That is correct, you read the headline right and it is not an April Fools joke. The UFL announced on November 22nd its first location for its showcase tryout series. It is in Switzerland. The event will take place as all showcases tryouts during the UFL offseason on September 21st, 2025.
Between this announcement and the recent UFL Expansion press release. The United Football League is planning for the long haul, which includes international. We have heard from UFL executives recently talking about trying to land TV deals in International locations to get further reach of the brand.
UFL Executive Vice President of Business Operations Wendy Bass recently talked about the league’s International strategy at a panel event saying
“The UFL’s focus is reach over revenue right now”.
The event is in conjunction with Baumgartner Sports. Based on their About Us page Baumgartner Sports is a Swiss company dedicated to supporting athletes in advancing their careers. This is what they posted on their Instagram account about the event.
The European League of Football (ELF) which started its first season in 2021 has 17 teams as of the 2024 season. It includes a 14-week season that begins at the end of May. The ELF Championship game in 2025 takes place September 7th in Stuttgart’s MHP Arena. A lot of the top players in the ELF could be at this event. Hence the location and timing.
Back in 2020, when RedBird Capital, Dany Garcia, and Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson purchased the XFL out of bankruptcy, there was talk about the XFL having franchises in Canada and Mexico. The XFL and CFL had talks back in 2021 about a potential partnership or merger but nothing came to fruition. These plans could be back on the table for the future and Showcases could be a start.
If some entity was willing the put up the money for a team in Europe, the United Football League would certainly listen. This could be the beginning of laying that ground work.
