The 2027 UFL season is the upcoming fourth season of the United Football League.
Offseason Following the 2026 season, league co-owner Mike Repole described his feelings about the season as "happy, but not content." After sparing the Birmingham Stallions from a planned relocation in 2026, he again groused about how the Stallions' longtime home stadium Protective Stadium did not fit his vision of playing in soccer-specific stadiums and that keeping the Stallions in Alabama for 2027 "goes against (...) the biggest principles we’re building this league around."
On July 30, 2026, Repole announced the dissolution of both remaining USFL legacy teams, the Birmingham Stallions and Houston Gamblers. In Houston's case, Repole acknowledged instability (annual stadium changes and the substitution of the successful XFL Roughnecks with the Gamblers) as the key reason for the team's failure; though the team's announcement had not been foreseen, it was met with little surprise, given the team consistently having attendance among the UFL's worst. In Birmingham, a continued stalemate between the city and Repole over the suitability of Protective Stadium, along with Hoover Metropolitan Stadium's rejection of the league, were the primary factors in Repole's decision. Repole had stated that the Stallions would have stayed if not for the stadium situation and that the fan base had otherwise turned out enough to keep the franchise if a smaller stadium were available. (The city of Montgomery offered the UFL use of the Cramton Bowl, which did fit Repole's capacity guidelines, in an effort to keep the Stallions in Alabama, but Repole apparently made no serious consideration of the offer in part because of Montgomery's distance from Birmingham.)
In related news, Repole also stated that the response from potential expansion markets had been stronger than expected, which led him to move the league's expansion timetable up so that in addition to the two replacements for Birmingham and Houston, and the additions of Oklahoma City and the then-undecided tenth team (later revealed as Utah) in 2028, the 11th and 12th franchises could be added as soon as the 2029 season instead of 2030. In early September, Repole stated that the two cities replacing Birmingham and Houston would be unveiled by no later than October 1. On September 17, the league announced that it would again start on the last Friday of March for 2027.
On September 23, 2026, the UFL announced that it would be adding new teams in Colorado Springs, Colorado and Pawtucket, Rhode Island for the 2027 season.
Teams
Relocations and rebrandings
Returning unchanged Columbus Aviators Dallas Renegades DC Defenders Louisville Kings Orlando Storm St. Louis Battlehawks
New teams Colorado Rhode Island
Not returning from 2026 Birmingham Stallions Houston Gamblers
+Teams in the 2027 UFL seasonTeamLocationStadiumCapacityHead coachColoradoColorado Springs, ColoradoWeidner Field8,000Rick NeuheiselColumbus AviatorsColumbus will be the new home of a UFL team in 2026Columbus, OhioHistoric Crew Stadium19,968Ted Ginn Jr.Dallas RenegadesFrisco, TexasToyota Stadium11,000Kevin SumlinDC DefendersWashington, D.C.Audi Field20,000Shannon HarrisLouisville KingsLouisville, KentuckyLynn Family Stadium11,700Chris RedmanOrlando StormOrlando, FloridaInter&Co Stadium25,500Anthony BechtRhode IslandPawtucket, Rhode IslandCentreville Bank Stadium10,500A. J. McCarronSt. Louis BattlehawksSt. Louis, MissouriThe Dome at America's Center67,277Ricky Proehl
Players
Unionization and compensation The UFL's collective bargaining agreement with the United Football Players Association expired after the 2026 season.
Player movement On September 30, 2026, the league announced that the entire Dallas Renegades roster would be vacated and replaced by that of the Houston Gamblers, in a repeat of the situation in 2024, when the XFL's Houston Roughnecks were eliminated and its roster replenished by the Gamblers'. The previous Renegades roster will be reassigned to Colorado, and the Stallions roster to Rhode Island.
Draft No plans have, as of September 2026, been revealed regarding a 2027 UFL Draft. The league will not do a full redraft as they did in 2026, stating that the league was seeking stronger continuity and the ability to build relationships between coaches, players and the community.
