Vince McMahon brings back XFL

The XFL is no longer an ex-football league.

The sexed-up, second-rate football league formed as the early 2000s brainchild of WWE ringleader Vince McMahon is set for a surprising second life in 2020. The league that spawned “He Hate Me” and placed TV cameras in the bathroom flamed out in 2001 after one wild season. Interest in the league was reignited when ESPN aired the “This Was the XFL” documentary that chronicled the spectacular football failure.

McMahon is back in charge, pumping $100 million into the XFL through his new private entity, Alpha Entertainment.

“I’ve always wanted to bring it back,” the 72-year-old McMahon said on Thursday. “I think the most important thing that we learned with the older XFL and now the new XFL is the quality of play. We have two years now to really get it right.”

McMahon, who will continue as chairman and CEO of WWE, offered few other details about the football comeback. The XFL will launch with eight teams, 40-man active rosters and a 10-week regularseason schedule. McMahon said the schedule, designed to fill the seven-month gap without the NFL, could begin as early as the end of January. No cities or TV partners were named.

The league will own the eight teams.

The original XFL was founded by the wrestling company and jointly owned by NBC, and opened to massive TV ratings. But the audience did not stick around on Saturday nights to watch bad football, lascivious cheerleader shots, sophomoric double entendres and other gimmicks that saw ratings plummet and quickly doomed the league.

The XFL in 2001 had eight teams, mostly in major markets, such as Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco. McMahon said the selection of cities in the new XFL will be announced in the next few months, and a mix of major and mid-major markets will be considered.

The XFL postseason will have two semifinal games and a championship game. XFL salaries have yet to be decided, though players will be paid more to win. He wants a 2-hour game and even tossed out the idea of eliminating halftime.

“We will present a shorter, faster-paced, family-friendly and easier to understand game,” McMahon said. “It’s still football. But it’s professional football reimagined.”

This could be a gimmick-free XFL, perhaps without nicknames such as Rod Smart’s “He Hate Me” stitched on the back of his uniform.

NBA

DURANT FINED FOR REFEREE COMMENTS » Kevin Durant was fined $15,000 by the NBA on Thursday for his comments about referee James Williams.

Durant criticized Williams after he was ejected from Golden State’s 123-112 victory over the New York Knicks on Tuesday night.

College hoops

CLEVELAND STATE FALLS TO GREEN BAY » Cleveland State fell, 66-44, to host Green Bay on Jan. 25. The Vikings got into an early 32-13 hole and couldn’t climb out. Guard Dontel Highsmith was the only scorer in double digits with 10 off the bench. Khalil Small scored a game-high 25 points for the Phoenix.