2024 UFL Season: What you need to know about lineups, rules, and more

In 2021, actor Larry David started a comedy sports movement. David appeared on “The Rich Eisen Show'' and called for the removal of goal posts at professional soccer fields.

“Why are there goal posts?” David yelled. “Why the kicker? [on the team]?They have no soccer skills.? They are not football players. I think they're great people, but they're not football players. Why do they kick the ball into the goal post to decide the game? It makes no sense at all! ”

Almost three years later, David sought out a man who he believed could make his vision a reality. (At least be thankful for it and be part of it.) He tracked down fellow entertainer Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. He also happens to own part of the United Football League, the product of the 2023 USFL-XFL merger.

“I heard about this UFL thing,” David said in an interview this month. Return to Eisen's program, provided the newly branded league with the best free publicity it could ask for. “I pitched my idea to him and thought it would become a reality. He was totally into it.”

Sadly, the goalposts will actually be in place for the UFL when the eight teams begin their 10-week season on Saturday. But David's gag cemented an undeniable truth about spring football. This is where innovation in professional football is born, from rule changes to television production to fundamental ideas about how and when games should be played.

The XFL created the basis for an improved kickoff that the NFL will adopt this season. The USFL, which entered the market in 2022 along with the XFL, showed a depth of interest. It remains to be seen whether the business of spring football is sustainable, but we're now entering the second half of a near-continuous decade. This spring, all 43 UFL games will be televised on ABC, Fox, ESPN, FS1, ESPN2 and streamed on ESPN+ or the Fox Sports app.

ESPN reported on the basics of the league before training camp began, but here are 10 elements of the UFL to keep an eye on as the season arrives.

It is likely that the talent level has increased

This spring marks the fifth time in six years that spring football leagues have at least begun their seasons, from the AAF (2019) to the XFL (2020 and 2023) to the USFL (2022, 2023). . Johnston believes this trend has created a favorable environment for attracting players who might otherwise have stayed home and waited to hear from NFL teams. That includes former NFL players like pass rusher Taco Charlton and running back Wayne Gallman, who are enrolled in Birmingham and St. Louis, respectively.

Meanwhile, last winter's merger reduced the number of roster spots available in 2024 by about 50% compared to last spring. Putting these factors together should make the UFL a more talented team than the recent spring leagues that preceded it.

“All the head coaches and general managers are talking about how difficult it was to make cuts,” said Johnston, who worked in the AAF, XFL and USFL before joining the UFL. “We're very happy with our depth. That's an area where we've improved. … We often call our players and say, 'Let's help change the way the NFL looks at you.' We were talking. We've got 10 games worth of film on tape. We don't have to make that many calls.”

Johnston said the most noticeable improvement has been on the offensive line. “We had some body types in training camp that we haven’t seen on a consistent basis before,” he said.

There's a famous quarterback

The UFL features players well-known to spring league and college football fans. Some teams were still playing games as the week ended, but the confirmed starters are:

Matt Corral is a likely starter at Birmingham, as are EJ Perry and Danny Etling at Michigan. One possibility in San Antonio is Quinten Dormady.

Two notable running backs won't play this season.

First, veteran Bo Scarborough, who played for four NFL teams from 2018 to 2021 and led the Birmingham Stallions to back-to-back USFL championships in 2022 and 2023, announced his retirement early in training camp.

In a memorable send-off, Scarborough said: “You can love this game all you want. But at the end of the day, the game can't love you back, because it's not a person. It's a ball. I do ” Hats off to those who are still playing. And when your turn comes, you'll know it's your turn. ”

Then, DC Abram Smith suffered a torn left ACL during a training camp practice. Smith led the XFL with 788 rushing yards and seven touchdowns last season, helping the Defenders advance to the XFL Championship Game.

The most established fan bases are St. Louis and D.C.

The XFL team played in its home market in both 2020 and 2023, giving St. Louis its strongest local connection ever. The BattleHawks averaged 28,000 fans for two games in the shortened 2020 season, but will average 35,000 fans per home game at the America's Center Dome in 2023. That's about three times as many as the rest of the league. It's no wonder the UFL chose St. Louis to host the 2024 championship game on June 16th.

Meanwhile, fans at Audi Field in Washington, D.C., which averaged 14,000 people in the 20,000-seat venue, developed an organic tradition of assembling “beer snakes” in the stands.

