Lingerie Football League shedding lingerie, and not in the fun way
In a move sure to polarize fans of what is billed as the "Nation's fasted growing sports league," the Lingerie Football League has announced plans to rename itself the "Legends Football League." As part of the move, the LFL will be ditching the thing that made the league noteworthy in the first place: lingerie.
Lingerie Football League shedding lingerie, and not in the fun way
Ryan Petzar
In a move sure to polarize fans of what is billed as the "Nation's fasted growing sports league," the Lingerie Football League has announced plans to rename itself the “Legends Football League.” As part of the move, the LFL will be ditching the thing that made the league noteworthy in the first place: lingerie.
The league announced the change in a press release this afternoon. Other changes include new team logos absent of "sexy female figures," redesigned shoulder pads to increase protection, and changing their slogan from "True Fantasy Football" to "Women of the Gridiron."
Click here or here for photos of the Philadelphia Passion.
The players will no longer wear modified bras, panties, and garters while playing tackle football on turf (ouch!), instead favoring more traditional performance wear which will “replace all lingerie aspects” of the league’s uniforms.
The league is billing it as “the next step in the maturation of our now global sport.” It goes on to state that the change was made to stop being “viewed as a gimmick” and legitimize the sport by focusing on its athletes’ talents, rather than their bodies.
It’s a good move, if you ask me. More importantly, it’s the right move. I wonder how many potentially fantastic football players didn’t get into the league because they didn’t look as good in their skivvies as a less athletically-gifted player. If you’re going to market the league based on football alone, you better make it so the best players can play, no matter what they look like.
But it’s also worth wondering what impact this will have on the league as a whole. Are the sell-out crowds the league boasts about showing up to watch the exciting seven-on-seven play? Did the LFL become the first female sports league to get its own videogame because of the novelty of football with no punting or kicking? Are Philadelphia Passion fans showing up to the Wells Fargo Center to watch the athletic prowess of the players?
Let’s face it, probably not. After all, the video posted by the league to accompany the press release still shows LFL players pumping iron and doing calisthenics in the skimpiest workout gear imaginable with occasional close-ups of their hard, sweaty bodies. But at least we can get away from the wink-and-nod marketing of the league that danced around the fact that you were basically seeing an angry, mutated version of the Victoria’s Secret fashion show.
When the dust settles, it’ll be interesting to see what happens to the league. Can the LFL succeed where leagues like the Women’s Professional Football League, the National Women’s Football Association, or American Football Women’s League before it failed? Or will a move away from that which made it unique -- T&A – doom the league to the same fate as the others I just mentioned: DOA?
worst business decision ever. they'll be out of business within a year— Ryan- They just killed their business and they will go bankrupt just like the other women football leagues. The WNBA can't even exist without being financed by the NBA, no way people will pay to see all the big ugly women play football that this move is sure to attract.— Jangocat
- this is forrest gump stupid.— Shemp Howard
- who wants to watch broads play football without seeing some skin?— Bob Sacamano
- Stupid is as stupid duhz.— manyhats
- It's worth a shot. Perhaps they will get some solid fanbases. Let's face it, if you're going to one of these games solely to ogle hot chicks you're a damned loser. It's like people who go to Hooters.— regassert6
- Is this a joke? Who would watch women playing football fully clothed? That's just crazy.— pic man
- horrible business moves. no one goes to watch them play football. Whoever came up with this idea will be fired in a year— theman0830
- plenty of people go to hooters. it's hugely successful.— eaglesfillthesky
- Not anymore, they have been closing in droves. Local sportsbars usually have scantily dressed women that are not dressed like its the 70s and early 80s. — Sidewinder7
- quick google search shows 455 hooters in the U.S. alone and unkown number in 24 other countries. i'd say they're doing all right.
- They have closed more then half their stores. Remind me never to go into business with you if you think that is "all right". Three in our area alone (Maple Shade, Del Ave, Marina/Nugget) have closed and one moved locations (Bensalem to Northeast) to try to get things to pick up. — Sidewinder7
- Ha. Their Corporate Executives & Owners are multi-millionaires. Don't worry, I don't need a reminder to not go into business with you. But the way, I'll take my order supersized, Sidewinder7.
- The Tilted Kilt is WAAAAAAY better. Smoking hot chicks dressed in skimpy Catholic school outfits. Food is better too.
- bad business move.— Tyrone Biggums
- This is funny. Who would want to see the girls if they weren't in their lingerie. Must be a bunch of caballeros running the League now.
— GeorgiePorgie68 - Maybe they should be playing on Jello— Bruddah
- If your gonna lose the undies they will need to hire some 300 pound linepersons? In what? Leotards? That would bea site to see... Huzaah— Bruddah
- They already have leagues like this, you hear about them because they are not popular with many fans.— flavious27
- They already have leagues like this, you hear about them because they are not popular with many fans.— flavious27
- This move will appeal to the same guys who read Playboy for the articles.— dasher
- This is like saying that guys go to strip clubs to see dancing.— Boru
- Lingerie Sumo anyone?— OrvalEugeneFaubus
- "stop being “viewed as a gimmick” and legitimize the sport"
I can't even think of what to say. I think maybe they believe people watch them for the competition aspect.— Phils_World_Champs - They never actually wore lingerie, and the first thing you'll notice if you actually attend a game is that they really take the game seriously. It's a lot more fun than watching the Eagles sleepwalk through a game.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvEeZ_kBZz8— Jeff Dowder - I watched the clip.
Its dreadful. Its a combination of pop warner and arena football. And I don't mean that in a good way.
