Dwayne Johnson's XFL Reportedly Lost An Estimated $60 Million In First Season

It appears that co-owner Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's XFL, according to Forbes, lost an estimated $60 million in just its first season. Some of the jobs reportedly even had to be cut. Though ownership told Forbes that the XFL has capital commitments in place "for years one through four" and co-owner Gerry Cardinale, who is the founder of Red Bird Capital, noted how he "expects the XFL to become a cash-flow positive by 2027." 

People that are familiar with the XFL's finances told Forbes, that for the next season, the league is projected $100 million in revenue. ESPN pays the XFL $20 million per season and the league reportedly has signed sponsorships with Progressive and Under Armor.

The XFL has a multi-year agreement that will last until 2027 with The Walt Disney Company and ESPN. The league's championship game was on May 13 and saw the Arlington Renegades beat the D.C. Defenders. The game averaged 1.4 million viewers on ESPN, while the attendance record was 22,754. The TV ratings averaged around 627,000 per game over its 44 regular season games.

While the first iteration of the XFL lasted for one season in 2001, the second iteration didn't even make it that far — the league had to stop halfway through the first season in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After that, the XFL had to declare bankruptcy, and in August 2020, The Rock, Dany Garcia, and Cardinale's Red Bird Capital purchased the league from Vince McMahon for roughly $15 million.