Gridiron America Radio

On the day in which Japan won the world championship of baseball over America, Greg and Dave talk about the tanking ratings of the XFL and frustrations over the league's seemingly deaf tone towards their fans and continued making of unforced errors off the field, particularly as it relates to marketing and fan engagement. The guys sit down and dissect the numbers and debate whether streaming m...

In the annals of professional football, aside from the American Football League, only one other league has truly challenged the dominance of the NFL, and that was the United States Football League of the 1980s. Unlike other spring leagues, all of which are small potatoes comparatively, the USFL forever changed how we look at professional football and how we not only watch the game, but also view u...

In a weekend where many expected the XFL to fall flat, and despite continuing to fall in the ratings, the league put on a great show in most of its venues, with the Battlehawks setting the all-time attendance record for spring football.  Hold on. What a second... That's wrong, the first USFL set that record, back in the 1980s.  However, despite The Rock's continued hyperbolic statements...

On March 13, 1960, the city of Chicago lost its original NFL team, the now Arizona Cardinals. The Cardinals were birthed on Chicago's southside and played most of their seasons at Comiskey Park; however, despite their being the city's original NFL team, they were not its flagship franchise, with that distinction going to their northside rivals, the Bears, who played their games at the friendly con...

At the dawn of the 21st Century, in the winter of 2001, a new gridiron football league appeared on the sports scene. The brainchild of wrestling promotor Vince McMahon and television executive Dick Ebersol, the XFL sought to become the premier weekly sporting event in America during the NFL off season.  As most football fans, the original XFL fell short and, as the name of the title suggests,...

For week three Dave and Greg look at the game both on and off the field as week three provided plenty of excitement as fan attendance increased, but ratings continued to nosedive. Also talked about is why San Antonio and not St. Louis was granted the XFL championship game and the unionization of the players, as well as the perceived move of desperation from FX to ABC.

The 107th Grey Cup game was played on November 24, 2019, before 35,440 fans at McMahon Stadium in Calgary.

The 106th Grey Cup game was played on November 25, 2018, before 55,819 fans at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton.

The 105th Grey Cup game was played on November 26, 2017, before 36,154 fans at TD Place Stadium in Ottawa.

The second episode of the season finds Greg James joined by former sports executive Dave Cieslinski for a candid look as to how the XFL performed in weeks one and two. Dave provides a perspective that you won't find on other XFL podcasts. He knows what it takes to put bottoms in the seats and to get fans interested so that they return. The two discuss ticket sales, attendance and ratings, and Dave...

In the world of sports history podcasting, there is a curious little one that has carved out a niche covering the world of defunct leagues and teams from yesteryear. "Good Seats Still Available" has its roots in Tim Hanlon's youth, when he fell in love with the New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League, who unfortunately, like the league itself departed us to soon, and thus began for him...

For this third episode we move up to the Great White North as Greg sits down with Don and Heath of the Third Down Gamble podcast , where they go team by team through the Canadian Football League and review last year's performance and review all that has happened in the off season. The three also talk about the ownership struggles within the league and the challenges presently faced by the teams in...

The 104th Grey Cup game was played on November 27, 2016, before 33,421 fans at BMO Field in Toronto.

In the inaugural episode of his new XFL podcast, Greg James adds his laid-back historical approach to the crowded XFL field. Unlike the other XFL shows, he does not mince words as to what he believes was an under-performing week one. Specifically, he calls out the league for catering to the white male wrestling crowd and talks about how the marketing sucks. He also discusses what he believes were...

It is XFL kickoff eve in America! In this episode Greg sits down with the elder half of The World of Football podcast dynamic duo, Randy Snow. Randy is the Adam West to his own son Adam's Burt Ward, both of whom who broadcast weekly from the Man Cave news and history lessons that encompass the gridiron game around the world, including where Greg is, in Japan. Greg and Randy review the news out of...

In this episode, Greg sits down with Canadian football historian and scholar, Dr. Frank Cosentino, to talk about his playing career and the CFL as a cultural institution in the 20th Century, especially during the time he played. They also discuss how the CFL dealt with the threat of the WFL in the 1970s, during which John Bassett planned on placing a franchise in Toronto. Lastly, they discuss the...

From Japan, it's Greg James of CFL America Radio and the Sports History Network with a new show filled with commentary and observations about the XFL, as well as analysis of league news, and those important items that affect the business of gridiron football.

Welcome to the first episode of "Gridiron America," where Japan based Greg James (co-host of the "From the 55 Yard Line" and "Gridiron Japan" podcasts) sits down with fellow podcasters and gridiron experts to talk about the game outside of the lines. In this inaugural episode ("the beta episode") Greg sits down with fellow Sports History Network member, Aron Harris of "The Football Odyssey" to rev...

The 103rd Grey Cup game was played on November 29, 2015, before 36,634 fans at Investors Group Field in Winnipeg.

When one thinks of Howie Mooney , their first thought is about sports and sports history. Currently, he is the host of the Sports Lunatics Show, a sports history podcast, on the FiredUp Network, a Toronto website. He also writes a sports history column there. Indeed, his first venture into the world of sports history came when he began researching his first Canadian sports history calendar back in...

The 102nd Grey Cup was played on November 30, 2014, before 52,056 fans at BC Place in Vancouver.

The 101st Grey Cup was played on November 24, 2013, before 44,710 fans at Mosaic Stadium at Taylor Field in Regina.

The 100th Grey Cup was played on November 25, 2012, before 53,208 fans at Rogers Centre in Toronto.

The 99th Grey Cup was played on November 27, 2011, before 54,313 fans at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver.

The 98th Grey Cup was played on November 28, 2010, before 63,317 fans at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton.