United States Football League to relaunch next spring

Fox Sports and the CEO of football development company The Spring League are relaunching the United States Football League (USFL).

The announcement Thursday from Fox Sports said the league plans to start playing games next spring and hopes to have eight teams for the season.

The games will be broadcast on Fox Sports, which owns a minority equity stake in the company that owns the USFL.

The co-founder of the relaunched league is Brian Woods, who is also founder and CEO of The Spring League.

Fox Sports did not immediately answer questions about the identity of the other USFL co-founder or who else owns equity in the league. Spokespeople for The Spring League declined to answer similar questions.

This is the second incarnation of the USFL. It was first launched, also as a spring league, in 1983 with a dozen teams.

Famous NFL players who got their start in the USFL include Hershel Walker and Reggie White, but the league folded after three seasons, according to CBS sports journalist Jeff Kerr. In 1986, it moved to a fall schedule and failed in its attempt to force a merger with the NFL.

By playing in the spring, the USFL will be competing with another alternative football league, the XFL which is owned by actor and former WWE wrestler Dwayne Johnson, entrepreneur Dany Garcia and private investment company Redbird Capital.

The XFL was purchased from WWE CEO Vince McMahon last year.