Over the weekend, XFL co-owners Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Dany Garcia introduced the launch of the United Soccer League, the results of their league’s merger with the USFL.
“As a unified spring league, we are able to deepen our commitment to unlocking and surpassing the dreams of our players, coaches, staff and fans,” Garcia mentioned in a press release. “This league represents continued legacy and evolution, and we look forward to building the universe of spring football.”
The new league combines four teams from the XFL, together with the Arlington Renegades, DC Defenders, San Antonio Brahmas and St. Louis Battlehawks, with 4 groups from the USFL, together with the Birmingham Stallions, Houston Roughnecks, Memphis Showboats and Michigan Panthers.
Kickoff of the UFL’s inaugural season will start on March 30 with a matchup between the Renegades and Stallions, who received their respective leagues in 2023. The remainder of the schedule will probably be revealed at a later date, with video games set to be broadcast on ABC, ESPN, FOX and FS1.
The unique XFL performed only one season in 2001 earlier than being rebooted in 2020 by WWE chairman Vince McMahon, although it was shut down after 5 video games because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was subsequently offered to Johnson and Garcia, who relaunched the league last spring.
The USFL, in the meantime, performed three seasons of spring soccer from 1983-85 and deliberate to maneuver to the autumn in 1986 to compete with the NFL earlier than ceasing operations. It returned in 2022, albeit with no connection to the original league aside from the names of the league and teams.
“This is 30 years of spring football of starting and stopping, starting and stopping,” Johnson mentioned throughout an look on FOX NFL Sunday. “This merger between the USFL and XFL, it feels like we’ve got a shot to establish that spring football is here to stay.”
The UFL shouldn’t be confused with the league of the same name that played in the fall from 2009-12 and featured groups such because the Florida Tuskers, Hartford Colonials, Las Vegas Locomotives, Omaha Nighthawks, Sacramento Mountain Lions and Virginia Destroyers.
