2026 UFL season

2026 UFL season
LeagueUnited Football League
SportAmerican football
DurationRegular season:
March 27 – May 31
Playoffs:
June 7 – 13
Games43 (40 regular-season games, 3 postseason games)
Teams8
TV partner(s)ABC, ESPN, Fox, FS1
Streaming partner(s)ESPN app, Fox One, DAZN
Draft
Picked byTBD
2026 UFL Championship

The 2026 UFL season is the upcoming third season of the United Football League.

Offseason

In July 2025, the UFL sold a large minority stake of itself to Impact Capital, a private equity fund owned by multibillionaire sports drink founder Mike Repole, who assumed direction of the league's business operations.[1][2]

Even before Repole's management had been made public, news broke that the entire USFL Conference was being potentially shopped for relocation to potential expansion markets,[3] due to a number of factors: Birmingham and Houston due to declining and underperforming attendance, Michigan due to exorbitant stadium costs at Ford Field and an unwillingness to use the only other viable stadium Rynearson Stadium,[4] (while later reports suggested that the Panthers' future could be tied to the planned AlumniFi Field, a 15,000-seat stadium scheduled to open in southwest Detroit in 2027 as the new home of Detroit City FC[5]) and Memphis due to the death of sponsor Fred Smith and even worse attendance.[6] Repole first addressed the Birmingham Stallions by challenging the Stallions fan base to purchase 5,000 season ticket deposits in order to keep the team in Alabama;[7] though the drive fell short of that number, Repole was impressed by the speed in which the city had invested in 2,200 season tickets and a corporate suite that had not yet even been put up for sale and confirmed the Stallions were safe from relocation for 2026, but that he hoped the city would purchase 15,000 to 20,000 tickets per game for the upcoming season to continue beyond that.[8] His overall target for attendance across the league is between 10,000 and 15,000 fans per game, compensating by using smaller, more intimate stadiums that would avoid the empty seats and lack of ambiance that Repole felt made the games feel like "a COVID game."[2]

Among potential relocation targets, Columbus, Ohio had been named as a potential new market for the UFL in 2026 as early as April 2025.[9][10] The UFL confirmed the addition of a Columbus UFL team shortly after Repole's arrival.[1] Other possible candidates for relocation for the 2026 season were identified in the offseason including Louisville, Kentucky at Lynn Family Stadium. Boise, Idaho and Lexington, Kentucky were identified in early reporting but they either denied having heard from the league or stated they could not host games in 2026.[11]

Though the UFL had initially planned to expand to 10 teams for 2026,[12] Repole paused those plans and chose to keep the league at eight teams for 2026, with intent to begin the oft-delayed expansion by 2028[1] and have a 16-team league by 2035.[2]

On October 7th the UFL announced three new franchises, the Columbus Aviators playing at Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio; The Louisville Kings playing at Lynn Family Stadium in Louisville, Kentucky; and the Orlando Storm playing at Inter&Co Stadium in Orlando, Florida. The league also announced that the Arlington Renegades would become the Dallas Renegades and play at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, TX; and that the Houston Roughnecks would become the Houston Gamblers and move to Shell Energy Stadium. It also announced that new head coaches, uniforms and the 2026 schedule would be announced at a later date.[13]

Teams

Relocations and rebrandings

Teams in the 2026 UFL season
Team Location Stadium Capacity Head coach
Birmingham Stallions Birmingham, Alabama Protective Stadium 47,100 A. J. McCarron
Columbus Aviators[14][15][16] Columbus, Ohio Historic Crew Stadium 19,968 Ted Ginn Jr.
Dallas Renegades Frisco, Texas Toyota Stadium 20,500 TBD
DC Defenders Washington, D.C. Audi Field 20,000 Shannon Harris
Houston Gamblers Houston, Texas Shell Energy Stadium 20,656 TBD
Louisville Kings[16] Louisville, Kentucky Lynn Family Stadium 11,700 TBD
Orlando Storm[17][16] Orlando, Florida Inter&Co Stadium 25,500 TBD
St. Louis Battlehawks St. Louis, Missouri The Dome at America's Center 67,277 Anthony Becht
Locations of current teams for the 2026 UFL season.

