The UFL's television ratings are climbing while attendance craters across most markets — a troubling disconnect that highlights the league's biggest challenge heading into the offseason.
UFL News Hub analyst Greg Parks pulled no punches when discussing the state of the league after its second season. Despite positive TV numbers, attendance has dropped significantly even in previously strong markets like St. Louis and DC.
"TV ratings, different story, seem to be pretty positive. The Fox Friday night ratings...were up from last year, a small percentage, but up is better than down," Parks said. "But attendance was down this year across the board."
The Venue Shuffle Problem
Parks pointed to the constant venue changes as a symptom of deeper issues. When the Orlando Storm's playoff game got moved from Columbus to Daytona within a week, it exemplified the UFL's lack of leverage as secondary tenants in most stadiums.
"Unfortunately to UFL fans, this is happening year after year after year, especially in the playoffs, and that is frustrating a lot of fans," Parks explained. "They don't have a lot of leverage in these situations because if you're Inter&Co Stadium, you're not going to say no to a World Cup match and the money that that likely brings versus an Orlando Storm playoff game."
The league president Mike Rapole faces an uphill battle trying to solve these scheduling conflicts, Parks noted. Moving the season to February, as Rapoli has reportedly considered, won't fix the fundamental problem of competing with soccer for stadium dates.
Rapole's Attendance Challenge
Parks didn't mince words about Rapole's struggles in his stated priority area. When the league president took over, attendance was his number one focus — making this year's drops even more concerning.
"Despite Rapole's focus on attendance, there's still a lot of work to do there. When Rapoli came on board, that was his number one concern. That was what he talked about more than anything else in media, is getting attendance up. And attendance was down this year across the board."
The decline hit stalwart markets particularly hard. St. Louis and DC, two of the UFL's most reliable fanbases, saw significant drops. Meanwhile, new markets like Columbus, Louisville, and Orlando performed better — but that's expected in year one.
The Relocation Question
Parks strongly opposed more team moves, calling the constant franchise shuffling "amateur hour" that damages the league's credibility. Three teams relocated last offseason, and speculation continues about struggling markets like Houston and Dallas.
"I'm against the constant movement of teams," Parks said. "You're constantly playing whack-a-mole with these teams. And that's not only not a recipe for sustained success, people in these cities are going to question the commitment of the league."
The move to smaller stadiums has worked, Parks acknowledged, creating better TV optics and more intimate settings. But that doesn't solve the core attendance problem.
Playoff Predictions
Looking ahead to this weekend's playoffs, Parks picked Orlando to win the United Bowl despite their inconsistent play. The Storm's 8-2 record masks some close calls that could have left them 6-4, he noted.
"Orlando scares me a little bit, and not in a good way, because for as good as they've been all year sitting there at 8-2, they've played a lot of close games, and they've been a couple plays away from being 6-4, quite frankly."
Parks expects Orlando to beat DC in the playoffs, helped by Jordan Ta'amu's injury forcing the Defenders to start Jason Bean. He also favors Louisville over St. Louis after the Battlehawks looked shaky in Week 10.
The UFL's television success provides a foundation for growth, but Rapole's offseason will be crucial for solving the attendance puzzle that threatens the league's long-term stability in key markets.