Movie spotlight
Small Potatoes: Who Killed the USFL?
In 1983 the upstart United States Football League (USFL) had the audacity to challenge the almighty NFL. The new league did the unthinkable by playing in the spring and plucked three straight Heisman Trophy winners away from the NFL. The 12-team USFL played before crowds that averaged 25,000, and started off with respectable TV ratings. But with success came expansion and new owners, including a certain high profile and impatient real estate baron whose vision was at odds with the league’s founders. Soon, the USFL was reduced to waging a desperate anti-trust lawsuit against the NFL, which yielded an ironic verdict that effectively forced the league out of business. Now, almost a quarter of a century later, Academy Award-nominated and Peabody Award-winning director Mike Tollin, himself once a chronicler of the league, will showcase the remarkable influence of those three years on football history and attempt to answer the question, “Who Killed the USFL?”
Insights
Plot Summary
This documentary explores the rise and fall of the United States Football League (USFL), a professional football league that challenged the NFL in the 1980s. It delves into the league's ambitious beginnings, its controversial decisions, and the ultimate factors that led to its demise.
Critical Reception
As a documentary focused on a specific sports business story, critical reception was varied, with many focusing on its thoroughness in recounting the USFL's history and the complex personalities involved.
What Reviewers Say
Offers a detailed look at the business and political machinations behind the USFL.
Highlights the key figures and their roles in the league's ultimate failure.
Explores the ambitious vision and the eventual downfall of a competitor to the NFL.
Google audience: Information regarding Google user reviews specifically for this documentary is not readily available.
Fun Fact
The documentary suggests that a key factor in the USFL's demise was its decision to move its championship game to the same day as the NFL's Super Bowl, a move that significantly impacted viewership and media attention.
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