Birmingham Stallions (UFL)
The Birmingham Stallions are a professional football team representing Birmingham as one of eight teams in the Arlington, Texas-based United Football League, which was launched in 2024 as the result of a merger between the USFL and the XFL, rival spring football leagues.
The team structure, branding, staff and roster were a continuation of the USFL Stallions, which were, in turn, inspired by the Birmingham Stallions of the 1980s USFL. The Stallions kept a 42-man roster under contract through the transition from the USFL to the UFL, and Skip Holtz remained as head coach.
The league held a "dispersal draft" on January 5, 2024 during which each of the UFL's 8 teams could select up to 20 players from teams in their former league that lost their franchise in the transition. A second draft 10 days later allowed teams to pick any unsigned players league-wide. Training camps began in Arlington on February 24, with up to 75 players invited per team. Those rosters were cut to 50 at the start of the 10-game regular season on March 30, with no more than 42 allowed to be active (plus a 3rd quarterback) for each game.
USFL players had voted in 2022 to be represented by the United States Football League Players Association (USFLPA), an affiliate of the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based United Steelworkers. That organization continued to represent players as the UFL Players Association (UFLPA) through the 2024 season as a condition of the merger's federal approval. USW ended its association with the UFLPA in August 2024, opening the door for players to re-organize, possibly with a new affiliate of the NFL Players Association (NFLPA).
2024 Season
2025 Season
References
- Turrentine, Caleb (January 3, 2024) "'Spring football is here to stay': Stallions coach Skip Holtz excited to return for UFL merger." ABC3340.com
- Chandler, Courtney (January 4, 2024) "Birmingham will not be hub for United Football League." CBS42.com
External links
- United Football League website