The 2026 UFL playoff semifinals drew a combined 24,428 fans across two games on Sunday, June 7. The Louisville Kings beat the St. Louis Battlehawks 29-20 at The Dome at America's Center, drawing 18,111. The D.C. Defenders beat the Orlando Storm 28-22 at Daytona Stadium in Daytona Beach, Florida, drawing 6,317 — a figure heavily impacted by a last-minute venue change that gave fans less than a week's notice.
Playoff attendance has declined in each of the UFL's three seasons. But the 2026 semifinal total requires an asterisk. Orlando earned the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage but was forced to play 50 miles from home at a venue announced six days before kickoff. Had the Storm played at Inter&Co Stadium and drawn slightly above their regular-season home average, the semifinal total would have landed closer to 28,000-30,000.
2026 Semifinal Attendance
Game | Venue | Attendance | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
No. 4 D.C. at No. 1 Orlando | Daytona Stadium, Daytona Beach, FL | 6,317 | DC 28, ORL 22 |
No. 3 Louisville at No. 2 St. Louis | The Dome at America's Center, St. Louis, MO | 18,111 | LOU 29, STL 20 |
Total / Average | 24,428 / 12,214 |
Year-Over-Year Playoff Attendance
Season | Semifinal 1 | Semifinal 2 | Championship | Total | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2024 | 10,287 (BIR) | 30,237 (STL) | 27,396 (STL) | 67,920 | 22,640 |
2025 | 10,928 (BIR) | 27,589 (STL) | 14,559 (STL) | 53,076 | 17,692 |
2026 | 6,317 (Daytona) | 18,111 (STL) | TBD (DC) | 24,428+ | — |
The 2024 UFL playoffs drew 67,920 fans across three games. The 2025 playoffs drew 53,076 — a 22 percent decline. The 2026 playoffs have drawn 24,428 through two games. Even if the United Bowl at Audi Field sells out at 20,000, the three-game total would be 44,428 — 16 percent below 2025 and 35 percent below 2024.
St. Louis Playoff Attendance Trend
The Dome at America's Center has hosted at least one playoff game in all three UFL seasons. The numbers have declined each year.
Season | Game | Attendance |
|---|---|---|
2024 | XFL Conference Championship (SA 25, STL 15) | 30,237 |
2024 | UFL Championship (BIR 25, SA 18) | 27,396 |
2025 | XFL Conference Championship (DC 36, STL 18) | 27,589 |
2025 | UFL Championship (DC 58, MIC 34) | 14,559 |
2026 | Semifinal (LOU 29, STL 20) | 18,111 |
The 2024 XFL Championship drew 30,237 — the highest playoff figure in UFL history. The 2026 semifinal drew 18,111, which is 40 percent below that peak. The Battlehawks' regular-season home average also declined from 29,500 in 2025 to 23,239 in 2026.
Playoff tickets started at $15, and the first 10,000 fans received free T-shirts.
Birmingham Playoff Attendance (2024-2025)
For comparison, Protective Stadium in Birmingham hosted one semifinal in each of the first two seasons.
Season | Game | Attendance |
|---|---|---|
2024 | USFL Conference Championship (BIR 31, MIC 18) | 10,287 |
2025 | USFL Conference Championship (MIC 44, BIR 29) | 10,928 |
Birmingham was consistent at about 10,600 per playoff game. The Stallions did not qualify for the 2026 playoffs.
The Daytona Situation
The 6,317 figure at Daytona requires context. The Orlando Storm earned the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage at 8-2. They did not get to play at home — and the venue changed twice in the span of three days.
Inter&Co Stadium was unavailable on June 7 due to a pre-World Cup friendly between England and Costa Rica scheduled for June 10. The UFL evaluated UCF's Acrisure Bounce House, Camping World Stadium, IMG Academy, and ESPN Wide World of Sports. All were either unavailable, under renovation, or unable to meet broadcast requirements.
On May 29, the league announced the game would move to Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus — roughly 800 miles from Orlando. Two days later, on June 1, the UFL reversed course again and moved the game to Daytona Stadium on Bethune-Cookman University's campus, about 50 miles from Orlando.
