Dwayne Johnson has been busy promoting the XFL, a minor professional football league. On January 6th, Johnson took to social media to reveal the official schedule for XFL 2023. While many congratulated the Brahma Bull, some weren’t too kind and lashed out at him.

Several Instagram users brutally roasted the People’s Champion and filled the comments section with snide remarks.

One netizen wrote about an impending bankruptcy: “bankruptcy 3.0 comin”, while another poked fun at his latest row with DC.

“Let’s hope it doesn’t flop like the first time around…Or Black Adam,” the user wrote.

Fans also called out the lack of creativity behind the team names and likened the league with middle school football.

“If these aren’t the most lamest team names ever lol, them Sunday leagues be more creative 😂,” one comment read.

Another said, “This is the equivalent of the middle school football team starting their own league with a bunch of the other neighbor kids. Bet you ten bucks they would even called it the XFL because it “sounds dope”.”

The XFL 2023 season will kick-start on February 18th with a game between the Vegas Vipers and the Arlington Renegades. The same day, a second match will be played between the Orlando Guardians and the Houston Roughnecks.

The eight teams will play a total of 40 regular season games. The two playoffs are scheduled to take place on April 29th and 30th, respectively. The championship game will be played on May 13th.

What does the X in XFL stand for?

For the unversed, Dwayne Johnson and his former wife Dany Garcia purchased the XFL from ex WWE boss Vince McMahon in 2020. McMahon, who retired from the pro wrestling giant after 40 years of service in 2022, pocketed $15 Million after the sale.

On July 13, 2022, the Hollywood star revealed the meaning behind X in the XFL. “X of the @XFL2023 = the intersection of dreams & opportunities,” he tweeted in response to footballer DuShon David’s tweet.

During his promotions, the Jumanji star has spoken about the XFL being an opportunity for young talents to hone their skills. In a recent Instagram post, he also shared the reason behind his jersey number 54.

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Dwayne Johnson, who is a second-generation pro wrestler, followed in his father Rocky Johnson’s footsteps to enter the square circle.

However, before making it big in the pro wrestling business, The Rock was an aspirational football player who wanted to join the NFL. That, sadly, did not materialize, forcing him to choose another path.

Sharing the story about his rejection, he told a bunch of XFL players that he was always number 54 on the NFL draft list. The draft would take up to 53 players.

The big man, however, was able to push aside the initial rejections and channelize his frustrations into building his $800 million empire over the next three odd decades.

However, 2022 was a lukewarm year for the global movie star. He was embroiled in several controversies that dented his image a tad.

Dwayne Johnson riled DC with growing demands before eventual rift

By now, almost half of the world has read about the failure of Black Adam at the box office and the rift between The Great One and DC studios. If not, here’s a recap. Johnson, who starred as the titular anti-hero in Black Adam, failed to deliver the goods in terms of numbers.

Not just that, he obsessively campaigned for Henry Cavill’s return as The Superman, which ultimately backfired as Cavill lost his job, albeit after a Black Adam cameo.

To make matters worse, Dwayne Johnson had tweeted revenue figures for Black Adam and said the film was set to make profits, despite various sources stating the opposite.

Now, reports have emerged that DC wasn’t happy with Johnson’s growing demands, much before the Black Adam saga unfolded.

According to Variety, The Brahma Bull demanded a producing credit on “DC League of Super-Pets”. The outlet claimed that Dwayne Johnson also asked the production company to promote his tequila brand, Teremana, by installing a bar at the New York premiere of “Black Adam”.

“His demands increased and the returns just weren’t there,” Variety quoted an insider as saying.

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The Rock, however, looks to have moved on from the DCU and now plans to concentrate on other projects.

In a recent Instagram post, he spoke about accepting failures in order to achieve success. Even with all the negativity surrounding him, one can expect the most electrifying wrestler to bounce back strong, like he has all these years.