Pro Football Is Coming Back to Columbus in 2026

Columbus is getting a new professional football team!

Spring pro football league, The United Football League (UFL), announced it’s relocating one of its franchises to Columbus for the 2026 season. The team will play at Historic Crew Stadium, the original home of the Columbus Crew.

RELATED: Columbus Crew Signs 17-Year-Old Midfielder Tristan Brown

The UFL hasn’t revealed which current team is making the move. BodyArmor & Vitaminwater co-founder and UFL investor Mike Repole confirmed that two relocations are in the works, Columbus being one of them.

“The UFL selecting Historic Crew Stadium to host a team’s home games is a further testament to the first-class fan experience at our venue,” said a Crew spokesperson. “It also advances our commitment to bringing major events to Columbus that highlight our city and drive economic impact.”

It’s the first time Columbus will host a professional football team since the AFL’s Destroyers, who played at Nationwide Arena from 2004 to 2008 and briefly in 2019.

The UFL currently has eight teams:

• Birmingham Stallions
• Houston Roughnecks
• Memphis Showboats
• Michigan Panthers
• Arlington Renegades
• DC Defenders
• San Antonio Brahmas
• St. Louis Battlehawks

Historic Crew Stadium has a deep legacy in sports, opening in 1999 as the first soccer-specific stadium in MLS. It hosted Crew matches until 2021, as well as major U.S. Men’s and Women’s National Team games, World Cup qualifiers, high school football, and even the 2020 MLS Cup Final.

While the team name and full rollout are still TBD, pro football is officially returning to Columbus.

• Pope Leo XIV Delivers Apology Over Holy See Legitimizing Slavery
• Trump Shares AI Photo Of Obama's Jailhouse Mugshot, Outrage Ensues
• Former Ruff Ryders Rapper Jin The MC Launches New Label
• Scarlett Johansson Leaves Marvel To Join Matt Reeves' 'The Batman II'
• Ray J Suffers Savage Second-Round KO To Supa Hot Fire In MMA Match Months After Claiming He 'Didn’t Have Long To Live'
• Blazing Beauty Lupita Nyong'o Breezily Brushes Off ‘Odyssey’ Casting Critics—'I'm Not Spending My Time Thinking Of A Defense'
• Latto Links Up with 21 Savage's 'Wife' & Baby Mama For Blended Family Fun, Proudly Says She's 'Big Mama, FIVE Kids'
• Sybil Wilkes Memorial Day’s Black History, George Floyd, and More
• National Tap Dance Day: 7 Famous Folks With Fancy Footwork Who Pushed The Culture Forward
• T.I. Talks ‘Kill The King,’ Legacy And “Mr. Birthday Bash” Status With Lore’l At Birthday Bash XXX