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Professional Spring Football Is Coming to Pawtucket in 2027

The United Football League will launch a new Rhode Island team at Centreville Bank Stadium, with its first home game set for April 2

UFL co-owner Mike Repole with players

courtesy of the UFL

Map of Future UFL

courtesy of the UFL

Posted Thursday, September 24, 2026 12:00 am

By Jenna Kaplan

By next spring, Centreville Bank Stadium will be trading corner kicks for kickoffs. The United Football League announced that Rhode Island will join its 2027 season, bringing professional spring football to Pawtucket and another home team to the banks of the Seekonk River. The first home game is already set for Friday, April 2 at 8pm, with the matchup airing nationally on FOX UFL Friday.

What Rhode Islanders will actually call the team is still under wraps. The name, colors, logo, and full identity will be revealed during a public celebration at Centreville Bank Stadium on October 18, when fans can also place season ticket deposits.

“We are incredibly excited to bring professional football to Centreville Bank Stadium and to Rhode Island in 2027,” says Paul Byrne, general manager of Centreville Bank Stadium. “There is tremendous energy around sports in the Ocean State.”

The stadium hasn’t taken long to test that theory. Since opening in 2025 as the home of Rhode Island FC, it has also welcomed rugby, lacrosse, and college football. URI is playing its 2026 home schedule there, and Brown and Harvard meet in Pawtucket on September 25.

For Pawtucket, another professional team also feels like a continuation of a familiar sports story. The city spent 50 years cheering for the Pawtucket Red Sox before Rhode Island FC brought professional sports back to the city.

Rhode Island and Colorado will join the UFL in 2027, with Utah and Oklahoma following in 2028. UFL co-owner Mike Repole says the league searched for “the right markets, venues, and fan bases” as it planned the expansion.

The schedule starts in April, but the team itself starts feeling real on October 18. That’s when Rhode Island gets its first look at the name, colors, logo, and identity that’ll soon be showing up on jerseys, signs, and game-day gear around Pawtucket. Visit TheUFL.com/Rhode-Island for team updates, season ticket information, and details about the October 18 reveal at Centreville Bank Stadium.