(Reuters) – The XFL and USFL will merge operations to form the United Football League (UFL) with play set to kick off in late March, the league’s partners announced on Sunday.
In a joint statement, the partners said the UFL season will open on March 30 with a clash between the Arlington Renegades and Birmingham Stallions, who are reigning champions of the XFL and USFL respectively.
The UFL partners listed in the news release consisted of three XFL owners – wrestler-turned-movie star Dwayne Johnson, his ex-wife Dany Garcia and Gerry Cardinale of RedBird Capital – along with USFL owner FOX Sports and ESPN.
“From day one, our mission has been to expand the game of football and be a league of opportunity, culture and innovation,” XFL co-owner Dwayne Johnson said in a news release.
“As we come together to create the UFL, we can build something powerful, exciting and very cool for football fans – a spring league with lasting impact for all the players with a dream to play pro football and the ‘hardest workers in the room’ mentality to make their dreams come true.”
Former XFL President and CEO Russ Brandon will lead the UFL in the same capacity while former USFL President of Football Operations Daryl Johnston will lead football operations.
The number of UFL teams and which cities they will represent was not disclosed.
While the National Football League dominates the U.S. sport scene, attempts to tap into America’s love for gridiron have failed despite the backing of major television networks.
Fox and NBC have broadcast USFL games while the XFL announced a multi-year deal with Disney and ESPN in 2022.
The UFL does not pose a threat to the NFL’s dominance as the merged entity will play a Spring schedule.
The original XFL, which was owned by longtime WWE chairman Vince McMahon, lasted only one season in 2001 then folded. McMahon relaunched the league in 2020 but never finished the season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Johnson teamed up with Garcia and investment company RedBird Capital Partners to buy the XFL for $15 million in 2020, hours before the bankrupt league was set to be auctioned.
The USFL has had an equally turbulent past.
The league first operated for three seasons from 1983 to 1985 before folding. It was relaunched in 2022.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto)
