New UFL Job Listing Sparks Hope For Houston Roughnecks
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New UFL Job Listing Sparks Hope For Houston Roughnecks

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As it stands right now, UFL relocation has been up in the air for months. The Houston Roughnecks are a team that many expected to be on the chopping block, for multiple reasons. However, this morning, news broke that the league is hiring a Ticketing Account Executive for the Houston Roughnecks – a rather strange job posting to list, if Houston was being relocated.

In late July, we reported that the UFL was planning on moving four teams to new markets for the 2026 season. Houston was an organization which was confirmed by a multitude of sources to be in that bunch.

It made sense, considering all of the factors surrounding Houston. Their attendance has been in a steep decline in the UFL, with C.J. Johnson’s Gamblers replacing Wade Phillips’ Roughnecks. The Roughnecks moved to Rice Stadium in 2024, and then landed back at TDECU in 2025 – adding to the attendance woes.

Across the board, a lack of true local marketing in Houston severely hurt the franchise. Their numbers dipped to under 5,000 fans per game consistently in 2025. Houston had the lowest attendance, per capita, in the entire UFL this past season (0.07%).

Just taking one look at the stands, it was evident that the league also inflated the numbers when releasing that information to the public. Houston simply has not thrived as a market the last two years, in stark contrast to the crowds we saw in the XFL in 2020, and even 2023.

When Mike Repole joined the UFL’s ownership group and made his announcement on July 31st, he claimed that the UFL was moving at least two markets, and potentially up to four.

However, Birmingham has already been confirmed to return in 2026. Repole recently stated that he was working to keep the Panthers in Michigan as well, barring the venue hurdles.

Now, with the Houston Roughnecks re-hiring a Ticketing Executive, it sparks the conversation for Houston to return to the UFL in 2026. This offseason, the entire Roughnecks front office was canned. The only employee remaining was Brittany Rader (Communications) – but she left the league for a new gig last week. Up until this point, the Roughnecks appeared to be dead in the water.

Hopefully, we will get some official news from the UFL this month. Mike Repole originally stated that they were aiming to have everything announced by mid-September. The latest we’ve heard is that the week of September 22nd could be a significant date for the future of the UFL. With the fluidity that is spring football, though, we’ll have to simply wait and see.

What are your thoughts on the Houston Roughnecks and their future in the UFL? Should they be brought back in 2026? Let us know down in the comments below, or join the conversation on Discord!

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James Larsen
Growing up, football was one of the few things that brought me joy. It's always played a major role in my life, and continues to do so. As I've delved into sports reporting/writing, spring football has become my passion. Covering the XFL & USFL is a dream come true, and I look forward to plenty of excellent seasons in the years to come.
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3 Comments

  1. Houston should be moved / relocated to either Columbus or Louisville: if UFL isn’t marketing the team locally, they should be moved – end of discussion!!!

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  2. UFL needs TV ratings – that was a major drop in 2025 (670k avg) vs 2024 (850k avg). The bottomline is larger TV markets have higher potential for TV viewers than smaller TV markets.

    Houston is the 2nd largest TV market in the UFL. Its the 2nd largest TV mkt in the UFL. And 3.5x as large as Birmingham.

    CJ is not the problem. The fan whining of Roughnecks vs Gamblers didn’t pay off. Poor marketing and massive ticket prices were a major turn off in Houston. $100 on one side for mid field tickets? $74 for the other side? This is spring FB. Michigan highest $ tix were $50. Michigan attendance was UP.
    Also there is NO incentive to buy season tic vs single game tix. Season tix should be discounted say 5 tix for price of 4 to encourage committing to 5 games.

    Memphis is a disaster in the smallest TV market. Houston at least has potential due to its size. Its also in driving distance from Arlington for lower travel costs.

    Houston’s TDECU Stadium is not that large at 40k, so while Mike Repole would rather be in a 25k stadium, at least its not a 65k stadium. We don’t know the costs there but it likely not the issue vs say a Michigan at Ford Field.

    I have no prob if Houston stays in 2026, but without notable progress they will be gone in 2027. I’d prefer a team in NJ/NY which will make a bigger splash.

    In 2026 is coming fast and we know Columbus is coming and its looking like its Memphis as the likely axed market. If that’s the only change, that would be OK with many including myself.

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  3. I hoped when Repole came on board things would change. More news, things that would show more stability, settle the relocation questions quickly, etc. Instead we still get leaks and rumors (and very few of them). If you let people know the plans, if there are any, when it makes sense to do so just to get fans talking more. The more news, the more conversation, the more people become curious, the more conversation, if you can establish a positive narrative and keep people talking, so much the better. Conversation should lead to growth in interest.
    If Houston is staying put, there’s not much reason to not tell the fans, especially the folks in Houston. If this is just a ploy to get the Lynn Family Arena (?) in Louisville to lower their offer, then that’s pretty unfair to the Roughneck’s fans that are left.
    If there is work going on to keep Michigan in place then what the heck is wrong with saying more about it? It doesn’t mean they’re staying but people up there will at least know the league is trying. That can’t be a bad thing in the long run. This is a sports league, nobody is holding government secrets. The league should be more open about its intentions. Transparency should be good PR.

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