We’re just over a month away from when the XFL Officially kicks off, and the teams are ramping up league-wide. All eight franchises are heading to Houston for training camp, which officially starts January 4th and concludes the 22nd. During their stay, each team will have their own dedicated practice facility within Harris County.
- Dallas Renegades: Darryl Tully Stadium – Spring Branch ISD
- DC Defenders: Rice Stadium – Rice University
- Houston Roughnecks: TDECU Stadium – University of Houston
- Los Angeles Wildcats: Alexander Durley Stadium – Texas Southern University
- New York Guardians: Husky Stadium – Houston Baptist University
- St. Louis BattleHawks: W.W. Thorne Stadium – Aldine ISD
- Seattle Dragons: Delmar Stadium – Houston ISD
- Tampa Bay Vipers: George Tuner Stadium – Humble ISD
We were lucky enough to attend the Press Conference when the Harris County Sports Authority announced the locations. To be clear, this is a huge win for the City of Houston. The XFL will be bringing in nearly 1,000 people (players, coaches, staff, game officials, production teams). They have also committed to more than 10,000 hotel room nights and plan to consume more than 60,000 meals during their stay. During the press conference Janis Burke (CEO of Harris County Sports Authority) said that these training camps are expected to generate roughly $7,000,000 of revenue. Like we said, a huge win for Houston. You can watch the full press conference below, as well as hear directly from Commissioner Oliver Luck.
During the camps, the teams will continue to assess their players as they did during the mini-camps last month. At the conclusion of the training camp each team will trim down their rosters from 70 to a final 52-man roster. Keep in mind, many of the players that are cut will go on to form “Team 9”, the leagues supplemental team.
Also, if you’re in the area… The Houston Roughnecks have opened up their practice with the Tampa Bay Vipers on January 11th. We expect more of these events across the city will be opened up for fans as well. You know we’ll be there, but we strongly suggest that you attend if you have the opportunity. This will be the first time that fans would be able to see two XFL teams on the field at the same time! Regardless, we’ll continue to bring you the best coverage while the league is in Houston.
