UFL team coming to Colorado Springs in 2027
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The new team will play at Weidner Field. Photo: Ray Bahner/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images
Colorado Springs is getting its own professional United Football League team.
Why it matters: The UFL's arrival gives southern Colorado its first pro football team — and puts the league's bet on smaller, fuller stadiums to the test.
Driving the news: The unnamed team begins play at Weidner Field in 2027, with its home opener scheduled for 1pm April 11, airing on ABC, the UFL announced Wednesday.
- Colorado will join the league alongside Rhode Island for the 2027 season. They take the places of Birmingham and Houston, keeping the UFL at eight teams.
What they're saying: Mayor Yemi Mobolade called the announcement "a vote of confidence" in the Springs.
- "A UFL team will put Colorado Springs in front of a national audience, bring fans to Weidner Field, and give southern Colorado a professional football team to call its own," the mayor said in a statement.
The big picture: The UFL was created in 2024 through the merger of the rebooted XFL and USFL. Colorado Springs will enter during the league's fourth season.
- The league has repeatedly remade its map, adding and dropping teams. Colorado Springs may fit the new playbook, but building a durable fan base will be the real test.
Zoom in: The team will share Weidner Field with the Colorado Springs Switchbacks.
- At roughly 8,000 seats, the downtown stadium is expected to be the UFL's smallest venue.
Between the lines: The stadium's size is a feature, not a flaw.
- UFL leadership has increasingly favored smaller soccer venues, betting that fuller stands create a better atmosphere for fans and stronger images on television than partially filled NFL-sized stadiums.
What's next: The team's name, colors, logo and uniforms will be unveiled during an Oct. 25 public celebration at Weidner Field.
- The launch event will include the team's coach, seat selection and season-ticket deposits.