The way the UFL announced the end of its greatest franchise, when accounting for the two years the USFL existed before merging with the XFL, the Birmingham Stallions, was a slap in the face to the Horsemen and football fans across the state of Alabama. It was the result of private equity doing what it always does: squeezing the life out of a brand before killing it off. Mike Repole, the villain in this story, and his PE firm, Impact Capital, acquired a majority stake in the UFL before the 2026 season.
Now, the Stallions are gone from the Magic City, something that Repole basically warned of since the moment he took over a year ago around this time. Worse yet, the Queens, New York, native basically blamed local leadership for why this happened.
"With Birmingham, this decision was 100% due to the wrong sized venue. I appreciate the passion of the fans and respect the history of the Birmingham Stallions. It was clearly my decision that with the wrong sized venue spring football could not succeed in Birmingham. Even on opening day, when 16,000 Stallions fans showed up, the energy, passion, and game atmosphere was not felt due to the size of the venue. We've been transparent with local mayors and city leadership that we'd love to return as soon as the right stadium solution becomes available, and we are willing to participate in accelerating those efforts," Repole said in a statement.
The City of Houston was not treated this way, by the way. Repole actually took the blame himself for the Gamblers' financial failures.
Matching emails were sent from the Stallions and Gamblers mailing lists to spread this devastating news. How utterly corporate and soulless, I know.
The writing was on the wall for Birmingham in 2025 and 2026
After the Stallions won three spring football championships in a row, capped off by defeating the San Antonio Brahmas in the 2024 title game during the first year of a merged UFL, there was probably less attendance than there should've been for a verifiable dynasty at Protective Stadium. The loss of GM Zach Potter to the Sacramento State Hornets before the 2025 season was the first sign that the product's standards would be lower. Things only got worse when Skip Holtz left the team before the 2026 season.
The writing was on the wall. The team's taking a step back on the field only sealed the deal for the inevitable.
Numbers weren't crunching right for the league. It's understandable. But Repole is rubbing it in with the way he's handling this exit. There was clearly bad blood between the New York businessman and a local government that is struggling to pay for many things, let alone a new football venue.
Auburn and Alabama fans lose professional football in the state
Don't get it twisted: Auburn Tigers and Alabama Crimson Tide fans were supporting the Stallions. UAB Blazers, Jacksonville State Gamecocks, Troy Trojans, and South Alabama Jaguars fans, for that matter, too. They didn't always fill the stadium, though there was plenty of orange, blue, crimson, and white on gameday, but many helped Birmingham become the No. 1 TV market for the UFL.
Repole is risking all of those fans boycotting the product.
There's no reason to follow the Stallions to where they go next for many Alabamians. Repole made it clear that he doesn't care about the football tradition that helped make the USFL attractive enough for a merger with the XFL and some of the best football fans in the country.
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