UFL Approves New CBA; Deals Run Through 2026 Season

The UFL has approved a new collective bargaining agreement with the United Football Players Association, finalizing a deal that players approved last month, the league announced Monday.

The deal begins at training camp that opened on March 2 and will be extended until the end of the 2026 season.

The new CBA includes a minimum salary raising $7,005 per year, a minimum salary for players participating in all 10 regular season games increased from $55,000 to $62,005, and making all FACTEND PLADGES that meet the UFPA-approved deal. The minimum wage in 2026 is $64,000. Part of the salary increase is the reallocation of $400 per month housing allowance.

“We have reached a collective bargaining agreement with the UFPA. We look forward to developing professional spring football with the players in the UFL,” UFL President and CEO Russ Brandon said in a statement.

Other changes to the CBA include an expanded roster and the process of dealing with player dissatisfaction.

“I think it reflects the UFL and UFPA ultimately want to unite to make a sustainable deal that will ensure spring football stays here. “And there’s just as hard fighting as negotiations, and I think that’s turning the page and saying, ‘Well, now we’re going to work collaboratively to make sure that this thing lasts and succeeds. '”

Michigan Panthers quarterback Danny Etling said last month that labor certainty should lead to more continuity in the player pool.

Players expressed concerns about the direction of the talks ahead of the camp, when 24 quarterbacks signed a letter expressing disappointment and announced that they would skip a quarterback training camp organized by the league in February. Some players were threatened in the first week of training camp when the coach told them they would be released if they had a discussion to resist the league's media day, with three players confirming to ESPN in March.

The league clarified that there will be discipline, but if boycotts occur, there will be no job loss and all required players will appear. But former Memphis Show Ship quarterback Quinten Dormady was released a day later, telling ESPN that he believes his leadership role in the league is the “driver.” In response, the league said in a way: “Any player trade is purely the result of football decisions at the team level and has nothing to do with collective bargaining.”

The UFPA has proposed unfair labor practices to the National Labor Relations Commission, but is likely to withdraw them.

The two remained in touch throughout the process, and eventually, the league agreed to a salary rate hike and a health care package, which gave players seven months of coverage and then received a subsidized Cobra (continuing insurance) over the other five months. In 2024, players will be provided with insurance only during the four-month UFL season.

Players told ESPN that a benefit of the Health Care Agreement is opening the way for players who are no longer eligible to leave parental insurance after the age of 26.