Money Grab or Legitimate Opportunity? What the numbers (and former tryout participants) say about the effectiveness of UFL Showcases

In promoting what has become a yearly tradition, the off-season Showcase player tryout events, the UFL social team has been posting periodic reminders on places like Instagram and X about these events. When you dig into the comments of those posts, there’s one phrase that has emerged, especially from those who claim to have participated in past Showcases:

Money grab.

How did the Showcases, once heralded for the opportunity they gave the overlooked player to achieve their dreams of playing professional football, get such a negative reputation in some circles? Let’s dig in to a couple of aspects of the Showcases: Their history, how many players from the Showcases really make it to the UFL, those social media comments, and the financial implications of the Showcases for the league.

History of UFL Showcases

The current iteration of UFL Showcases began, like the UFL itself did, with a previous generation of spring football. In 2019, as the XFL was ready to relaunch under Oliver Luck’s guidance, the league held Showcases in each of the eight cities in which teams would play in 2020.

A couple of key differences between those Showcases and the Showcases of today: For one, those Showcases were invite-only. It was a way to build a draft registry, as players had to opt-in to the draft pool. This gave league decision-makers the ability to see what kind of shape these potential draftees were in before adding them to the pool.

The second difference is the league publicly announced those players attending. It was a way to legitimize the league by showing the many recognizable names attending these camps and vying for a spot in the draft pool. At the time, there was also no competition from any other spring leagues (the Alliance of American Football petered out earlier that year) so there was no risk that another league would poach players who performed well in the combine-like drills.

Fast forward to new ownership’s control of the XFL. The start date for the season, 2023, was preceded by the return of Showcases in 2022, with some new tweaks. Instead of about 100 players being in attendance, room for some 200ish players was made. Also, this was open to anyone who wanted to pay to participate, provided you met certain criteria relating to how long it had been since you played and at what level – in other words, the league wasn’t content simply having open tryouts with no minimum requirements in place.

This all played into the mantra that The Rock, Dany Garcia, and RedBird Capital, the group that purchased the XFL out of bankruptcy in 2020, had pushed – “the league of opportunity.” What kind of league of opportunity would it be if they didn’t truly open the doors in an effort to find those players who, for whatever reason, hadn’t been afforded proper opportunity? And what a great story it would be if one or more of the players discovered at these workouts ended up making a splash in the XFL.

When it was time for the 2022 Showcases, the USFL had already kicked off, so there was an incentive to not be as transparent about those participating as XFL 2020 had been. The XFL used these Showcases as a way to build their draft database in a similar way as three years prior. The teams once again were being constructed from the ground-up.

While many players had to pay their entrance fees to the Showcases in this version, there were more than a few players invited by league personnel. From what was reported contemporaneously, those players did not have to pay.

At the time, I was able to receive rosters and workout results from a source close to the Showcases. Some of the higher-level players, those with NFL game or training camp experience, did not even work out or at even test (cone drills, 40-yard dash, etc.).

Ahead of what turned out to be the first UFL season, the Showcases returned. It was the first time they were held with rosters already built, meaning those longshots became even longer shots. Yet in the summer of 2023, hundreds of players again were willing to pay the entrance fee to get themselves in front of XFL coaches (the merger had yet to be announced, meaning only XFL personnel had access to this Showcase), general managers, and perhaps just as importantly, get tape that they could potentially take to other leagues if they failed to garner interest from this one.

As an aside, the UFL has shown its sloppiness in communicating how players from Showcases may end up in the UFL. After the 2023 Showcases and Combine, there was a “rights draft” for players in attendance, where XFL teams could claim top performers. So, the Showcase press release advertised that “players will be evaluated based on performance for their inclusion in the UFL Draft player pool ” for that upcoming season. The same verbiage was used in the initial 2024 Showcase release, before being corrected to read, “potential free agent opportunities,” as there was no draft for Showcase players. This year’s press release reiterates the “free agent opportunities”…but the Showcase home page still contains the “draft pool” verbiage from two years ago.

