The XFL and USFL are merging, and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson just shared some big news about the professional football league. Johnson and his business partner, Dany Garcia, appeared on Fox NFL Sunday this week to announce the new name of the merged league, which will be called the United Football League (UFL). It was also revealed that the UFL will kick off the 2024 season on March 30.
“The dream for me was to play in the NFL. I always liked to say I’m player 54 on a 53-man roster,” Johnson said. “Imagine all those 54s out there, you tell them, ‘You’ve got one more chance in the UFL,’ and then to go on to the NFL, potentially — how do you think they’ll play? They’re gonna ball out.”
Videos by PopCulture.com
Johnson, Garcia and Gerry Cardinale of RedBird Capital Partners were owners of the XFL and are now three of the five UFL “partners.” The other two are USFL owner Fox Sports (represented by CEO Eric Shanks) and ESPN (represented by chairman Jimmy Pitaro). ESPN/Disney was the exclusive broadcast partner of the 2023 XFL season. The inaugural UFL season will feature eight teams — four from the USFL (Birmingham Stallions, Houston Roughnecks, Memphis Showboats and Michigan Panthers) and four from the XFL (Arlington Renegades, D.C. Defenders, San Antonio Brahmas and St. Louis Battlehawks).
“From day one, our mission has been to expand the game of football and be a league of opportunity, culture and innovation,” Johnson said in a statement. “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.”
“The United Football League – a powerful combination of the XFL and USFL – will provide passionate sports fans with an entertaining, innovative, and action-packed season,” Pitaro said. “With compelling storytelling across traditional and digital platforms, fan-friendly innovations, and tremendous reach, this visionary league is well-positioned, and we look forward to our continued collaboration.” The XFL and USFL played separate schedules in 2023. The leagues announced plans to merge on Sept. 28 and received approval from federal regulators on Nov. 30.
