What is the Fan Controlled Football League?
Don’t blink or you could miss it! There’s a new professional football league currently playing games called the FCF. This seems this happens every so often, twice in the last two years, when the NFL winds down its season. Two years ago it was the Alliance of American Football that shuttered mid-season.
Then the reformed XFL started to play with good results before the start of the 2020 COVID pandemic. The resulting shutdown caused the league to close soon after their season started. Now it’s time for the latest league named Fan Controlled Football which is beginning to get some exposure as the season progresses.
So… what the heck is Fan Controlled Football?
Fan Controlled Football is an indoor football league with roots dating back to 2008 when comedian Steve Hofstetter floated a satirical business concept of a fan-controlled baseball team. The idea went through several generations and eventually moved from satire to a working business model.
According to the official site, FCF.io, this incarnation started in 2015 when the group purchased an indoor team in Salt Lake City and applied the fan control idea to the team. Fans helped pick the name – Screaming Eagles – as well as the uniforms and other aspects of running a team. That included everything from coaching hires to recruiting players and “what beer we had on tap” during games.
It also created a chance to test out how fans could sit at home, or from anywhere, and watch games on devices while interacting with their team. Now, the term “armchair quarterback” may be real.
The FCF is a four-team league that is playing a short season in a bubble environment outside of Atlanta in Duluth, Georgia. Games are 7 on 7 and played on a 50-yard field with no goalposts inside Infinite Energy Arena. Games are televised live on Twitch and VENN.
What Makes FCF Different
Will the FCF survive or will it hit the same fate as other leagues in the past? Going up against the NFL is a tough thing to do. That’s why the FCF may stick around for more than one season – they are not trying to be another version of the NFL.
COSTS: First, payroll is not as expensive as a normal football team as there are not as many players. There are no kickers and no special teams. Players make somewhere around $750 bucks a week plus room and board.
TIME: games are shorter averaging about an hour which is perfectly geared towards a modern society with changing TV viewing patterns.
SEASON: Other leagues have tried to mimic the NFL with full schedules of sixteen games, playoff games, and a Championship. The FCF has a short season and a Championship game. Granted, if there are more seasons to follow that schedule will probably increase. This year the format is being tested – expect rule and other modifications – something the NFL is not good at doing in a timely matter.
FANS: The biggest difference between the NFL and the FCF is the role that fans play in the league. With the NFL, and leagues that have tried to compete with them using the NFL format, the idea is to have fans as spectators and consumers. That may be the same for the FCF but the fans can now take an active role in how the game is played while the game is in progress!
It looks like the FCF will complete its inaugural season of four games with two post-season games. That’s something both the Alliance of American Football and the XFL failed to do. Hopefully, an expanded version will kick off in 2022… wait… scratch that. As mentioned above – there are no kickoffs.
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