XFL suspends operations, lays off all employees: reports

The XFL has suspended operations effective immediately and informed all employees that they have been terminated, according to several employees on social media and multiple media reports.

XFL lays off all employees, suspends operations https://t.co/ZwBRoCkFPi

— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) April 10, 2020

It is not known if the league will resume operations in February 2021, but sources told ESPN the league has no plans to return in 2021.

XFLNewshub.com reporter Konnor Fulk shared on social media that a small “skeleton crew” of league executives will continue to work out of its Connecticut headquarters.

Breaking News: The #XFL has terminated all of its employees. A small “skeleton crew” of league execs will continue to work at the CT HQ.

— Konnor Fulk (@KonnorFulk_XFL) April 10, 2020

The news comes one day after the league announced it will refund all 2021 season tickets.

Employees were told they are receiving their final paychecks on a Zoom conference call with XFL President and Chief Operating Officer Jeffrey Pollack, according to the Houston Chronicle.

The league had ended its inaugural season last month after just five weeks due to the coronavirus pandemic that has shut down a number of other leagues around the world including the end of the NHL and NBA seasons and the beginning of the baseball season.

The Masters golf tournament was scheduled to be held from April 9-12, but has been postponed to November.

The NFL is scheduled to hold its draft virtually later this month. It is planning to start its regular season in early September as scheduled and play the games in front of fans, league officials said on a Tuesday conference call, according to an article on NFL.com.

Other major sporting events have been postponed, including the Kentucky Derby and the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

President Trump held a conference call with the commissioners of major U.S. sports leagues Saturday, with Trump saying he hopes to have fans back at venues by late summer or early fall.

“They want to get back,” Trump said of the sports leagues at a subsequent coronavirus task force briefing. “They’ve got to get back. They can’t do this. Their sports weren’t designed for it. The whole concept of our nation wasn’t designed for it. We have to get back. We want to get back soon.”