2026 UFL Week 5: How To Watch, What To Know, Biggest Storylines

Week 5 of the 2026 UFL season kicks off Friday, with another game Saturday and a doubleheader Sunday. FOX Sports’ Joel Klatt and Curt Menefee will be on the call once again this week on FOX UFL Friday — a dedicated night of UFL action taking place each Friday on FOX during the 10-week regular season. All 40 regular-season games — plus the playoffs on Sunday, June 7 and the championship game on Saturday, June 13 — will be televised across FOX, FS1, ABC, ESPN, ESPN2 and NFL Network. Games will also be available to stream on FOXSports.com, the FOX Sports app and FOX One. Here are the full regular-season schedules for every team. Here’s everything to know about Week 5: Week 5 (April 24-26) DC Defenders (3-1) at Birmingham Stallions (1-3) Key players: Defenders QB Jordan Ta’amu, QB Jason Bean, WR Seth Williams, RB Deon Jackson, K Matt McCrane; Stallions QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson, WR Justyn Ross, WR Deon Cain, RB Anthony McFarland Jr. What to know: The Defenders are coming off a narrow win in Week 4 after securing a dominant win in Week 3 that marked the largest margin of victory in league history. They’re looking to continue their hot streak under 2025 UFL Coach of the Year Shannon Harris, who’s at the helm for the Defenders after leading them to a championship title in his first season at the helm. In a somewhat surprising move, the Defenders recently acquired quarterback Jason Bean in a monster trade last weekend to learn from — or compete with? — 2025 UFL Championship Game MVP Jordan Ta’amu. Bean is fresh off a standout collegiate career as a dual-threat signal-caller at Kansas. The Stallions entered the season looking to continue their dominance from previous years — having won three consecutive spring football championships, USFL titles in 2022 and 2023 and the inaugural UFL title in 2024 — but they’ve struggled to find a rhythm. They’re coming off a shutout loss in Week 4, which unfolded in front of former head coach Skip Holtz. This is the Stallions’ first season without coach Hotz, who stepped away from his post this offseason. Now, former UFL product and ex-Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron is at the helm for Birmingham. [2026 UFL Title Odds: Defenders New Favorites; Stallions Keep Sliding] St. Louis Battlehawks (2-2) at Orlando Storm (4-0) Key players: Battlehawks QB Harrison Frost, WR Hakeem Butler, RB Jarveon Howard, OLB Pita Taumoepenu; Storm QB Jack Plummer, QB Matt Corral, WR Chris Rowland, WR Elijhah Badger, WR KJ Hamler, K Michael Lantz. What to know: The Battlehawks are coming off a tough loss last week. Quarterback Brandon Silvers hasn’t had a breakout performance yet, but there’s still time left for him to hit his stride under Ricky Proehl, who replaces Anthony Becht as St. Louis’ head coach this season. For the time being, it appears the Battlehawks could stick with Frost. The Storm and head coach Becht — who moved on from St. Louis after three seasons to take over for Orlando this year — are looking to continue their undefeated season. It appears Plummer will remain the star of the show after the Storm sent ex-Cleveland Browns QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson to the Stallions in a blockbuster trade last weekend. Another player to keep an eye on is USC product Lantz, who’s likely to become the next kicker to earn an NFL job. [2026 UFL Power Rankings: Storm, Defenders Skyrocketing After Week 4] Columbus Aviators (1-3) at Houston Gamblers (1-3) Key players: Aviators QB Jalan McClendon, WR Tay Martin, WR Antwane Wells, WR Keke Chism, TE Alize Mack, RB Zaquandre White, RB John Lovett; Gamblers QB Nolan Henderson, QB Taulia Tagovailoa, WR Jontre Kirklin, WR Justin Hall, RB Marcus Yarns, DE Christopher Allen, K John Hoyland. What to know: The Aviators secured their first win of the season last week — and by double digits, nonetheless. Former NFL receiver and Ohio State standout Ted Ginn Jr. is at the helm of the newly formed Aviators, who are aiming to continue their winning streak and settle into a rhythm as the season continues. The Gamblers are looking to bounce back after a narrow overtime loss in Week 4. That could prove to be a tall task for head coach Kevin Sumlin, though, who is still getting his footing. The Roughnecks were rebranded to the Gamblers for 2026, reverting to their original name when Sumlin served as the team’s head coach in the legacy USFL in 2022. [UFL 2026: Where Every Star Played In College, Who Headlines Each Roster] Louisville Kings (1-3) at Dallas Renegades (3-1) Key players: Kings QB Mike DiLiello, WR Isaiah Winstead, TE Zach Davidson, LB Cam Gill, K Tanner Brown; Renegades QB Austin Reed, WR Tyler Vaughns, WR Greg Ward, WR Drake Stoops, RB Dae Dae Hunter. What to know: The Kings won their first game of the season last week and hope to ride that winning momentum into Week 5. They’re led by a former NFL quarterback in head coach Chris Redman and recently acquired QB Mike DiLiello. The Renegades are coming off a tough loss last week despite a strong showing from QB Austin Reed, who threw for 144 yards and two touchdowns. Former Colorado and Washington head coach Rick Neuheisel is at the helm for the Renegades, who moved from Dallas to Arlington this season. We’re still waiting to hear from QB Luis Perez, “The Spring King” who led the UFL with 2,238 passing yards last year, but for now it looks like Dallas is sticking with Reed. Single-game, season and group tickets are available now at www.theufl.com/tickets.