End of the Gold Rush

The World Football League never had a chance. Launched two years ago, the league immediately ran into problems. Teams padded attendance figures, franchises flitted from town to town, network TV contracts never materialized, and deficits zoomed to $20 million by the end of the first season. This year, following a reorganization, the "new" W.F.L. did little better. By the time it died last week, few fans cared. Meanwhile, 380 players were jobless. Among them are a handful of celebrated N.F.L. expatriates, including Running Backs Larry Csonka and Jim Kiick and Wide Receiver Paul Warfield from the Miami Dolphins. When, if ever, they can overcome legal entanglements to rejoin the Dolphins or sign with another N.F.L. team is uncertain. What is certain is that an era has ended. The gold-rush days of expansion are over.

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