The United Football Leagues (UFL) announced the upcoming schedule for the player selection and team allocation for the 2026 season on Monday. The 2026 UFL Draft will be held at the league’s headquarters in Arlington, Texas.
“As we work toward fulfilling our bold vision for the United Football League that includes new markets, new teams, and new stadiums, presenting a dynamic product on the field remains the cornerstone of this league,” said UFL President & CEO Russ Brandon. “In order to stock our teams with talent – especially our three new teams – and to ensure competitive balance throughout the league, we have laid out an innovative selection process that will lead to an exciting brand of football this spring.”
Before the upcoming drafts can proceed, Pro Football Newsroom reporter James Larsen reported that the Michigan Panthers roster is going to the Columbus Aviators, the San Antonio Brahmas roster is headed to the Orlando Storm, and the Memphis Showboats roster is headed to the Louisville Kings.
The UFL player selection process will consist of three elements.
Quarterback Draft- January 9, 2026
The Quarterback Draft will be the first phase of the player selection process. Head Coaches will evaluate all available quarterbacks in collaboration with the UFL centralized scouting department. The Quarterback Draft will be held remotely on Friday, January 9, with all selections being announced on Monday, January 12.
Regional College Allocation- January 10, 2026
Head Coaches may choose a maximum of three (3) players from their allocated colleges. The College Allocation selection will be held remotely on January 10, 2026. The regions will be defined by the UFL Player Personnel Department to ensure equity. All selections will be announced on Monday, January 12. UFL teams will retain the right of first refusal to sign players from their allocated colleges throughout the season.
UFL Draft- January 13-14, 2026
The 2026 UFL Draft will take place at the UFL HQ in Arlington, Texas (1401 Nolan Ryan Expressway) across two days as head coaches will make position-by-position selections:
1. UFL Players Draft (Jan. 13)
The Draft will include all players who finished the 2025 UFL season on Active Rosters and Injured Reserve.
UFL teams may include a maximum of twelve (12) players from their 2025 rosters on a Reserve List. Any player included on his team’s Reserve List will not be exposed to the Draft.
The first day of the UFL Draft will be broken into six positional groups:
Offensive Linemen
Running Backs/Tight Ends
Wide Receivers
Defensive Front Seven (Linebackers, Defensive Ends, Defensive Tackles)
Defensive Backs
Specialists
2. Free Agents Draft (Jan. 14)
The following players who are not under contract in another league may be selected:
2025 NFL draft-eligible players
2025 NFL training camp players
2026 NFL draft-eligible players
UFL Showcase attendees
Players who signed an LOI and did not finish the 2025 season on a UFL roster
Other free agents
Similar to the first day of the UFL Draft, the second day will be broken into seven positional groups:
Offensive Linemen
Running Backs/Tight Ends
Wide Receivers
Defensive Front Seven (Linebackers, Defensive Ends, Defensive Tackles)
Defensive Backs
Specialists
Open (A team may select any player regardless of position to backfill the roster in case they didn’t draft enough players at a certain position during the specific positional portion of the draft.)
3. Draft Order
UFL Football Operations will conduct a virtual lottery to randomly determine the order for the 2026 UFL Draft.
All rounds for each position will be conducted via “snake style.” After the first round, the eighth team will select first in the second round, the seventh team will choose second, and so forth. The order reverts back to the original order in the third round and alternates every round thereafter.
4. Maximum Number of Picks
UFL teams may select a minimum of 60 players and a maximum of 62 players in the Draft, which includes three quarterbacks, a maximum of three college allocations, and a maximum of 12 Reserve List players.
UFL teams may sign additional free agents following the Draft; the training camp roster limit is 64 players.