Coach Johnston has called St. Louis and D.C. the “stars” of the league in terms of local popularity and has challenged other teams in the league to match them. All USFL teams will play in Birmingham in 2022 before moving to regional games in 2023. As a result, attendance could be spotty in some markets where single-game tickets went on sale only earlier this month.

“Attendance was probably the biggest challenge because everything came together so late,” Johnston said. “The important thing is we have to come out right away and play good football and establish the hook, validate the commitments that people have already made and try to bring in new people.”

There are no extra point kicks and overtime is unique

Similar to previous spring football games, the UFL requires teams to execute offensive plays after a touchdown rather than lining up for a kick. He has three choices. Teams can line up at:

• 2 yard line for 1 point try

• 5 yard line for 2 point try

• 10 yard line for 3 point try

These options reduce the chance of a match going into overtime. However, if that happens, each team will take turns attempting to score from the 5-yard line in his best-of-three format (or until a winner is determined). Kicks are not allowed.

A signature XFL kickoff I don't be used

During negotiations to merge the two leagues' rulebooks, UFL officials decided to keep the USFL version more similar to a traditional NFL kickoff. In the UFL version, the kicker spots the ball at his 20-yard line, nearly eliminating the possibility of a touchback and maximizing the number of returns. A kickoff that goes out of bounds finds him 30 yards from where the ball leaves the field.

Ironically, the XFL version, which places most players downfield and must remain stationary until the ball hits the ground or is in the field, was the basis for a proposed improvement to the NFL kickoff that was approved. Owners meeting earlier this week.

Johnston previously said the USFL's injury data is not that different from the XFL's, and Blandino said there is nothing that would prevent the league from making adjustments after the 2024 season. “It's not like we can't get through 2024 and work backwards toward a more XFL-style kickoff,” he said.

UFL applies NFL possession rules to receptions

Mirroring the USFL, the UFL requires receivers to either place both feet inbounds or use a body part other than their hands to land inbounds. The XFL only needed one leg because of its potential to positively impact the aesthetics of the game and the point totals. But Blandino said the UFL ultimately decided that the need for both legs was a key differentiator between pro and college football.

“We felt like with the talent and athletes,” he said, “we really wanted to go to the highest level and say, 'Hey, this is pro football. If you want to go to the NFL, these are the rules you're going to play by. is.”

There is no “worst rule in soccer”

If an offensive player fumbles the ball into or out of the end zone, the offense retains the ball at the location of the fumble. This is consistent with the 2023 USFL and XFL rules, but is contrary to how the NFL handles this by declaring a touchback and giving the ball to the opposing team at the 20-yard line.

“It only happened once last year,” Blandino said. “Every time it happens in the NFL, there's talk about it being the worst rule in football. People hate it. So we wanted to listen to the fans. That's not the case. It doesn't happen that often. So we introduced it.' Let's see what happens. ”

Review will be broadcast on TV

Both Fox and ABC/ESPN will intervene with the league's off-site command center as the review progresses. The UFL has given Blandino and fellow executive Mike Pereira the power to call off games, saying, in the words of the league, “If the play can be considered, we believe there was an error in the original ruling.'' There is reasonable evidence and there will be a direct ruling.'' Competitive Impact on the Game. ”

Coaches have one assignment they can use to review any play, including fouls. If the UFL gives them a rule against them, they will lose a timeout.

This approach garnered high praise in 2023, both for helping fans learn the league's rules and for the transparency of decisions that affect the outcome of matches. In the XFL, duration averaged 51 seconds.

“We expect it to stay within the 60-second window,” Blandino said.

The coach stayed, but some officials left for the NFL.

All eight UFL head coaches worked in the XFL or USFL last season. Six returned to the same location, and two, Memphis' John DeFilippo and San Antonio's Wade Phillips, moved to accommodate the merger. Other assignments remain.

• Birmingham: Skip Holtz.

• Houston: Curtis Johnson

• Michigan: Mike Nolan

• Arlington: Bob Stoops

• DC: Reggie Barlow

• St. Louis: Anthony Becht.

Meanwhile, 12 XFL and USFL officials were hired by the NFL after the 2023 season. The UFL has grouped the remaining officials into large groups of 10, with each team responsible for four or five games this season. All UFL officials participate in the NFL's Mackey Development Program.