That gave fans six days' notice that the game would be in Daytona. Tickets had to go on sale, travel plans had to be made, and the venue itself had to be prepared for a nationally televised playoff game — all on a compressed timeline. The UFL, Bethune-Cookman, the City of Daytona Beach, Daytona Beach Police, ESPN, Ticketmaster, and concession partners worked through a weekend to make it happen.
"As we said from the beginning, our preference was always to keep this game as close to our Orlando fanbase as possible," UFL President Russ Brandon said. "Once we determined the venue had the ability to work with the collective stakeholders on an expedited timeline, we felt it was important to pivot and bring this game back to Central Florida."
Tickets started at $10. Free T-shirts went to the first 5,000 fans. Daytona Stadium has a capacity of about 10,000. The 6,317 figure filled about 63 percent of the building.
For context, Orlando averaged 9,830 per home game during the regular season at Inter&Co Stadium (25,500 capacity). The 6,317 is the lowest playoff attendance in UFL history, but a last-minute venue change to a city 50 miles from the team's home market — with less than a week's notice — makes this an incomplete read on what Orlando could have drawn under normal circumstances.
What If Orlando Had Played at Home?
The Daytona figure skews the 2026 semifinal total. Here is what the numbers would have looked like if the Storm had played at Inter&Co Stadium and drawn at or above their regular-season home average.
Scenario | Orlando Figure | 2026 Semi Total | vs. 2025 Semis (38,517) | vs. 2024 Semis (40,524) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Actual (Daytona) | 6,317 | 24,428 | −37% | −40% |
At regular-season avg (9,830) | 9,830 | 27,941 | −27% | −31% |
Slightly above avg (10,500) | 10,500 | 28,611 | −26% | −29% |
Playoff bump (12,000) | 12,000 | 30,111 | −22% | −26% |
Even at 12,000, the 2026 semifinal total would trail both previous years. The year-over-year decline is real, but it is driven more by St. Louis dropping from 30,237 (2024) and 27,589 (2025) to 18,111 (2026) than by Orlando's number. The Daytona situation accounts for roughly 3,500 to 5,700 fans depending on the scenario — a gap, but not the full story.
Championship Game Attendance Trend
Season | Championship Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|
2024 | The Dome at America's Center (St. Louis) | 27,396 |
2025 | The Dome at America's Center (St. Louis) | 14,559 |
2026 | Audi Field (Washington, D.C.) | TBD — June 13 |
The championship drew 27,396 in 2024 and 14,559 in 2025 — a 47 percent decline at the same venue. The 2026 United Bowl will be the first championship game played outside of St. Louis.
Audi Field has a capacity of 20,000. The Defenders averaged 9,000 per home game during the 2026 regular season, with figures ranging from 7,019 to 12,167. A championship game will carry a different draw than a regular-season matchup, but D.C.'s regular-season numbers suggest a sellout is not guaranteed.
Updated Season Totals (Regular Season + Semifinals)
Period | Games | Total | Average |
|---|---|---|---|
Regular season | 40 | 418,708 | 10,468 |
Semifinals | 2 | 24,428 | 12,214 |
Season to date | 42 | 443,136 | 10,551 |
Note: Excluding the Fort Hood free admission game (4,001), the 41-game average is 10,711.
What the United Bowl Needs to Hit Key Benchmarks
United Bowl Attendance | 3-Game Playoff Total | 43-Game Season Average |
|---|---|---|
20,000 (sellout) | 44,428 | 10,770 |
15,000 | 39,428 | 10,654 |
12,000 | 36,428 | 10,585 |
9,000 | 33,428 | 10,515 |
The 2026 full-season average will finish above 10,000 regardless of what happens at Audi Field. The league will land inside Mike Repole's stated target of 10,000 to 15,000 per game. But the playoff attendance trend — 67,920 to 53,076 to a projected 35,000-44,000 — is heading the wrong direction.
Looking Ahead
The D.C. Defenders and Louisville Kings will meet in the 2026 United Bowl on Saturday, June 13, at 3 p.m. ET on ABC at Audi Field in Washington, D.C. D.C. is seeking its second straight championship. Louisville is making its first title game appearance in its first season.