Unique History of USFL: Past, Present, Future
The United States Football League, which merged with the XFL, is the fifth proposed league to operate under that USFL name, and the second to do so successfully.
The first iteration was formed in the 1940s, with Chicago Bears legend Red Grange as its commissioner. The league was intended to directly compete with the NFL, but it folded for good in 1945 after failing to entice both investors and players.
New Orleans businessman David Dixon first shared his vision for a USFL in 1962, suggesting a spring and summer schedule that would wrap before the NFL and college football seasons began. The primary purpose of the group he formed was to lobby the NFL and AFL for an expansion franchise, however, and he shelved his idea for a spring league when they were awarded the New Orleans Saints in 1966.
Dixon spent the next 15 years studying the successes and failures of a myriad of challengers to the NFL before relaunching his efforts in earnest, creating “The Dixon Plan'' as a blueprint for success. The USFL was formally announced in May of 1982, with the following guidelines in place to ensure stability:
- Secure NFL-caliber stadiums in top television markets.
- Secure a national television broadcast contract.
- Control spending via a proposed salary cap of $1.8 million per team.
- Host a territorial draft to keep collegiate stars close to their established fan bases.
- Budget for large-scale preseason promotional efforts to connect with the local markets.
Dixon also emphasized the importance of vetting potential ownership groups and demanded teams meet strict financial requirements.
The USFL began play in 1983 after relatively few hiccups, showing impressive consistency for a first-year league. Revenue from television contracts was in line with the requirements of The Plan, and ratings surpassed expectations. Additionally, the USFL averaged 25,000 fans per game, with 10 of 12 teams exceeding the suggested first-year attendance threshold.
However, that stability quickly unraveled when owners abandoned The Plan, specifically in regard to spending. When reigning Heisman winner Herschel Walker signed a three-year deal for $4.2 million — with a $1 million signing bonus — that was labeled as a “personal services” contract by New Jersey Generals owner J Walter Duncan, no objections were raised by the other owners.
Doug Flutie's extensive professional career started with the New Jersey Generals following his 1984 Heisman Trophy win. He finished with 2,109 yards, 13 TDs and 14 interceptions in one season before the USFL folded.
Before he was a two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, Super Bowl XXXI champion, 13-time Pro Bowl and 13-time All-Pro selection, Reggie White made a name for himself with the Memphis Showboats.
Kelly, who was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2002, elected to play for the Houston Gamblers for two seasons before his 11 years with the Buffalo Bills.
Before a 12-year NFL career with the Saints and Panthers, 2022 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Sam Mills played three seasons in the USFL with the Stars and won two championships (1984, 85).
Walker bypassed the NFL's rule against juniors entering the draft by signing a cap-busting $4.2 million contract with the Generals in 1983 that sent the rest of the USFL into a spending frenzy.
Zimmerman played two seasons with the Los Angeles Express before the league folded. The 2008 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee won Super Bowl XXXII with the Denver Broncos.
After winning the 1983 Heisman, Mike Rozier played for the Pittsburgh Maulers and Jacksonville Bulls in the USFL, then the Houston Oilers and Atlanta Falcons in the NFL.
Eventual two-time NFL MVP and Super Bowl XXIX MVP Steve Young first spent two seasons with the Los Angeles Express after signing a record ten-year, $40 million contract.
Instead, the signing kicked off a major spending spree, resulting in nearly every team exceeding the proposed salary cap as they sought to bring in as many big names as possible. Dixon urged the league to cut back, but owners instead pushed for additional revenue streams. Six expansion teams were added, and issues arose with the broadcast deal, which was not structured to accommodate an 18-team league.
Frustrated, Dixon sold his stake and got out.
Vetting protocols were largely abandoned as well ahead of the 1984 season, resulting in an escalating series of blunders in ownership changes, relocations and mergers, along with major scandals and financial crises across various franchises that required direct intervention from the USFL.
By the end of the league’s second season, owners Eddie Einhorn and Donald Trump were leading a push to move play to the fall and directly challenge the NFL. They insisted it would eventually force a merger between the leagues and more than double the original investments for the teams left standing.
Owners approved a move to a fall schedule starting in 1986 with a vote of 13-2, but the league lost a number of lucrative markets within weeks as teams chose to either fold or move rather than directly compete with an NFL team. The remaining owners then turned down major broadcast deals from ABC and ESPN that depended on continued play in the spring.
Following the 1985 season, the league filed an antitrust lawsuit against the NFL. It claimed the larger league had established a monopoly regarding broadcasting rights and access to stadium venues and sought damages of $567 million that would be tripled to $1.7 billion under antitrust laws.
After a 42-day trial, the jury ruled the NFL was indeed “a duly adjudicated illegal monopoly,” but they determined the USFL had hurt itself with the risky move and that no attempt had been made to force the league off TV. The USFL was ultimately rewarded $1 — $3 under antitrust law — and operations were suspended just four days after the verdict.
When the league shut down for good in 1990, it had lost over $163 million.
Southern California businessman Michael Dwyer proposed a new USFL in 2008, intended from the start to be a developmental league. After two failed launch attempts and three different ownership groups, plans were put on hold until funding for several seasons could be secured. By January 2016, league trademarks were listed as dead or canceled.
The most recent reboot of the USFL — a return to Dixon’s original vision of a spring league — was confirmed in June of 2021. Eight teams, all of which shared the brands of former USFL franchises, operated for both the 2022 and 2023 seasons, with the entirety of the first regular season being played in Birmingham in a “bubble.”
When the inaugural year wrapped up with the Birmingham Stallions’ 33-30 victory over Philadelphia, the USFL became the first high-level spring football league to complete a season since the original XFL in 2001.
The following year, Memphis, Canton and Detroit were added as host cities, each housing two teams apiece. A 2024 season was confirmed in June of 2023, and on Sept. 28, the USFL and XFL formally shared their plans to merge before the start of the next season.
It was officially announced on Dec. 31 that the new league will operate under the name "United Football League," and details surrounding its structure were released the following day.
The inaugural season will feature eight teams, with two conferences each containing the surviving four teams from the former leagues.
From the USFL, the reigning champion Birmingham Stallions, Michigan Panthers, Memphis Showboats and Houston Gamblers will compete this year, though the Gamblers are rebranding as the Roughnecks, their XFL counterpart.
The season kicks off on March 30 with a showdown between the Stallions and the XFL champion Arlington Renegades.
UFL Provides Last Hope For Long-Term Viability
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