Players

In November 2025, Repole revealed in an interview that each team will carry 60-man rosters to training camp (compared to 75 in the 2024 season and 64 in the 2025 season), with regular season rosters set at 45 (down from 50 in the 2025 season) without specifying how many will be on the game day roster and if the teams will carry a practice squads.[18] Those numbers are different from the once that were negotiated in the CBA.[19]

Unionization and compensation

This is the second and final year of the UFL's collective bargaining agreement with the United Football Players Association. Under the agreement, player minimum salaries will be set at $6,400 per game, with each player also receiving seven months of health insurance and access to year-round coverage under COBRA.[20][21] UFL players will also be entitled for "players accolade bonuses" for Player of the week ($1,000), Player of the year ($5,000), and MVP ($7,500), with winners of the 2026 UFL Championship Game winning a $5,000 per-player bonus.[19]

Draft

The 2025 UFL draft has not yet been scheduled, after previous plans to hold the draft in September fell through due to continued uncertainty about team composition.[22] The delay in the draft from its previous scheduling in July was in part because a large number of the players who were drafted in 2024 (including first overall selection Jason Bean) had opted to remain in the NFL,[23] prompting the league to place its draft after NFL preseason cuts and practice squad assignments to better assess who will be available.[24] The San Antonio Brahmas, by virtue of finishing last in the league in 2025 (and not being scheduled against the second-last team in Week 10 of the regular season, which would have triggered a rule granting the winner of that game the first overall selection), were to hold the first overall selection. With the Brahmas being relocated, one of the three new cities will instead hold that selection.

Player movement

Beginning in the 2025–26 offseason, UFL players who have accrued two years under contract to the same team will be allowed to test free agency.[25][26]

Coaches

After initially implying that he would be joining the Tennessee State Tigers staff and leaving his position as interim head coach, Shannon Harris agreed to stay on as the DC Defenders' head coach on a permanent basis. He will work both jobs for their upcoming seasons.[27]

Of the three coaches of teams who were relocated, Michigan's Mike Nolan was formally terminated November 15;[28] San Antonio's Wade Phillips had reached the end of his contract[29] (he had not taken any action on an offer to return to the UFL before Repole's arrival);[30] and no word has emerged on the fate of Memphis's Jim Turner as of December 2025.

Team Departing coach Incoming coach Reason for leaving Notes
Columbus Aviators — Ted Ginn Jr. — Ginn has never held a coaching position at any level. He had spent 14 seasons as a journeyman wide receiver in the National Football League.[31]
Houston Gamblers Curtis Johnson TBA Fired Johnson had spent three seasons as Houston's head coach, accruing a record of 11–19 (.367) and no playoff appearances. He was fired November 29 as part of Repole's internal overhaul.[32]
Dallas Renegades Bob Stoops TBA Retired Stoops was the first head coach to be hired in either of the UFL's predecessors and had been the only coach in the Renegades' history. He accrued a record of 16–21 (.432) over the course of 3½ seasons in the XFL and UFL, including an XFL Championship in 2023. He announced his retirement from football December 15, 2025.[33]
Birmingham Stallions Skip Holtz A. J. McCarron Unclear Holtz, the winningest coach in UFL history with three league championships and a 39–8 (.830) record in four years as coach of the Stallions, announced that he would not be returning as the Stallions' head coach on December 16, 2025, a move that Holtz stated was "not retiring" and a "pause" while he pursued other opportunities.[34]

McCarron was most recently the starting quarterback for the St. Louis Battlehawks in the 2023 and 2024 seasons; he had spent 2025 out of football after an attempt to sign with the San Antonio Brahmas was nixed by the Brahmas general manager. At the time of his acceptance of the Stallions position, he had been the frontrunner candidate in the Lieutenant Governor of Alabama race for 2026; McCarron withdrew his candidacy the day after Holtz's exit and was formally announced as coach the day after that.[35] His experience as a coach had theretofore been limited to youth-level flag football.[36]


