ARLINGTON, TX – June 8, 2026 – The United Bowl matchup is set. The Louisville Kings and DC Defenders are slated to clash at Audi Field in the nation's capital with a championship on the line. Both teams pulled off semifinal upsets to punch their tickets to the final game of the season.
The Defenders will look to defend their 2025 title, while the Kings seek a championship in their inaugural season.
The UFL Semifinals kicked off in Daytona Beach on Sunday afternoon. In the third meeting between DC and Orlando, the Defenders finally broke through.
After dropping both Week Nine and Week Ten matchups to the Storm, DC won the game that mattered most, snapping a four-game losing streak with a postseason victory.
In just his second start of the season, Jason Bean simply found a way. He passed for 233 yards, rushed for 40 more, protected the football, returned after a hard hit, and led an offense that converted 10-of-16 third downs. Bean set the tone, but a relentless defense helped finish the job.
MVP finalist Derick Roberson had it out for fellow finalist Jack Plummer. Roberson delivered constant pressure throughout the afternoon, highlighted by a crucial fourth-down sack that helped seal the victory.
Now, the Defenders return home to Audi Field with a chance to defend their crown in front of their home crowd.
The Kings followed with the second upset victory of the day, marching into the Battledome and knocking off the Battlehawks behind a barrage of explosive plays. Louisville connected on three plays of 50-plus yards and watched Tanner Brown rewrite the record book yet again.
Brown drilled two field goals from 60-plus yards, becoming the first kicker in league history to convert two four-point field goals in the same game.
Defensively, the Kings rose to the occasion. Louisville sacked Luis Perez four times, led by Cam Gill's 11th sack of the season, while Steele Chambers put the finishing touches on the upset with a diving interception in the end zone.
The Kings avenged their Week Six loss and have now won five straight games and seven of their last eight. In their inaugural season, head coach Chris Redman is one win away from delivering a championship to his hometown of Louisville.
One of the biggest storylines entering the United Bowl centers around the quarterback matchup. Jason Bean, who spent the first four weeks of the season with Louisville, now gets his shot on the biggest stage against his former team. Across the field will be Chandler Rogers, the quarterback who took over in Louisville and helped spark the turnaround that carried the Kings to the championship game.
The connection between the two goes back even further. Bean and Rogers both attended Lake Ridge High School, making their championship showdown a matchup years in the making.
Former teammates. A championship on the line. The drama is writing itself as the countdown to the United Bowl officially begins.