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The XFL and USFL announced Sunday they're merging to form the United Football League.
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson broke the news Sunday on Fox, confirming the new league will kick off March 30, and expressed his hope the joint venture will mean stability for the long-term future of a spring football competition.
Front Office Sports' Eric Fisher reported in December the USFL was folding four of its franchises, with the Birmingham Stallions, Houston Gamblers, Memphis Showboats and Michigan Panthers expected to survive. It was unclear at the time which of the XFL's eight teams would be culled.
The first game of the 2024 season will pit each league's champion against one another. The Arlington Renegades (XFL) will take on the Birmingham Stallions (USFL).
The XFL and USFL first announced in September they intended to merge pending regulatory approval.
Johnson's comments allude to the longstanding difficulty in making spring football part of the sports calendar.
The XFL and USFL are both reboots of failed attempts, with the latter coming the closest in creating a spring foil to the NFL but lasted only three seasons.
The XFL's return with Johnson at the helm drove home the financial realities of launching such a project. Forbes' Jabari Young reported in June the league "lost an estimated $60 million in 2023."
Pooling together the resources of the XFL and USFL could be the path to sustainability, but plenty of fans will remain skeptical.
Spring football in the United States is set to be under one umbrella.
The XFL and USFL announced their intention to merge in a statement Thursday, combining the two spring leagues into a yet-to-be-named entity.
The arrangement will allow the two struggling leagues to continue operations for at least the foreseeable future. The XFL made major cuts in operations in May after losing $60 million during the 2023 season. The USFL's total revenue has been reported at just $7.5 million per season.
While the XFL has been a more expensive endeavor than the lower-key USFL, the XFL carries the cache of being owned by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson after he purchased the company from WWE's Vince McMahon.
It seems likely the two sides would choose to move forward with the XFL branding as it carries more brand equity than the USFL among younger fans. The USFL's relaunch came 36 years after the initial league's dissolution; the original XFL was launched in 2001 and still provides memories to younger fans.
Attempts at making spring football work are nothing new, but they've been racked with funding issues and lagging ratings. The quality of football has simply not been high enough to garner much of a consistent audience. Ratings for the XFL's relaunch were initially strong before falling off a cliff.
Other leagues, like the Alliance of American Football, started off with considerable hype only to fall flat as viewers turned away from the low-quality football.
The leagues have also not done nearly enough to differentiate themselves from the NFL product, which has only furthered the unfavorable comparisons.
It's unclear whether the merger will work, but it will at least keep the lights on for the time being.
Two competing spring football leagues could soon become one, as the XFL and USFL are reportedly having discussions about a potential merger.
According to Axios.com's Tim Baysinger, Dan Primack and Sara Fischer, the two leagues are "in advanced talks to merge," and an agreement could be announced as soon as they week.
The XFL and USFL are reportedly hoping to complete the merger before their 2024 seasons are scheduled to start after the Super Bowl.
The original XFL, which was owned by longtime WWE chairman Vince McMahon, ran for only one season in 2001 before folding. McMahon relaunched it in 2020, but the season was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic.
McMahon later sold the league to WWE legend Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Dany Garcia and RedBird Capital Partners, and it played a full schedule this year from February through April.
The original USFL was the staunchest competitor the NFL ever faced since the NFL-AFL merger, as the league had some deep-pocketed owners and poached some elite-level talent, such as Steve Young, Jim Kelly, Reggie White, Herschel Walker and Doug Flutie.
While the USFL eventually folded in 1986 after running from 1983 through 1985, a new USFL launched in 2022 under the ownership of Fox Corp.
The league got a leg up on the XFL by starting one year earlier, and it has made it through two seasons in its entirety.
Although the USFL and XFL schedules didn't intersect for long since the USFL ran from April through July, they were both trying to cement themselves as the dominant spring football league.
According to Baysinger, Primack and Fischer, the XFL and USFL want to have a "merger of equals," and broadcasting of the games would likely be split between Fox networks and Disney networks, the latter of which have a deal with the XFL.
By merging, the XFL and USFL could form one strong and united league that is both more viable financially and features almost all of the top non-NFL professional players.
Neither the XFL nor the USFL is a threat to the NFL separately or apart, but they likely have a better chance at long-term viability as a spring alternative if they can figure out a way to pool all of their resources together.
Last year, the NFL and XFL struck a deal that saw the latter serve as a "petri dish" of sorts for the former. Now, the NFL might be prepared to see a tangible return from the arrangement.
Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio reported the league is "considering" whether to adopt the XFL's kickoff rules.
In the XFL, the kicker boots the ball from his own 30-yard line. All of his teammates line up at the opposite 35-yard line, with all but the returner from the kicking team five yards away on the 30.
