XFL and USFL announce new, merged spring football league
The latest edition of a spring football league will be called the “United Football League”, after the merged XFL-USFL leagues confirmed they will be merging.
Former XFL president/CEO Russ Brandon will hold the same position in the UFL. Former USFL president of football operations and current Fox Sports broadcaster Daryl Johnston will lead the new league’s football operations, the league announced in a press release.
The league did not clarify the number of teams in the league or the cities they will represent. The release did, however, confirm that the inaugural USL game will be played on 30 March 2024 between the 2023 XFL champions (Arlington Renegades) and USFL champions (Birmingham Stalions)
“From day one, our mission has been to expand the game of football and be a league of opportunity, culture and innovation,” Daryl Johnson said in a statement. “As we come together to create the UFL, we can build something powerful, exciting and very cool for football fans -- a spring league with lasting impact for all the players with a dream to play pro football and the ‘hardest workers in the room’ mentality to make their dreams come true.”
The USL’s release included five ‘partners’ in the league, including three XFL owners – Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Dany Garcia and Gerry Cardinale of RedBird Capital Partners – ESPN and FOX Sports.
“The dream for me was to play in the NFL. I always liked to say I’m player 54 on a 53-man roster,” Dwayne Johnson said on ‘FOX NFL Sunday.’ “Imagine all those 54s out there, you tell them, ‘You’ve got one more chance in the UFL,’ and then to go on to the NFL, potentially – how do you think they’ll play? They’re gonna ball out.”
“FOX is football, and the success of the USFL has proven that there’s a bright future for spring football,” said Eric Shanks, the CEO of FOX Sports. “The opportunity to bring together our two leagues – each with a commitment to advancing broadcast practices, rule innovations and the community – only furthers the potential of the United Football League and solidifies its spot on the sports calendar.”
The USFL and XFL played separate, partially overlapping schedules in 2023. The leagues announced an intent to merge on 28 September and received approval from federal regulators 30 November.
The games will be televised by Fox, FS1, ABC, and ESPN.