Rabil's Player-First League

A story about how Paul Rabil created a new professional lacrosse league by prioritizing player treatment and media opportunities.

"There was a preexisting league called Major League Lacrosse - they paid their players terribly and treated them not well. It was the only pro league, and no one really cared about it. Empty stadiums, players didn't have healthcare, it was tough to be a pro athlete and not get paid much.

Paul became the number one lacrosse player and had the biggest media platform. He was called lacrosse's first million-dollar man with deals from Red Bull and New Balance. He decided to say 'Hey, this league I play in sucks, we're going to raise money and create our own league.'

He turned to Joe Tsai, the Nets owner who played lacrosse in college and loves the sport. He became the lead investor, and they partnered with Raine Group. They raised money and said 'We're going to pay the players a reasonable salary, give them equity in the league, give them healthcare, and create media opportunities for them.'

The last thing they did was decide not to stick teams in local markets. Instead, they're taking the whole league on tour. It's like a touring circuit where it comes to major markets. What he knew was that in lacrosse, you made money doing camps and clinics. So alongside this, when you go to a major market, you can have camps and turn all these players into camp counselors and trainers. They can build their own businesses that connect to the league."