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I was bored on this fine Sunday, so I created a fantasy digest for a professional wrestling league. I understand that this probably wouldn't happen (at least any time soon) and it would take a near half-billion dollars to responsibly allocate resources, but with all of that aside, I just want to hear some responses on whether or not you would watch and/or invest in this league. Feel free to offer any other ideas. Just wondering what others would think about this. American Premier League (APL) “To breed competition and provide our fans and communities with the ultimate entertainment experience, and to do so in a way that is consistent with our values.” American Premier League Sport Folkstyle wrestling Founded August 20, 20xx Inaugural season 20xx Commissioner TBD No. of teams 32 Country United States Headquarters New York City Most recent champion(s) Most titles TV partner(s) CBS Fox NBC ESPN APL Access Telemundo Official website www.apl.com American Premier League (APL) is a professional wrestling organization consisting of thirty-two teams divided equally between the National Wrestling Conference (NWC) and the American Pro Conference (APC). The APL is the newest of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada, and is the highest professional level of Folkstyle wrestling in the world. The APL’s 17-week regular season runs from mid-October to late February, with each team wrestling 16 duals with one bye week. Following the conclusion of the regular season, the postseason begins with an individual tournament series to determine the weight class champion, which runs concurrent to the team tournament series that will conclude with the World Finals to determine the overall team champion. The APL is governed by the Universal Federation for Professional Athletes, whose focus is to ensure the safety and fairness amongst teams and wrestlers. Weight classes The Universal Federation for Professional Athletes is the organization that regulates the APL. The UFPA has set 12 main weight classes that are currently open to professional competition, ranging from 118 lbs. to heavyweight, which is set at 285 lbs. A wrestler may go up or down from a weight at the start of the postseason if he has recorded at least four weigh-ins of the new weight during the regular season. On the day of a meet, a wrestler may only go up one weight from the weight class he has weighed in at. (Ex: Wrestler normally wrestles 134 lbs., but plans to wrestle 148 for dual, must weigh in at 142 or 148 to be able to wrestle that weight.) Only two wrestlers can weigh in per weight for a team. 118 – 126 – 134 – 142 – 148 – 155 – 163 – 170 – 184 – 197 – 235 – 285 Teams The APL consists of 32 clubs divided into two conferences of 16 teams in each. Each conference is divided into two divisions of eight clubs in each. During the regular season, each team is allowed a maximum of 36 wrestlers on its roster;[43] only 24 of these may be active (eligible to wrestle) on dual days. Each team can also have a 10-man practice squad separate from its main roster, but the practice squad may only be composed of players who were not active for at least nine duals in any of their seasons in the league. A wrestler can only be on a practice squad for a maximum of three seasons. Season format The APL season format consists of a four-week preseason, a seventeen-week regular season (each team wrestles 16 duals), and an eight-team single-elimination tournament culminating in the World Finals, the league's championship dual. Preseason The APL preseason begins with an intrasquad dual meet on each team to determine what wrestler will be awarded the starting job. Since a team is only allowed a maximum of three wrestlers per weight, a round-robin will be used by each team (privately) to determine the intrasquad competitors. Once the intrasquad meets conclude, the preseason continues the next week with a team competing in an exhibition dual against another team outside of their division. The third week of preseason will then see a team compete in an exhibition dual with a team who is in their division. The APL preseason will conclude with the Who’s #1 event to determine initial weight class rankings. A tournament committee will determine seeds based upon preseason record, head-to-head competition, and credentials (e.g.: Olympic, World, or NCAA champion). Regular Season The APL regular season is conducted over 17 weeks with sixteen duals and a bye week. Each team will compete in eight conference and non-conference duals, with at least four duals coming from their own division. Postseason The APL postseason begins with the individual tournament series to determine the official champion for each of the 12 weights. Individual Tournament Series Divisional Championship The divisional championship tournament is an “all-in” format. Each wrestler from all 32 teams automatically qualify for their division tournament. The tournament has an 8-man bracket with full wrestlebacks with seeding criteria based upon having at least one match toward their record, winning percentage, actual record, at least one matches toward division record and head-to-head competition. Only the top four places will move on to the conference championship. Conference Championship The conference championship tournament takes the top four finishers from each of its divisions and places them in an 8-man bracket with full wrestlebacks. Wrestlers will be paired based upon finish in division tournament (e.g.: champion wrestles fourth place finisher, runner-up wrestles third place finisher). Only the top seven places will move on to the individual world finals. World Finals The world championship tournament takes the top seven finishers from each conference and aligns them in a 16-man bracket with full wrestlebacks, only the top four will place. The conference champions and runners-up automatically secure the top four seeds with the champions taking #1 and #2 and runners-up garnering #3 and #4. The conference champions receive an automatic first round bye and move directly into the quarterfinals. For placement, all bronze matches will be conducted at the same time across four mats in increments of four. (e.g.: 118-142, 148-170, 184-285) For championship bouts, an introduction ceremony will take place with wrestlers being brought out along with coaches. The matches will be wrestled under a spotlight and will be followed by a post-match interview, then awards. Awards - Third and fourth place finishers will be introduced first, followed by runner-up, and then champion - Third and fourth place finishers will receive bronze medals and plaque along with team flag and coaches honored - Runner-up will receive a silver medal and plaque, along with team flag and coaches honored - Champion will receive a gold medal, championship belt, plaque, bouquet, and championship ring, along with team song played and coaches honored Team Tournament Series Divisional Championship The divisional championship will be awarded to the team who holds the best record in their division. The top six teams in each division will move on to the conference championship. Conference Championship The conference championship takes the top six teams from each division and places them in a 12-man bracket with the top four seeds earning a first-round bye. The tournament is single-elimination and all semi-finalists will advance to the World Finals. Champions will toggle the #1 and #2 seeds in the world tournament. Semi-final losers will wrestle for third/fourth place to help determine match pairings. World Finals The APL team championship will take the top four teams from each conference and place them in an 8-man bracket with no wrestlebacks. The finals will be conducted under a spotlight with team and starting lineup introductions. The match will be followed by awards. Awards - The runner-up team will be introduced first, championship team will follow - Runners-up will receive silver medals, a runner-up trophy, a plaque, along with their flag to be raised and coaches honored. - Champions will receive gold medals, a championship trophy, plaque, and rings, along with their flag to be raised, coaches honored, team song played, and a speech or tribute given by coaches and wrestlers. Year-End Awards Honors - All-APL Team - All-Conference Team - All-Division Team - All-Rookie Team - Iron League (compare to NFL Pro Bowl or MLB/NBA All-Star Team) Individual Awards - APL Finals Most Valuable Wrestler (Cael Sanderson Trophy) - APL Mental Attitude Award - APL Most Valuable Wrestler (John Smith Trophy) - Citizenship Award (J’Den Cox Trophy) - Coach of the Year (Dan Gable Trophy) - Iron League Most Valuable Wrestler (Robin Reed Trophy) - Most Improved Wrestler - Rookie of the Year (Jordan Burroughs Trophy) - Sportsmanship Award - Teammate of the Year (Nittany Lion Trophy) - Lifetime Achievement Award (Dave Schultz Trophy)