena League, the XFL and the Alliance of American Football — all of whom courted Birmingham only to take the pigskin away and leave.

Here is what we know about this new USFL venture:

• Fox Sports owns the league and has committed $150 million over three years to its operations.
• The league would play all its 43 games in Birmingham in a "bubble" format similar to the National Basketball Association’s 2020 season.
• The season would run from April 15-July 3 next year
• The teams would not have a location affiliation at first, but the idea is to showcase the league in the "Birmingham bubble" in hopes that cities could eventually "claim" a team in the 8-team league.
• Birmingham will contribute $500,000 to USFL expenses, with Jefferson county matching

BJCC president Tad Snider said the city is getting closer to finalizing the deal that would bring the league to the Magic City.

"The Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex (BJCC), the Greater Birmingham Convention and Visitors Bureau, the City of Birmingham and Jefferson County have identified and secured financial commitments in order to advance the opportunity to host the 2022 inaugural season of the USFL in Birmingham," Snider said. "Many stakeholders are working diligently toward realizing this tremendous opportunity for our community. It’s involved a significant collaboration among Mayor Randall Woodfin, the Birmingham City Council, the Jefferson County Commission and Commission President Jimmie Stephens, the Greater Birmingham Convention and Visitors Bureau and the BJCC."

One benefit from having the USFL here is that all players and personnel for the eight teams would end up using 47,000 hotel rooms over the 12-week span. That's good for the hospitality industry here.

And as I have said many times before, Alabama is a football-crazed state, so football fans would have the chance to see pro football games in the new Protective Stadium. That's another plus.

But let's be realistic here. How many people are going to pay to watch the Unaffiliated Gamblers play the Unaffiliated Express? Because unlike the 1984 version of the USFL, that match-up is not going to feature the likes of Jim Kelly and Steve Young. And without a true rooting interest in these teams, will the fans come out and watch?

Perhaps, though, fans in the seats are not what the USFL needs. Maybe they just want people to tune in to watch on television. But even with that being the case — or, especially if that is the case — who is going to get into these games other than folks who just want to watch a football game in June?

That brings me to my other point. I remember going to the Birmingham Stallions games in the previous incarnation of the USFL and those aluminum seats at Legion Field got pretty dang hot in the middle of the day in June. I cannot imagine Protective Stadium being any different. April to July is oppressively hot in Alabama. And while I remember the old Stallions fondly (Joe Cribbs, Cliff Stoudt, Joey Jones, etc.), I also remember not really liking being at the games in the heat and humidity. Just saying.

Look, I love football and if this thing happens, I'll be there to watch a game or two. But again, don't blame me for being skeptical. We had the Americans, the Vulcans, the Stallions, the Fire, the Barracudas, the Steeldogs, the Bolts and the Iron come and go. A couple of those teams didn't even have the courtesy to finish out the season. So forgive me if I am a little jaded.