The XFL has struggled to find its footing in some of its eight cities. It hasn’t struggled to find a small group of fans who loudly object to any statements of fact or opinion that place the resurrected football league in a remotely negative light.
Those folks won’t like this: On Saturday, only 12,116 showed up at cavernous MetLife Stadium to watch the New York Guardians defeat the L.A. Wildcats, 17--14. It can be characterized as the smallest announced attendance yet for an XFL game. In fairness, it also can be called the 14th-largest crowd in XFL history, not including games played in 2001.
Last Sunday, 12,211 showed up in L.A. to watch a game between the Wildcats and the Houston Roughnecks. That comes in at No. 2 (or, as the case may be, No. 13).
At the other end of the spectrum, Seattle and St. Louis consistently are drawing crowds in excess of 20,000. Both teams currently are playing at the Dome at America’s Center, with the BattleHawks leading the Dragons, 17-3.