The United Football League has opened its headquarters in Arlington's Entertainment District. The UFL, formed as a result of a merger between the XFL and United States Football League in 2024, had been based in Birmingham, Alabama.
The UFL moved into 112,000 square feet of office space on Nolan Ryan Expressway north of Choctaw Stadium. The facility will house the league's administrative offices and team activities. All teams are owned by the league.
"I can't tell you how moved, how emotional and how singularly important this day is for us when we get to say our UFL headquarters are here in the City of Arlington," says UFL Owner Dany Garcia.
Garcia says the move was made "in partnership" with the city and REV Entertainment, a company created by the Texas Rangers to run events and marketing at Globe Life Field and Choctaw Stadium.
"We are able to say we are the largest lease that's happened here in the last 24 months," she says. "That's so important because everything about the UFL, it's not just about the opportunities, growth and love of football, it's that everyone within our ecosystem advances."
"One thing I have to emphasize is the impact the UFL has on this community," says Arlington Mayor Jim Ross. "It gives excitement to this community like there's never been before."
Ross says the Arlington Renegades drew enthusiastic crowds and tailgaters last season, and players have volunteered to help Toys for Tots and go shopping with kids.
The UFL has eight teams including the Arlington Renegades, Houston Roughnecks and San Antonio Brahmas in Texas. Garcia says the league has now started the process to expand to ten teams.
"It's exciting. We've had so much success with our athletes," she says. "We can have a greater impact, and we can maybe go back to some cities we've been before."
The UFL says 300 of its 400 players had workouts with NFL teams after last season. Of those, 83 signed contracts and 18 appeared on a roster this year.
UFL Chief Executive Officer Russ Brandon says the league does not consider the NFL a competitor. Instead, he says the UFL and NFL have developed an "incredible" relationship.
"We focus on innovation, we focus on technology, we focus on rules, officiating. How do we help the underserved populations in our game?" he says. "Last year, I think we had a female official on every single one of our crews. We are here to advance the game of football, and this hub is going to allow us to that as we move forward."
UFL training camps begin at the end of February. All eight teams train in North Texas use facilities at Choctaw, AT&T Stadium and local high schools.
"Our footprint in the whole North Texas area with Manfield, HEB [ISD], Southlake Carroll [High School] and Choctaw for practices is incredible," Brandon says.
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