Here are the 12 Global Poker League Teams and Managers

Staying true to his word, Alex Dreyfus is marching towards his goal of launching the Global Poker League (GPL) in 2016. And the latest big step for the GPL involves releasing names of the 12 teams and their poker managers. That said, let's check out the franchise names and managers, look ahead to the draft, and discuss if the league's current setup stands a good chance of success.

Names of Global Poker League Teams

Berlin Bears – Philipp Gruissem, Team Manager
Hong Kong Dragons – Celina Lin, Team Manager
Las Vegas Moneymakers – Chris Moneymaker, Team Manager
London Royals – Liv Boeree, Team Manager
Los Angeles Sunset – Maria Ho, Team Manager
Montreal Nationals – Marc-Andre Ladouceur, Team Manager
Moscow Wolverines – Anatoly Filatov, Team Manager
New York Rounders – Bryn Kenney, Team Manager
Paris Aviators – Fabrice Soulier, Team Manager
Rome Emperors – Max Pescatori, Team Manager
San Francisco Rush – Faraz Jaka, Team Manager
Sao Paulo Metropolitans – Andre Akkari, Team Manager

2016 GPL Draft

Now that we have the franchises and team managers, the next step will be the Global Poker League draft on Feb. 2016. Part of the American Poker Awards, the 2016 GPL Draft will be hosted by Kara Scott and Phil Hellmuth.

Early word is that the managers will select three players during the draft, and each player must be ranked within the top 1,000 of the Global Poker Index. Furthermore, any eligible player must opt in to the GPL to be drafted; this eliminates the chance that somebody who probably won't play, like Phil Ivey, would get selected. Aside from the drafted players, each franchise will get two wild-card selections to fill out their team.

GPL takes control of all 12 Teams

The current GPL setup is an interesting one, given that, just a few months ago, franchises were supposed to be owned by individuals. But now Dreyfus' league will own all 12 teams, which is a move that was done for a few reasons.

- Instead of sponsorships and advertising deals being spread out across the league, everything will be consolidated. This means that potential advertisers can simply deal with one league, rather speaking to 12 different owners.

- Another perk with this setup is that the GPL can be marketed as a whole entity, instead of each team having to worry about marketing itself.

- There's more parity in franchises now, rather than a bigger-market team like New York enjoying an advantage over the smaller San Francisco, for example.

The approach that the GPL is now taking seems a little more akin to the failed Epic Poker League, which was marketed as a single entity. However, Dreyfus is somebody who's been an entrepreneur in this industry for over a decade — with a great track record of success mind you. Given that he'll have the biggest say in how the league is marketed, the GPL now stands a better chance of doing well than if it operated as a patchwork of 12 teams with a league governing body.