Coaches On September 30, 2026, the UFL announced the allocation of the coaches being displaced by the new franchises:
Coach Departing team Incoming team NotesKevin Sumlin Houston Gamblers Dallas RenegadesRick Neuheisel Dallas Renegades ColoradoA. J. McCarron Birmingham Stallions Rhode Island
Rule changes Repole indicated in September 2026 that he did not have any major rule changes planned for the 2027 season. He mentioned a desire to reduce penalty yardages on certain offensive fouls.
Season structure
Regular season After Repole initially "guarantee(d)" that the 2027 season would move to an earlier date, the league announced in September 2026 that the league would again begin its season on the last Friday in March. In a press conference, league president Russ Brandon indicated that the television partners had pushed for the schedule to remain the same and that the league found it easier to schedule dates at their home stadiums in the spring compared to the late winter, but that weather conditions—a key advantage to spring scheduling—did not factor into the decision.
Postseason The top four teams in the UFL standings will be seeded in order of record in the league semifinals (1st place team playing 4th place, 2nd versus 3rd), with the winners advancing to the 2027 United Bowl, the league's championship game.
Season schedule All games stream on ESPN app or Fox One unless otherwise noted.
Regular season The following information has been released about the 2027 season as of September 23, 2026:
Week 1 DateTimeAway teamResultHome teamStadiumAttendanceBroadcastViewershipRatingRefsMarch 268:00 p.m. ETTBALouisville KingsLynn Family StadiumFox
Week 2 DateTimeAway teamResultHome teamStadiumAttendanceBroadcastViewershipRatingRefsApril 28:00 p.m. ETTBARhode IslandCentreville Bank StadiumFox
Week 3 DateTimeAway teamResultHome teamStadiumAttendanceBroadcastViewershipRatingRefsApril 98:00 p.m. ETTBATBATBAFoxApril 113:00 p.m. ETTBAColoradoWeidner FieldABC
Week 4 DateTimeAway teamResultHome teamStadiumAttendanceBroadcastViewershipRatingRefs April 16 8:00 p.m. ET TBATBATBAFox
Week 5 DateTimeAway teamResultHome teamStadiumAttendanceBroadcastViewershipRatingRefs April 23 8:00 p.m. ET TBATBATBAFox
Week 6 DateTimeAway teamResultHome teamStadiumAttendanceBroadcastViewershipRatingRefsApril 29 TBA TBATBA TBA TBAApril 308:00 p.m. ETTBATBATBAFox
Week 7 DateTimeAway teamResultHome teamStadiumAttendanceBroadcastViewershipRatingRefs May 7 8:00 p.m. ET TBATBATBAFox
Week 8 DateTimeAway teamResultHome teamStadiumAttendanceBroadcastViewershipRatingRefs May 14 8:00 p.m. ET TBATBATBAFox
Week 9 DateTimeAway teamResultHome teamStadiumAttendanceBroadcastViewershipRatingRefs May 21 8:00 p.m. ET TBATBATBAFox
Week 10 DateTimeAway teamResultHome teamStadiumAttendanceBroadcastViewershipRatingRefs May 28 8:00 p.m. ET TBATBATBAFox
Personnel
Dany Garcia: Chairperson Mike Repole: Director of business operations Russ Brandon: President, CEO, and Executive of Football Operations Doug Whaley: Senior Vice President of Player Personnel Russ Giglio: Senior Director, Player Administration and Officiating Operations Jim Popp: Director of Player Administration Dr. Damond Blueitt: Medical Director
Media Television In the United States, the television rights for the UFL are held by the ESPN networks (including ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, and NFL Network; FX has been used in the past under this agreement but not since 2023); and league co-owner Fox (which carries games on the Fox network and FS1), along with their respective associated streaming outlets, the ESPN app and Fox One respectively. The ESPN agreement is in the fifth and final year of a pact originally signed with the XFL in 2023.
References