The NFL has tweaked its kickoffs over the years in an effort to decrease the risk of player injuries. Most recently, team owners approved a rule that gives the receiving team a touchback for any fair catch inside its own 25-yard line.
The aims behind the overall push are understandable. The physical danger to players was obvious when one team was running full speed at another that started at a mostly stationary position.
The paradox is that the safer kickoffs become the more irrelevant they are. The new touchback guidelines all but guarantee return men are neutralized further.
Switching to the XFL kickoff could theoretically strike a balance where you get more returns without having a disproportionate health risk.
However, Florio cited one source who isn't sold on the idea.
"They have no idea how much different NFL players are," the source said. "There will literally be nowhere to run."
It's easy to see how the field could get constricted so quickly that most returns might wind up gaining 10 to 15 yards. That can make a meaningful difference in terms of field position but wouldn't provide much more entertainment than a touchback.
You can't blame the NFL for trying to think outside the box, but it might simply be impossible to find a workable solution for kickoffs where player safety is a priority.
With the XFL set to return for a second season in 2024, the revamped league is already more successful than the vast majority of upstarts that pop up during the NFL's offseason.
However, Dwayne Johnson and the rest of the XFL's ownership group aren't planning for just a one or two-year wonder. They see this venture as a long-term project that they hope to continue improving, even amid substantial financial losses, according to Forbes' Jabari Young.
"This is not just an endeavor that's going to fill up a portfolio and one day we flip it and we're out," Johnson told Young. "This is legacy. This is the long game."
The XFL lost about $60 million in its first year under Johnson's ownership and had to cut some jobs, according to Young. However, next season looks to be much more profitable as the league is projected to make about $100 million in revenue.
A good portion of its income, about 25 percent, comes from ESPN, its broadcast partner.
"We're extremely well-capitalized for the long-term," Dany Garcia, XFL chair and Johnson's long-time business partner said. "This is our new WWE. The next massive live property."
Partnering with Disney and RedBird Capital, Garcia and Johnson bought the XFLâwhich was in bankruptcyâfor $23.5 million in 2020 and took control through a joint venture holding company, Alpha Acquico.
The purchase also included $8.5 million to pay off previous XFL debt.
Of its three iterations, this is the first time that the XFL survives its first season. Both previous endeavors in 2001 and 2020, led by WWE chairman Vince McMahon, folded despite initially looking promising.
With Disneyâand therefore ESPNâas its partner, the XFL got decent viewership in 2023, averaging 627,000 viewers per game over the regular-season and 1.4 million for the league's championship game.
Johnson and the rest of the ownership will now look to build off some of that success and avoid becomi.
The first XFL champion since 2001 has been crowned, and to say it was an upset would be the biggest understatement of the season.
The Arlington Renegades, who snuck into the playoffs at 4-6, took down the mighty DC Defenders 35-26 at the Alamodome, and quarterback Luis Perez was at the receiving end of much of the praise.
The Texas A&M Commerce alum went 26-of-36 for 288 yards and three touchdowns in the effort, cementing a solid turnaround since being traded to the Renegades from the Vegas Vipers earlier this season.
Other significant performers for the Renegades include Leddie Brown, who scored two total touchdowns and had 75 all-purpose yards. Tyler Vaughns and Sal Cannella had the other two receiving touchdowns and finished with 83 and 71 yards, respectively.
The Defenders had a lackluster performance from quarterback Jordan Ta'amu, who was 16-of-30 for 245 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions. Abram Smith had an effective day on the ground, rushing for 90 yards and scoring two touchdowns, while Josh Hammond had 127 yards and two touchdowns in the receiving game.
Still, it was Perez who had all of the headlines. He may be one of the most recognizable names in the recent spring football trend, making an impact in the AAF, XFL and USFL.
He has had a few short-lived NFL opportunities, but it seems that fans on Twitter think he deserves another NFL chance.
The win gives the Renegades a 6-6 record on the season and adds another piece of hardware to head coach Bob Stoops' legendary cabinet.
The Defenders finish the season with a 10-2 record, being the only team in the league to record double-digit wins this season.
A wildly entertaining inaugural season of the revamped XFL is finally drawing to a close, and all that's left is to crown a champion.
Following the division championship games that took place over the weekend, the Arlington Renegades are set to face off against the D.C. Defenders for the title.
It's one of the most unlikely title game matchups you'll see in any sport.
The Renegades were the only team to enter the postseason with a losing record at 4-6 but finished second in the South Division. They had the upset of the season as they took down the Houston Roughnecksâa team that beat them twice during the regular seasonâ26-11 on Saturday to advance to the final.
