Professional wrestling magnate Vince McMahon is resurrecting the XFL, his ill-fated professional football league that ceased operations after only one season in 2001.

McMahon, the chairman and chief executive of World Wrestling Entertainment, announced on Thursday that he is bringing back the much-maligned league. It was first conceived as an out-of-season competitor to the NFL nearly two decades ago.

The XFL will launch for 2020 with eight teams, 40-man active rosters and a 10-week regular-season schedule followed by playoffs, McMahon said. No cities or television partners were named.

McMahon, who funded the league through a new private entity called Alpha Entertainment, will continue in his current role with WWE.

The XFL first launched in 2001 as a joint venture between the World Wrestling Federeation – as WWE was previously known – and NBC. Promotion for the upstart league promised fewer rules and rougher play, even more scantily clad cheerleaders, cross-promotion with pro wrestling personalities and liberal use of emerging technologies including aerial cameras and player microphones.

The league debuted to massive ratings, but viewership plummeted rapidly as the novelty wore off and lackluster quality of play and a dependence on gimmicks became evident.

Vince McMahon is taking a second crack at professional football.

Unlike the original iteration, McMahon promised a “family-friendly” version of football with “simplified” rules designed to speed up the games to about two hours. He said players with criminal records will not be welcome.

Rumors of an XFL revival began swirling in December when it was revealed McMahon had created a new private entity called Alpha Entertainment that will “explore investment opportunities across the sports and entertainment landscapes, including professional football”. A number of the trademarks McMahon’s ventures have applied for include “For the Love of Football”, “UFL”, and “United Football League”, which prompted observers to speculate on whether the opportunistic McMahon sensed a chance to capture NFL fans who have expressed disgruntlement over the ongoing player protests against social injustice.

“People don’t want social and political issues coming into play when they are trying to be entertained,” McMahon told ESPN. “We want someone who wants to take a knee to do their version of that on their personal time.”

McMahon’s wife, Linda, has served in Donald Trump’s cabinet at head of the federal small business administration since February.