Fate of a Sport

First off I love lacrosse! I think it's the best sport. I want others to love lacrosse as much as I do. One of the ways that most people engage with athletics and their fanaticism is through professional sports. What do you do if your favorite sport's professional league is actually quite amateurish? What if most of the players have to work a second job? Imagine if most of the players in the NBA or the NFL had a regular 9 to 5 and instead of training regularly they were working on Wall Street. That was professional lacrosse until a couple of brothers had enough of it.

Paul Rabil, lacrosse's first million dollar man, and his brother Mike Rabil offered to buy the MLL to help professionalize pro lacrosse. Once they were turned down the journey started to start their own pro lacrosse league. This documentary covers the 4-5 year time period of the beginnings of the PLL. Fate of a Sport is an inside look in the highs and lows of the Rabil's journey to grow the professional sport with an inside view that you can't even get with Hard Knocks.

Fate of a Sport is a documentary that has emotion like a blockbuster movie. The story of how Paul and Mike Rabil risked everything to save the sport they loved is inspirational and emotional. There's many ups and downs in the film as it tackles elements like people tetikg to take them down, social pushes, and Paul fighting to stay the best lacrosse player in the world while building the league. Must watch for all, including non-lacrosse fans. If you don't have a background on lacrosse this film gives enough information so you are not lost, without giving too much information to bore the hardcore fans.

Excellent documentary. The film touched on so many different levels; family, business development, sports, and history. The subjects interviewed, from Adam Silver to Bill Belichick all brought unique perspectives to the screen and helped illustrate how fascinating both the league and the process to create it have been. The piece was digestible for fans of lacrosse and audiences who have never seen the sport, and it has the potential to resonate with all viewers. The raw and emotional behind the scenes footage give it an extraordinarily authentic and vulnerable feel, and by films's end all watchers can't help but root for this league, this sport, and these brothers. Can't wait to watch more of the PLL.

When I first discovered the PLL I was at the end of my sophomore season and at an all time low with my love for the sport. I decided to give the PLL a try and purchased NBC gold.

Even though my Chrome men lost their opening game I knew the PLL was going to be something special. And once again my love for the sport of lacrosse was sparked but this time as a fan. I have watched nearly every PLL game since.

To be able to go back and go on a journey with the Rabil brothers watching them build this league into what it is was truly an emotional experience as I grew up with the league.

And to the Rabil brothers, thank you for all you've done I have had my disagreements with the leagues process but I have always had so much admiration for the PLL pushing forward the sport and the culture of lacrosse as a whole. Lacrosse is for everyone and it's amazing to see the fan base growing more and more everyday becoming more diverse and exciting.

This was an absolute pleasure to watch and I will always love the PLL and my Chrome boys. And Paul what you've done has changed the sport forever, and thank you for putting everything on the line Can't wait to see what the future holds as my playing days are also done too, and I'm excited to just be a fan of the sport o love so much.

Can we get a Chrome LC movie next though??

As a lacrosse fan, I thought I knew a lot about the PLL already, but Fate of a Sport reveals the behind the scenes of the creation of the league and the efforts put forth by the Rabil Brothers. A must watch for any sports fans, Fate of a Sport dives into the Paul Rabil not only creating but playing in the league, a first for any professional player of any sport. I knew that it must've been tough, but never fully pictured what Paul had to go through until I watched this documentary. The film also talks about the historical roots of lacrosse and how the PLL is trying to keep that a part of their league. Awesome exposure for the sport of lacrosse and the history of the game on ESPN, a great film all around. Kudos to Michael Doneger, the Rabil Brothers, and everyone else that helped create the film.