Memphis City Council votes to keep USFL's Showboats in Memphis through 2025
The USFL is coming back to Memphis.
The Memphis City Council unanimously passed a resolution in support of a two-year licensing agreement between Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium and the USFL in committee Tuesday morning, and it was unanimously passed again in full council the same afternoon.
The licensing agreement operates under the same terms as the inaugural season’s, with wide support for the USFL bringing back the Memphis Showboats among city council members.
“We’re very excited about this,” said Memphis Parks Director Nick Walker. “To be able to activate the building year-round is a huge win. One, it allows us to utilize the space outside of the traditional football season. Two, it brings in tens of thousands of people into that building, generating operating revenue which helps offset the operating costs of that building. Three, it’s a lot of fun.”
The Showboats finished 5-5 this season.
In the first season, USFL President of Football Operations Daryl Johnston said there were about 70,000 tickets sold for Showboats games.
Johnston said he doesn't set specific numbers as markers for the league's success, saying he prefers to look at things from a “30,000-foot level” when gauging the impact the league has in communities. He said the USFL partnered with a number of Memphis organizations in its first season and hopes to continue to build those partnerships.
“We don’t want to just come here and play games,” Johnston said. “What we want to do is come here and create partnerships and create teammates and move forward the things that are important for the City of Memphis that also start to bring people to our games.”
When explaining these partnerships, Johnston mentioned Ryan McDaniel, a wide receiver for the Showboats who was a finalist for the league’s Sportsman of the Year award, which recognizes a player for their community service.
Although the award ended up going to Michigan Panthers defensive lineman Ethan Westbrooks, Johnston said McDaniel was an example of how the USFL impacts a community off the field.
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“It was amazing how (McDaniel) balanced his time between football and contributing to the Memphis community and that inspires other guys on the Showboats team,” Johnston said. “(McDaniel) becomes that driver.”
The USFL is an eight-team league, with teams playing in four different locations. Memphis, Birmingham, Alabama, Canton, Ohio, and Detroit host the teams. Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium hosts the Showboats and Houston Gamblers.
Lucas Finton is a criminal justice reporter with The Commercial Appeal. He can be reached at Lucas.Finton@commercialappeal.com and followed on Twitter @LucasFinton.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: USFL news: city council OKs keeping Showboats in Memphis through 2025
