Expansion consistently drives interest from United Football League fans because wide sections of the country do not have a team to call their own. It is also, perhaps, the biggest question of the off season.

While the UFL will expand by two teams, at least one group seems to have been identified, and some UFL employees were speaking in “specifics” at the Championship Game no teams have been finalized as of yet. Therefore, in the coming weeks we will be tracking the “horse race” so to speak as we attempt to read the tea leaves and see which two markets (or more) are joining our favorite league.

These rankings are based off of a combination of reading the signs given in public, speaking to folks in private, and guesswork.

The UFL Expansion Horse Race Rankings

1. Hartford, Connecticut. Coming out of the Hartford game all of the buzz was that the city had landed a team. Coming out of Media Day the buzz was that the New York Sentinels were headed that way. While it remains to be seen whether Hartford will have their own team or a relocated Sentinels squad, it remains likely that the city will have a team next year. Our report that Hartford had identified a Coach remains accurate to the best of our knowledge meaning that a franchise move might threaten Ted Cottrell’s job. If the Sentinels move then look for Northland (the presumptive owners) to join Bill Mayer in owning the team.
2. San Antonio, Texas. The Commissioner said that football leagues have to have a team in Texas and we agree. Prior to the “Premiere Season” the league had spoken of San Antonio as a potential flagship market and many moons ago it looked like the Butts family, who made their money on regional powerhouse HEB Grocery, were likely to own. While we do not know who the ownership group is at this point San Antonio looks increasingly likely, particularly if Hartford benefits from a relocation.
3. Austin, Texas. Really a 2B choice since the Commish told folks that Austin or San Antonio would join the league. We rank them behind San Antonio because UT’s football stadium isn’t feasible for the UFL. They could play in the Texas soccer stadium.
4. Omaha, Nebraska. This is a market that the UFL seems to love and one that has been mentioned quite frequently by league officials. The big hold up here is where would they play? The new baseball stadium being built could be feasible should the owners allow it. Creighton also has a wonderful soccer stadium but it only holds 7,000 – one solution is to bring in temporary seating at that venue. Even if Omaha doesn’t join in 2009 it has to remain on the radar for future expansion.
5. Salt Lake City, Utah. Salt Lake has long been talked about as a UFL city by officials. In fact, when the UFL was looking at launching with six teams in 2009 it seemed as if the city was all but a lock. The team could play at BYU’s stadium if allowed but a preferable location would be the beautiful Rio Tinto Stadium where the MLS Champion Real Salt Lake franchise plays. Salt Lake is a sports starved city and should be a roaring success for the UFL whenever they place a team in Utah.
6. Portland, Oregon. Portland is a relatively untapped market for non-NFL leagues in the years since the USFL and would likely be very receptive. The city is very supportive of existing teams and a renovated PGE Park would be perfect for the team assuming the Paulson’s allow the team to play there. The Commish told people during Media Day that Omaha, Salt Lake, and Portland were in a three way race for team number six if New York relocates to Hartford.
7. Los Angeles, California. The presumptive front runner has fallen to the back of the pack due to venue concerns, the potential of the NFL coming into the city, and the sheer expense required to penetrate the market. Apparently the presumptive ownership group remains intact – a group that was highly recruited by UFL Exec’s and apparently had officially signed on several weeks ago. Los Angeles may be on hold till 2011 but we still expect the UFL to head there as long as the NFL doesn’t call Los Angeles home.

The new criteria for expansion appears to be nicer, smaller venues (ie – MLS stadiums or college stadiums like The Rent or Sam Boyd) as well as non-NFL markets. Oh, and an ownership group helps.

Commissioner Huyghue told us five of these seven markets have potential ownership groups in place and we were hearing that they had actually settled on the markets prior to the Championship but elected not to announce. Final decisions will likely be made at the December board meeting with the official announcement coming shortly after the turn of the year.