Florida football fans begging for more during the NFL and college football offseason could benefit from the latest upheaval in the United Football League. Recent reports say half of the teams in the spring football league are moving for the 2026 season, with Orlando or Tampa Bay in line to be one of the new homes.
The UFL finished its second season June 14. Attendance and ratings fell from its first season, leading to reports that the league will be moving four of its eight teams from Birmingham, Houston, Memphis and Detroit. It’s surprising news, especially considering the Michigan Panthers were the only team to see attendance increase in 2025.
First reported by UFL News Hub, the new locations for the teams are set to be Boise, Idaho; Columbus, Ohio; Florida; and Kentucky. PFNewsroom reported Orlando and Tampa Bay were the interested regions for Florida, while Louisville and Lexington were the targets for Kentucky. Other reports pegged Orlando as the likely Florida site.
Orlando is no stranger to spring football, though none have a particularly long history. The Orlando Guardians played in the 2023 XFL season before being contracted when that league merged with the USFL to form the current UFL. The Orlando Rage played in the original run of the XFL in 2001, as well. The city also hosted the Orlando Renegades of the original USFL in 1985, the Florida Tuskers of the original UFL from 2009-10 and the Orlando Apollos of the Alliance of American Football in 2019, just to name a few.
Nothing is official yet, but if Orlando is getting another shot at spring football, could it go differently this time? Here’s what to know about the UFL:
What is the UFL? Is it different from the XFL?
The United Football League formed at the end of 2023 from the merger of two spring football leagues: the USFL run by Fox Sports and the XFL, which was partly owned by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. The merged league schedule starts in late March and plays its championship game in June.
XFL started in 2020 before being shut down midway through its first season by the COVID pandemic, restarting under new management in 2023. The USFL kicked off in 2022, with the two leagues playing partially overlapping seasons in 2023.
This is second second time a spring league under all three of those names has launched. The original XFL lasted one season in 2001 under the WWE umbrella, while the first USFL lasted from 1983-85 and included Heisman Trophy winners Herschel Walker and Doug Flutie, as well as Hall of Famers Jim Kelly, Reggie White and Steve Young. The initial UFL was an unrelated league that lasted from 2009-12.
How is UFL different than NFL?
The biggest difference between the two football leagues is the extra point. Instead of kicking a PAT after touchdowns, teams in the UFL run a scrimmage play from one of three distances from the end zone for varying extra points:
The UFL also does not have onside kicks; instead, teams can convert a fourth-and-12 scrimmage play from its own 28-yard line to keep the ball after scoring. Also, teams are allowed multiple forward passes as long as the ball does not cross the line of scrimmage before the final pass is thrown.
The NFL pulled the idea for its new dynamic kickoff — where blocking and tackling players aren’t allowed to run until the kick is received — from the XFL. However, the UFL didn’t originally launch with that format, switching back for the 2025 season.
How many teams are in the UFL? Which ones are relocating?
The UFL is made of eight teams: four from the XFL and four from the USFL that make up the new league’s conferences. Here are the teams from the recently completed 2025 season:
The four USFL teams are the ones reportedly being relocated.
Who owns UFL football?
The XFL was founded by former WWE front man Vince McMahon. After declaring bankruptcy when the league cut its inaugural season short in 2020, McMahon sold the league to a group led by Dwayne Johnson, Dany Garcia and RedBird Capital Partners. They maintained ownership stakes when the XFL merged with the USFL, which was owned by Fox Sports.
(This story has been updated to reflect the preferred spelling of RedBird Capital Partners.)
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: UFL relocation plans reportedly could bring team to Florida. What is the UFL?
Reporting by Dan Rorabaugh, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida / The Daytona Beach News-Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