Season structure

Preseason

This is the fourth year of the league's agreement with Arlington, Texas, to serve as the league's centralized hub. Repole indicated that the hub model would be continuing for 2026 but that time in individual markets would be increased (he mentioned potential two- to three-day stays during game weeks and ten-day stays when teams play back-to-back home games) so that teams can build followings in their home cities.[2]

Regular season

The UFL will continue to follow its model of a ten-week regular season. How the scheduling will play out without conferences or divisions has yet to be determined, as the scheduling formula used by all of the eight-team spring leagues of the 21st century have all relied on two four-team divisions to ensure an even schedule of playing each division rival home and away and the other division teams once. In a late August 2025 interview, Repole indicated that the season would likely run from the weekend of "March 1 through the end of June."[37] This would have been four weeks earlier than previous years and closer to the XFL's post-Super Bowl window. Repole reversed this and stated that the season would again start on the last Friday in March as the previous two seasons had (March 27 in 2026),[38] but that a move to the post-Super Bowl window was being considered for 2027.

Postseason

The top four teams in the UFL standings will be seeded in order of record in the league semifinals, with the winners advancing to the 2026 UFL Championship Game.[38]



Attendance

Announced attendance figures for each home game. In the weekly columns, dashes (—) indicate away games, while bold font indicates the highest attendance of the week.

Team / Week 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Semifinals Championship Total Average
Birmingham Stallions 0 0
Columbus Aviators 0 0
Dallas Renegades 0 0
DC Defenders 0 0
Houston Gamblers 0 0
Louisville Kings 0 0
Orlando Storm 0 0
St. Louis Battlehawks 0 0
Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  
Average 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0   0

League finances

Personnel

Source: [39]

  • Dany Garcia: Chairperson
  • Mike Repole: Director of business operations
  • Russ Brandon: Executive Vice President of Football Operations
  • Doug Whaley: Senior Vice President of Player Personnel
  • Russ Giglio: Senior Director, Player Administration and Officiating Operations
  • Jim Popp: Director of Player Administration
  • Dr. Damond Blueitt: Medical Director

Media

In the United States, the television rights for the UFL are held by ESPN in the fourth season of a five-year deal,[40] and league co-owner Fox.

