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Unfair WBF & PDI Comparisons for the NSL
- Updated: May 10, 2016
We’ve seen this one before… or have we? When Lee Thompson bolted from the NPC/IFBB to launch the Nspire Sports League (originally named NPC Global for strategic purposes, which worked), a lot of people in the industry fluffed it off as another attempt that went by the wayside like the WBF and PDI before them. But even with those two federations, things nearly broke right for them if not for some bad luck and bad timing.
Only time will tell if the NSL can fare better, but there are a number of differences between these organizations.
WBF
There certainly was no shortage of money with Vince McMahon and the then-WWF (now WWE) mogul was able to easily sway a number of IFBB pros to jump ship with large contracts. But he went overboard with the dog and pony show production and wrestling motif.
Even with that, the WBF could have lasted a lot longer than the few years it did if not for the steroid trial that McMahon had to deal with. Because of the negative attention with the wrestlers and PEDs, the bodybuilders were told that they would be drug tested and it wasn’t going to be of the sham variety, either. Bodybuilding without steroids is…gone.
PDI
This organization has a very distinct similarity in that both Wayne DeMilia and Thompson were higher ups in the IFBB when they left for their own respective ventures. And that is a huge difference from McMahon.
If not for DeMilia’s failing health at the time, the PDI could have become a strong rival to the IFBB.
NSL
The main difference between the above two federations and Thompson’s is that he is giving himself an entire brand to be built through the pro/am aspect of the NSL. Neither the WBF or PDI included an amateur division and with the addition of so many categories in the industry today, there is a plethora of competitors that wouldn’t have been on the scene before. Even though the PDI was around in the mid-2000s, they kept it at bodybuilding.
The way that Thompson is approaching it, he is looking to include all of the divisions, but put his best foot forward with bikini, figure and men’s physique. Those three just also happen to have the largest demographics for potential competitors and fans, alike.
The Texan is also partnering up with companies that are not already in the bodybuilding industry and being from the mainstream areas. His business plan includes television exposure and he and two of the NSL athletes were on a CBS morning show in Dallas promoting the league on May 4.
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The production value of the NSL product has also been high end and that is also a major difference from what the NPC/IFBB does. Venues, promotional material and the overall appearance has been uniform and impressive, while the NPC has been hosting contests in middle school and high school auditoriums with less-than-stellar flyers and websites.
One widely circulated difference has been the NSL’s adoption of the Bodysquid computerized scoring system. Michael Kranitz, CEO of Eventsquid, parent organization to Bodysquid, explains it as follows:
And with IFBB veteran Toney Freeman on board as a competitor/ambassador, the NSL is giving itself more than a fighter’s chance to survive and possibly thrive. Put social media in the mix where it wasn’t around or the marketing monster it is now and there are many tools available to the NSL that weren’t to the WBF and PDI.
So perhaps the NSL can be a viable US-based alternative to the NPC/IFBB after all.
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