Meanwhile, D.C. has been the wire-to-wire best team in the XFL, losing just one game in the regular season and dominating a talented Seattle Sea Dragons team in the North Division Championship.
With the title game two weeks away, here's a quick preview of what to look for when the two teams face off.
The key for Arlington and head coach Bob Stoops will be its defense, which managed to hold Houston to just a season-low 11 points in Saturday's win.
But it'll have its hands full against a dominant D.C. rushing attack spearheaded by Abram Smith. Smith led the XFL in rushing yards with 741, helping the Defenders rush for a league-best 1,408 yards.
D.C. also has a strong passing game led by quarterback Jordan Ta'amu, who had 1,894 yards in the regular season, the third-most in the XFL. He does a great job of taking care of the ball, as he has just three interceptions.
It's the least of any signal caller with at least 200 pass attempts.
Another obvious key for the Renegades is the play of quarterback Luis Perez, who was excellent against the Roughnecks, throwing for 289 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions.
Perez has been a bit turnover prone with seven interceptions, third-most in the league. So, it'll take another flawless performance if the Renegades have any shot of beating D.C.
As great as Arlington's upset was, the Defenders just have too many weapons and too much talent not to finish off their phenomenal season with a title.
The XFL Championship will take place May 13 at 8 p.m. ET at the Alamodome in San Antonio.
The XFL Championship is set, with one team that was expected to make the finals and another that's making a surprise appearance.
The D.C. Defenders, fresh off a 9-1 regular season that solidified them as the team to beat, cruised to a 37-21 victory over the Seattle Sea Dragons in the North Division Championship Game on Sunday to earn a shot at the title against an Arlington Renegades team that finished 4-6 in the regular season.
A dominant second half offset a 9-9 halftime score, as Jordan Ta'amu led the charge with 258 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Briley Moore-McKinney led all Defenders receivers with 80 yards on four catches, while Lucky Jackson and Ethan Wolf each brought in a touchdown. Abram Smith and Cam'Ron Harris scored a combined three rushing touchdowns, with the former leading the ground game with 48 yards on 23 carries.
The Seattle Sea Dragons performance was a disappointment following a two-game winning streak to make the postseason. Ben DiNucci recorded 295 yards and three touchdowns, but the running game picked up just 13 yards. Juwan Green and Jahcour Pearson hauled in three total touchdowns and had 89 and 56 yards, respectively.
Josh Gordon made four catches for 23 yards, which was second lowest among Seattle receivers who recorded a reception. This frustrated supporters on Twitter.
Meanwhile, the Arlington Renegades showed just how tough it is to beat a team three times in a season on Saturday. Following losses in Weeks 2 and 10 to the Houston Roughnecks, the Renegades rode a strong first half offensively and held the Roughnecks at bay in the second half to win 26-11 and advance to the league championship.
Luis Perez was surgical breaking down the Roughnecks defense, throwing for 289 yards and three touchdowns and completing 19-of-27 passes. De'Veon Smith led the team in rushing with 94 yards on 24 carries, while JaVonta Payton caught two touchdowns and had 121 yards, while Brandon Arconado caught the other one.
The championship game appears to be a mismatch, with the league-leading Defenders facing a Renegades team that finished under .500. Still, Arlington's performance in the South Division Championship shows that anything can happen in the postseason.
The two teams met in Week 9, with the Defenders securing a narrow 28-26 overtime victory. The XFL Championship is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET on May 13 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.
In one of the most stunning upsets of the season, the Arlington Renegades are moving on to the XFL Championship Game.
The Renegades took down the Houston Roughnecks, the top-seeded team in the South Division, 26-11 on Saturday.
Not only did the Renegades enter the postseason as the only team with a losing record at 4-6, but Roughnecks also dominated them in their two meetings during the regular season.
The two teams met last week for the final game of the regular season, and Houston blew out its in-state rivals, 25-9.
But it's extremely hard to beat a team three times in a year, which the Renegades only confirmed Saturday.
Led by legendary college coach Bob Stoops, Arlington had players all over the roster make a huge impact in the win, but none more than the duo of quarterback Luis Perez and receiver JaVonta Payton.
Perez threw for a game-high 289 yards to go along with three touchdowns and no interceptions while completing 19 of his 27 passes. Payton was benefactor of a handful of those passes, finishing with 121 yards and two scores.
Stoops' defense came up big as well, holding an explosive Houston offense to only 11 points. It was previously held to under 20 points only three times during the regular season.
Twitter was singing Stoops' praises following the win.
The Renegades winning the championship in the revamped league's first season would be an incredible storyline considering how far they've come.
They're set to face the winner of Sunday's game between the DC Defenders and Seattle Sea Dragons, both of whom have been the best teams in the XFL for much of the year.
