Over the past two weeks a lot of front office people from the United Football League have been let go. The speculation was that it was due to seasonal employment or maybe turn over due to performance metrics not being met. UFL News Hub has learned for sources there is more to the story than that. The UFL is getting a locations facelift.
We are hearing that the reason for the layoffs is that four UFL franchises are moving locations. We are hearing that Michigan, Houston, Memphis and Birmingham are out. That is the entire USFL Conference finding new homes. Expect a league wide announcement within the next two weeks if not sooner.
The United Football League had put out RFP process for new cities before the 2025 season began. We are hearing the new locations are Columbus Ohio, Florida, Boise Idaho, and Kentucky.
Columbus has been a strong contender for a long time as well as Kentucky. We don't know whether the UFL will keep the current IP or use new names. Looking at the latest trademark data there has not been much movement since we last reported it.
Aside from Florida, none of these cities have a major NFL team.
Columbus Ohio
20,000-seat Crew Stadium could serve as a venue for a UFL team. The former MLS stadium has no full-time tenant now, making it affordable. Audi Field, an MLS stadium, is the second best venue in the UFL. Adding another MLS stadium, where the team wont have to complete for field time would be great. Columbus is the 14th-biggest market in the US and can share the fan bases of the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns.
Florida
We still have been unable to lock down the location in Florida. We are hearing either Tampa Bay or Orlando. We have reported exclusively about Tamp Bay Bandits and its possible connection to NFL great Tom Brady. We will have to wait and see on this. But Camping World stadium in Orlando would see spring football return or Raymond James Stadium in Tampa. Tampa Bay (Tampa–St. Petersburg–Sarasota) is the 11th and Orlando (Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford) is 15th.
Boise Idaho
Boise may be a smaller market but has a rabid football fan base. No NFL, NBA, or MLB nearby. A UFL franchise here would face none of the saturation or sports burnout issues of bigger cities. It could also draw interest from neighboring states (fans in eastern Washington, Idaho, Montana, etc., who have no home pro team). Plus the Smurf turf is iconic. Boise could be what we thought Birmingham would have been. A smaller city is ranked 98th but with a rabid fan base. How does the Boise Showboats sound?
Kentucky
L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium, University of Louisville’s football stadium or Lynn Family Stadium could be possible locations in Louisville. Louisville City FC draws among the largest crowds in minor-league soccer. The UFL would fit right in. This market ranks 49th in the US.
UFL Teams Leaving
We have reported at length on the issues with UFL locations in Houston, Memphis and Birmingham. Low interest and low ticket sales and questionable venues.
We are not sure if Memphis was already on the move before or after the death of Fed-Ex founder Fred Smith but to put it bluntly. Memphis is a terrible sports town despite renovations to the stadium.
Houston had life with the XFL in 2020 but never got back to that level. Plus with the league already having two other Texas franchises in San Antonio and Arlington. Might as well move the weakest one to a new location to build excitement for the UFL.
The Stallions with four straight Championship appearances and a three peat. If that can't gets fans in the stands in Birmingham, nothing will. The brand new Protective Stadium, home of the Stallions, was always topic of complaint from UFL insiders. The venue was not that good, weather would force fans to leave the stadium as there was no cover from rain, the seating, club amenities, you name it. It was a problem.
Michigan was the only franchise to have an uptick in attendance and interest for the 2025 UFL season. The biggest issue for the team was not the play, the ticket sales team or the fans. It was Ford Field. It cost too much per game to play there and the UFL couldn't find another suitable home.
2026 UFL Season
The United Football League needed to shake things up for its survival. Going into the 2026 season with the same set up or 8 locations were sure to fail and get worse. This big move really moves the needle and should create quite the buzz going into the 2026 season.
Leave a comment with your reaction. Does it get you excited for the 2026 season?