References

  1. ^ a b c Badenhausen, Kurt (July 31, 2025). "Billionaire Mike Repole Invests in UFL With Plan for Columbus Team". Sportico.com. Retrieved August 1, 2025.
  2. ^ a b c d Seifert, Kevin (July 31, 2025). "How billionaire Mike Repole plans to change the vibe of the UFL, expand it to 16 teams". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 29, 2025.
  3. ^ Larsen, James (April 2, 2025). "The Latest On Potential UFL Expansion For 2026". Pro Football Newsroom. Retrieved April 3, 2025.
  4. ^ Paul, Tony. "New UFL co-owner says he wants to keep the Michigan Panthers: 'I'm trying'". The Detroit News. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
  5. ^ "With Michigan Panthers' future in limbo, UFL has talked to DCFC about stadium". The Detroit News. September 12, 2025. Retrieved September 14, 2025.
  6. ^ Larsen, James (June 23, 2025). "Layoffs Sweep UFL Early In Offseason Changes". Pro Football Newsroom. Retrieved June 24, 2025.
  7. ^ Inabinett, Mark (August 16, 2025). "UFL business director sets attendance goal for 2026 Stallions". AL.com. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  8. ^ "UFL to keep Stallions in Birmingham in 2026 despite relocation rumors…". 1819 News. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
  9. ^ Perry, Mark (April 2, 2025). "UFL To Expand In 2026 Adding Two Teams 'Later This Year'". Retrieved April 2, 2025.
  10. ^ Larsen, James (April 2, 2025). "The Latest On Potential UFL Expansion For 2026". Pro Football Newsroom. Retrieved April 3, 2025.
  11. ^ Perry, Mark (July 23, 2025). "UFL Issues Statement on Relocation of Birmingham, Michigan, Houston, Memphis Report". Retrieved July 23, 2025.
  12. ^ Jaffee, Mark (April 2, 2025). "Connecticut's David Dykeman optimistic headed into 2nd season as UFL's director of football operations". CT Insider. Retrieved April 2, 2025.
  13. ^ "United Football League Announces New Vision, New Markets and Team Rebrands for 2026". Retrieved October 21, 2025.
  14. ^ Camenker, Jacob. "UFL to play in Columbus in 2026; will relocate at least 2 teams". USA TODAY. Retrieved July 31, 2025.
  15. ^ Columbus will be the new home of a UFL team in 2026
  16. ^ a b c "United Football League Announces New Vision, New Markets and Team Rebrands for 2026". theufl.com. October 7, 2025. Retrieved October 7, 2025.
  17. ^ "Orlando likely to land United Football League team at downtown soccer stadium". Orlando Business Journal. October 6, 2025. Retrieved October 7, 2025.
  18. ^ "Mike Repole plots launch of the Louisville Kings football franchise in UFL 2025". BizJournals – Louisville.
  19. ^ a b "Revisiting UFLPA's negotiated contract details for 2024". UFLBoard. March 5, 2024.
  20. ^ Perry, Mark (May 3, 2025). "UFL Salary Structure: Breaking Down the Highest Paid Players in 2025". Retrieved May 4, 2025.
  21. ^ Seifert, Kevin (April 18, 2025). "UFL, players reach new CBA after months of talks". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 19, 2025.
  22. ^ Larsen, James (August 26, 2025). "Updates On The 2025 UFL College Draft Process". Pro Football Newsroom. Retrieved August 29, 2025.
  23. ^ Parks, Greg (June 25, 2025). "Team-By-Team Review of the 2024 UFL College Draft, One Year Later". Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  24. ^ Machlin, Tzvi (June 27, 2025). "The UFL Has Made Official Change To Its College Draft". The Spun. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  25. ^ Camenker, Jacob. "What's next for UFL? News on expansion, attendance, plans for 2026 season". USA TODAY. Retrieved June 24, 2025.
  26. ^ Mitchell, Mike (June 23, 2025). "The UFL Plans Extended Training Camp and New Free Agency for 2026 Season". Retrieved June 24, 2025.
  27. ^ "Tennessee State Co-Offensive Coordinator Shannon Harris Becomes 'Official' DC Defenders Head Coach". HBCU Legends On SI. July 23, 2025. Retrieved July 23, 2025.
  28. ^ Larsen, James (November 28, 2025). "Mike Nolan Releases Statement On Departure From UFL". Pro Football Newsroom. Retrieved November 29, 2025.
  29. ^ Mitchell, Mike (August 12, 2024). "Which UFL Coach Will Be Next To Depart?". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  30. ^ Tomasson, Chris. "After false report of death, ex-Broncos boss Wade Phillips is fine, may continue to coach". Denver Gazette. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  31. ^ Holmes, David (December 17, 2025). "Ted Ginn Jr. Named Columbus Aviators Head Coach". WSYX. Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  32. ^ Larsen, James (November 29, 2025). "C.J. Johnson Releases Statement On Dismissal From UFL". Pro Football Newsroom. Retrieved November 29, 2025.
  33. ^ "Bob Stoops closes chapter on coaching career". ESPN.com. December 15, 2025. Retrieved December 16, 2025.
  34. ^ "Skip Holtz steps away from UFL's Birmingham Stallions". NBC Sports. December 16, 2025. Retrieved December 16, 2025.
  35. ^ "AJ McCarron exits lieutenant governor race, eyes Birmingham Stallions coaching role". WPMI. December 17, 2025. Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  36. ^ Larsen, James (December 18, 2025). "Birmingham Stallions Hire A.J. McCarron As New Head Coach". Pro Football Newsroom. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  37. ^ Larsen, James (August 22, 2025). "Takeaways From Mike Repole's Recent Comments On The UFL". Pro Football Newsroom. Retrieved August 29, 2025.
  38. ^ a b "United Football League Announces New Vision, New Markets and Team Rebrands for 2026". theufl.com. October 7, 2025. Retrieved October 7, 2025.
  39. ^ Parks, Greg (November 5, 2025). Seven thoughts on UFL's reported move to centralized personnel department. UFL News Hub. Retrieved November 5, 2025.
  40. ^ Steinberg, Brian (May 17, 2022). "Disney Strikes Deal to Put XFL on ESPN, FX, ABC". Variety. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
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