ARLINGTON, Texas — The St. Louis BattleHawks of the previous iteration of the XFL lasted just five games in 2020 before the COVID-19 pandemic prematurely ended the league. But now, a comeback is coming.
On Sunday in Texas, the new XFL, owned in part by Dany Garcia and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson announced the home cities for the return of the league, set to kick off in February, and St. Louis was on the list.
St. Louis was awarded a team along with Seattle, Las Vegas, San Antonio, Arlington, Houston, Orlando and Washington DC. St. Louis, Seattle, Arlington, Houston and DC are the holdovers from the previous XFL.
The league is set to kick off on February 18, 2023.
It is not yet known as of Sunday evening if the St. Louis team will keep the "BattleHawks" nickname going forward.
However, the St. Louis team does have a coach. Former NFL tight end Anthony Becht was confirmed as the St. Louis coach at the kickoff press conference. Becht played one season for the St. Louis Rams back in 2008.
Reggie Barlow, Terrell Buckley, Jim Haslett, Wade Phillips, Bob Stoops, Hines Ward and Rod Woodson round out the head coaches for the teams in the relaunched league.
5 On Your Side had confirmed before the announcement that The Dome at America's Center, where the BattleHawks played during their first stint, had made dates available in the spring of 2023, should the league choose to return to town.
Before the league folded in 2020, St. Louis had the highest attendance totals in the XFL and was set to open up the upper-level seating at The Dome for the next home game.
The new XFL previously announced a multi-year broadcasting rights deal with The Walt Disney Company and ESPN to broadcast games on ABC and ESPN.
With the return of the XFL, the league is planning to collaborate with the NFL on innovation opportunities, playing surfaces and equipment, international development and scouting, officiating and in-game rules.
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