There absolutely no reason to watch this if they don't have scantily dressed, athletic, hot women.— fmMD - I think they ae going in the wrong direction.....they should be the WNFL. Womens Nekked Football League.— rockinrob
- Who possibly thought that this was a good ideas? They need to be identified and fired.— superstar_jr
- Georgie, South American cowboys are running the league?— mike l
- This is the dumbest ides since the USFL decided to compete with the NFL.— Phillies2008WSChamps
- Homer Simpson would be smarter than this.— fmMD
- Are you folks out of you mind.... without the sexy uni's it will be a bust. That was half the entertainment! Now it's just like watching girls sports... ughhh! So the league is going to go bye bye.........— davenash60
- It was never anything more than bush league operation in my humble opinion!— ED4050
- No one cares about women's sports professionally.. No one! the WNBA is an annual money loser and is only in existence because the NBA bankrolls it in the hopes it can attract those same fringe customers to watch the men's game... Twice in a span of 5 years, women's soccer leagues have folded. A third league is being attempted this spring w only 4 teams... yeah, good luck! No one has any interest in women's professional softball, hockey or even the LPGA... Unless a woman is scantily clad, who sincerely wishes to bother watching the play sports?— Dutch10
- Let me guess....This was all Howie Roseman's idea?— Mike Boryla
- It's not going to polarize fans, it's going to lose them...starting with this one, you idiots! Quit trying to make everybody PC, were not.— chuckt63
- "Or will a move away from that which made it unique -- T&A – doom the league to the same fate as the others I just mentioned: DOA?"
Oh gee,I dunno,take a wild guess.— red rock - Regardless of what alot of pervs on this board say I think its time to move away from the gimmicks. I've seen a few games and these girls can actually play the game. They're tougher than everyone commenting here including me because I can honestly say there is no way I or anyone else here would play football underwear on turf or any other surface.— realtruth
- Wow!! do they actually think people go to those games to watch football??? The only reason people go is to see the women in there lingerie with the hoped that something will be pulled down or off. This has to be the dumbest decision ever in the history of womens sports. This league will fold at mid season— MrSmithTP
- At least, if they change their business model, they will die an honorable death.— Phlash
- Just wonder if they will at least have midriff jerseys?— tuffdaddy
- who wrote this stupid article? only a liberal newspaper could endorse such a stupid move as this. if i want to see women pretend to be men, i'll go to a LGBTA rally. the whole point was hot bodies running around in sexy lingerie, not sports! that was the WHOLE POINT!— Mr.Sinatra
- Vince McMahon please step in and buy this league— fuss77
- um as a FAN I am ok with this. They put on a good show and play pretty well— Iknowyourider
- I love how a lot of people are jumping on the league about the uniforms without doing any research. The new uniforms are on their site and Facebook page. There's still a lot of skin there, except it's more of a beach volleyball / track uniform instead of a underwear. So if you're upset about the women being 'covered up', fear not.
This is all just a change of branding. It's still scantily clad women playing football. It's just changing the focus of the league from what they are wearing to what they are playing. There's more of a focus on the sport; it still appears to be showcasing athletic women, all of which may help the quality of play. I think it's an intelligent move, whether or not it's a successful move remains to be seen.— BigBrain61 - Thank you Ed4050!— OrvalEugeneFaubus
- How do you remove the lingerie from the Lingerie Football League? If this really is the fastest growing sports league why would you change the main reason it has been successful.— hpesojc
- Can't we tell these female pro athletes and woman sports commentators to just get lost.— RobertB
- They don't want to be seen as a novelty, and yet it is that novelty that is the only reason they were significant in the first place. Do they think they'll survive as a pro-women's football league? Who would actually pay to see that? The only women's sport I can even somewhat bare to watch is tennis, maybe golf. But other than that, it's just a joke. I never watched this garbage before, now I have absolutely no interest.— fightonphilly
- Good bye LFL.— ACBaughman
- Once again you have all done very well in your witty posts: eg, "this is bush league"; however, only one did the research (on Facebook of course) to find out that the reduction in clothing is minimal and merely a change in style and branding. Go forth and have a great weekend! I was hoping the change would be transparent.— boroughboy
- When the headline said they were ditching the lingerie, I thought they were becoming the NFL - Nude Football League!— uncle meat
- Time to start a Strippers Football League (SFL) with no pretense of ever admitting 400-pound line women on to the field.— orange rhino
- Absurd. But then the whole idea was absurd to begin with. Nobody cares to watch women play football--why bother? Men do it better. Take a lesson from the WNBA who will never break even until they dress their players in skimpy track team style outfits. Sorry ladies, you can't fool Mother Nature.— rob in richfield
- .....still waiting for the punch line here........?— ICEInvestigator55
- But in all seriousness, good for them. It's going to be a tough decision changing the facad of the sport and what people know it to be, but hey there is the WNBA why not the WNFL? Might grow big with cheerleaders ditching the pom-poms for helmet and pads and also gives women more chances to play a sport, so I say good for them, best of luck, but I will admit, I will miss the lingerie aspect of course. Best of luck LFL.— ICEInvestigator55
it is a gimmick, that is why we watch. I couldn't tell you the score of any of their games let alone have i watched if for more then a couple of minutes. you tune in, see who is hot and move on.— marc123- I am all for a legit woman's football league. I won't watch it though. Although this business model smells of Netflix. Awesome idea ruined by greed. They should still have a lingerie league though. I would watch that.— Diddly
- baaad..... http://www.niceandnaughty.ie ....good— Brianw26
- The respect commenters have for women is extraordinary.— HeelYes
- I can't believe all of the negative comments about this article. Women should not have to wear bikinis for the entertainment of men to play a sport. Yes they will lose viewers, and good riddance. Now they can play without being oogled by a bunch of sexists. I don't understand why no one thinks that this will increase the number of female viewers. Take away the gimmicks and give enough incentive for women to seriously be motivated toward being successful players and you'll get a good game.— BH911
