Mink Reviews X-League Meetings
Published on October 9, 2014 under X-League (X-League) News Release
Following the X-League meetings last weekend in St. Louis, we sat down with Commissioner Michael Mink to get his thoughts on the meetings, changes to the league, and the overall outlook and future of the league.
What did you think about the meetings overall?
MM:I thought the meetings went very well. We had a lot of good ownership groups there that had expressed new ideas and wanted to learn more in regards to sales and marketing from each individual team. On Saturday the Co-Founder of Monavie and Olympian Henry Marsh attended our meetings, and spoke with the teams. There were several other vendors present that talked about how to improve our team marketing, and sales. We also had Kevin Milliken Commissioner of the Major Arena Soccer League attend our meetings on Sunday. We hope to build a relationship with them and continue to help our member teams, and continued growth.
I know that a lot of people have expressed some concerns about the double-points "gimmick" in the final minute of play. What is the league going to do about that?
MM: We tried it in year one, and we put it to vote. The owners have decided to eliminate double-points. Now in the last minute of the game, and in overtime you can go for a four point conversion from the 25 by run or pass, or by a two point conversion by kick from the 25. The NFL has done some research on it, too, and are considering something new as well. We think we're ahead of the curve on this.
Explain the changes in defensive scoring:
MM: The owners were really pleased on defensive scoring. We all voted for one point for a defensive stop and 8 for touchdown return by fumble recovery or pick 8. We believe in this game defense should be rewarded because it's the hardest thing. And like above, the NFL is looking at other options for defensive scoring.
What do you think the league talked about in the meetings that will really help the teams this season?
MM: I think our focus on team marketing, ticket sales and sponsorship advertising sales was good. The teams did a great job communicating success stories between each other and we also heard what was really successful in the MASL. It's important to know what others in the sports industry are doing.
Did the owners vote on any operation / guideline changes?
MM: Fortunately in the X-League we are run like a republic. Every team gets one vote and the majority wins. We had several issues put to vote and the owners voted on the changes. That's what makes this a great league as the owners fine tune the operational guidelines as we move ahead year to year.
Did the league have any changes in play format from last year?
MM: No, we are going to continue with the same format - four home and four away and teams may play two additional non-league games that don't count towards the standings. This will help reduce costs but still allow everyone to have enough home games to satisfy their sponsors and ticket holders.
When do you expect the schedule to be announced?
MM: The expansion deadline is October 31 for new teams to come into the league. The first two weeks of November I will call the arenas and chambers to make sure we're ready to go. Then I will go forward and we expect to release it between the 16th and 21st. Then teams can have tickets available by Thanksgiving and Christmas Holiday.
When do you plan on the season starting in 2015?
MM: We will start the last weekend of March, and end the last weekend of May. Post season will begin in June. Right now the playoff structure isn't set. We plan to discuss that once we finalize the league schedule. The owners will vote on the playoff format.
What do you expect the future of this league to be?
MM: I issued the X-League Championship Challenge this week and we hope one day that the top indoor leagues can play and settle their differences on the field and not on the message boards. I would rather do it on the field than on Facebook. You won't hear me talking negative about anyone, I want to be positive or not talk. We know the X-League isn't for everyone and we know there are teams that do and don't want to be in the league. We want the teams that want to be with us. We will build with them and move on from those that don't.
I think the future is bright for us. We had over 7,600 people in the X-Bowl at the Family Arena and had 2,400 viewing it online. It was the best championship game I've seen or been involved in. We hope to improve on that and continue to grow and expand our footprint geographically around the country.
The X-League is currently a nationwide 10 team professional indoor arena league. For more information visit X-League - Home. The league is owned and operated by Michael Mink and Kacee Smith officers o X-League professional Sports LLC.
X-League Stories from October 9, 2014
- Raines Hopes to Lead Marine Raiders to Another Championship - Florida Marine Raiders
- Mink Reviews X-League Meetings - X-League
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
