Many people may not have heard, but Kentucky has a new professional team to get excited for.
The Louisville Kings are the newest addition to the United Football League (UFL) for the 2026 season. The Kings played their first game as a franchise this past Friday, March 27, in front of a sold-out crowd at Lynn Family Stadium in Louisville, Kentucky. Unfortunately, they fell short in their season opener to the Birmingham Stallions, 15-13, after giving up a touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
Now, if you are not familiar with the UFL, it is a semi-professional football league that is played throughout the spring. This means sports fans around the state do not have to wait until the fall to get their football fix after the conclusion of basketball season. The UFL is very similar to the NFL but has mixed up some of the rules a bit. For example, the UFL does not allow extra-point kicks after a touchdown. Instead, they have a tiered system that varies from one to three points depending on the coach’s decision before the PAT. A one point try is attempted from the 2-yard line, a two point try is attempting from the 5-yard line, and a three point try is attempted from the 10-yard line. This allows the coaches to have to gameplan and strategize more throughout the game and can make games more exciting and fun to watch.
Another rule that can make the games more exciting for the average fan is the UFL’s overtime rule. A little more familiar to college football fans, each team has three chances to score from their opponent’s 5-yard line with the team who scores the most in those three chances winning the game. If there is a draw at the end of both teams three chances, each team will alternate possessions sudden death style until a winner is determined.
These rules are just two examples of how the UFL is trying to uniquely grasp the attention of your average sports fan, the games can be more exciting and fast paced over a regular NFL game and will definitely be a sport to keep an eye on for the years to come.
The Louisville Kings are coached by former University of Louisville quarterback, Chris Redman, and their starting running back is University of Kentucky legend, Benny Snell. The franchise done a great job with acquiring both a UK and UL former football player to pique the interest of the diehard sports fans around the state.
The Kings are 0-1 on the season but showed promise in their first game as a franchise. You can catch their game against the Orlando Storm this Saturday, April 4, at 8pm on ESPN.
