XFL taps Oliver Luck as commissioner and chief executive

The newly relaunched XFL professional football league has named Oliver Luck its first commissioner and CEO.

Luck was a quarterback for the NFL”™s Houston Oilers from 1982 to 1986. After retiring from the Oilers, he served as president of NFL Europe and general manager of the league”™s Frankfurt Galaxy and Rhein Fire. His career also saw him as director of athletics at his alma mater, West Virginia University, and as the first president and general manager of Major League Soccer”™s Houston Dynamo. Most recently, he was executive vice president of regulatory affairs and strategic partnerships for the NCAA.

Stamford-based WWE Properties International and NBC co-owned the original XFL, an eight-team league that played a single season in 2001 before shutting down as a ratings and financial failure. WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon announced the reboot of the XFL in January, aiming for a premiere season in 2020.