(Above Image Credit: ABC 10 News San Diego)

The USFL returns this weekend with a second season featuring four games, two games each on Saturday and Sunday.

This season will feature contested matchups between eight different teams. Among those eight teams is a new team, the Memphis Showboats, replacing the Tampa Bay Bandits. The Showboats were one of the original expansion teams of the USFL.

There will also be four host cities this season. Birmingham will be a host city once again and joining in on the regular season will be Detroit, Canton, and Memphis. Canton will also serve as the host city for the USFL championship game.

Teams and Week 1 Matchups

This league is divided into two divisions: the North and South. Here are the following teams of each division:

North: Michigan Panthers, New Jersey Generals, Philadelphia Stars, and Pittsburgh Maulers

South: Birmingham Stallions, Houston Gamblers, New Orleans Breakers, and Memphis Showboats

The matchups for week 1 are as follows:

  • Philadelphia vs. Memphis – Saturday, April 15, 4:30 PM EST (FOX)
  • New Jersey vs. Birmingham – Saturday, April 15, 7:30 PM EST (FOX)
  • Michigan vs. Houston – Sunday, April 16, 12 PM EST (NBC, Peacock)
  • Pittsburgh vs. New Orleans – 6:30 PM EST (FS1)

Host Venues

As mentioned, Birmingham, Detroit, Memphis, and Canton, will be the host venues for the 2023 USFL season. Two teams each will host their games in the following stadiums:

  • Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium (Memphis, TN) will host all Memphis Showboats and Houston Gamblers home games.
  • Protective Stadium (Birmingham, AL) will host all Birmingham Stallions and New Orleans Breakers home games.
  • Ford Field (Detroit, MI) will host all Michigan Panthers and Philadelphia Stars home games.
  • Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium (Canton, OH) will host all New Jersey Generals and Pittsburgh Maulers home games.

How the 2023 Season Will Work

The regular season will go on for 10 weeks. During the playoffs, which will be on June 23rd and 24th, the top two teams from each division will battle it out in two playoff games in late June. The winners will then go head-to-head in the USFL championship at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.

History of the USFL (For Those Who Don’t Know)

New Orleans antiques dealer David Dixon saw football as a spring/summer sport, not just fall. He spent 15 years studying the AFL and World Football League, two leagues that challenged the NFL before. He hired a marketing agency in 1980 to study the possibility of having a football league in those seasons, and the results determined it was possible. Dixon moved along with building his dream football league.

12 teams signed up for the inaugural season in 1983. TV deals were quickly reached with ABC Sports then ESPN for millions of dollars. They drew 2.7 million fans, and over 25,000 filled stadiums.

When the first season ended, it was decision time. Does the USFL go on with another season? Can it expand to 16 teams? Can it handle a $1.8 million salary cap? Can it directly compete with the NFL? Their answer was yes.

The next season went on with new owners, teams, and players. Money eventually became a serious problem as it continued. Some teams were on the brink of bankruptcy, and the USFL announced they were transitioning into a fall league starting in 1986 before deciding on another season. That’s when everything unraveled.

Teams either merged, disbanded, or suspended their operations during the offseason. The league was going to lose everything and decided on a “last resort” by Donald Trump, owner of the New Jersey Generals at the time. That “last resort” was to sue the NFL.

The league filed an antitrust lawsuit against them, claiming they had an unlawful monopoly over TV contracts. They hoped the NFL would pay a large settlement that could save the league if they won. They did, but the payout was $3. Their appeal was rejected, and the remaining USFL teams voted to disband the league.

It was resurrected last year with eight teams. The Birmingham Stallions won that year and hope to repeat, but not if the rest of the teams have something to say.