Predictably, even fewer players that attended these Showcases were signed onto UFL rosters. The same was true in 2024. As the UFL shows itself to be a viable alternative football league, more and more players who wash out of the NFL or want another chance to make it there, see the UFL as a way to do just that. And those aren’t the players attending Showcases.

As UFL teams try to acquire the best players available, those are often ones that recently competed in the NFL, not those that are showing up on their own dime to these tryouts. However, the UFL continues to offer this opportunity for players holding onto the pro football dream.

Do the Showcases work in finding diamonds in the rough?

Though the only evidence we have is anecdotal, it seems as if the number of players from these tryouts even making it to training camp has dwindled over the years. The combining of the USFL and XFL into the UFL has further eroded the chances of players getting picked up by a spring pro football team via this route.

Last year at UFLBoard.com, I profiled over 130 players who attended the six Showcase events (not counting the two specialist-only Showcases). Granted, 130 is a miniscule percentage of the over 1,000 players who participated, but from that 130, just six were a part of a UFL team in 2025. They were:

–LB Byron Vaughns (Dallas Showcase) – Made Houston’s team out of training camp but was released on April 28.

–DE Myles McHaney IV (Houston Showcase) – Signed by Memphis but waived at final cuts.

–LB Vincent DiLeo (Orlando Showcase) – Signed by Arlington, waived at final cuts

–QB Mike Hohenesee (Houston Showcase) – Didn’t go to camp but was signed in late March by the Brahmas to be their emergency QB when injuries struck the position. He lasted two weeks on the roster.

–WR Todd Simmons (Atlanta Showcase) – Attended Arlington training camp but was released before the season.

–QB Dresser Winn (Dallas Showcase) – Signed by Memphis after the release of Quinten Dormady; ended up the most productive Showboats quarterback during the season.

So, of those six from that list of more than 130, two managed to see regular season game action with only one finishing the season as a UFL player. And oh by the way, that one had ample NFL preseason experience as well, something that can’t be said for many of the players trying out at Showcases across the country.

Not only that, but Simmons has attended multiple Showcase events and DiLeo worked out in 2023 and was invited to the XFL Combine that year. So for some of these players, it’s taken multiple opportunities – and hundreds if not thousands of dollars when taking into account travel and lodging – just to get noticed.

Even if you don’t make the UFL, the benefit is getting tape or making contacts that will help you get your foot in the door in another minor league. Football leagues from the IFL to the ELF have shown some degree of staying power beyond the more dubious minor leagues cropping up, and players could decide to settle for opportunities there, hoping to use those organizations as a steppingstone to the UFL and potentially beyond.

The UFL loves to celebrate the number of players signed into the NFL and with good reason: It’s confirmation that part of what the UFL is trying to do, giving players a chance to hone their skills and get noticed by NFL teams, is working. You’ll notice, though, they don’t tout the players who attend Showcases and get signed by UFL teams.

There’s no good reason not to do that – after all, it would encourage players and agents to take that avenue, which in turn puts more money in the UFL’s coffers – unless the number of success stories is so small, it would actually make the league look worse to point out that a single-digit number of players from a cast of thousands actually make it into a camp. It could have the opposite effect, where players and agents realize how much of a longshot taking the UFL Showcase route truly is.

I reached out to the UFL to see if they would be willing to provide any data on the number of players who’ve attended Showcases and have gone on to play in the UFL. As of the time this article went to press, it’s been over a week and the UFL has not responded to that request.

Previous Showcase attendees sound off

The fact that UFL teams aren’t exactly rushing to sign Showcase talent isn’t lost on those who have worked out at these events. The inspiration for this column came when I dove into the social media comments, specifically on Instagram, when the league posted upcoming Showcase information.

Many players who claimed to have tried out at previous Showcases indicated a rigged system, one in which there were so many players they barely had any reps in some of the drills, or their workout numbers were sufficient, but they never got that phone call.

The cynicism began on UFL Analyst’s Instagram post on June 23, which passed along the league’s announcement of the Showcase and locations. A wide receiver named Zac Martin recounted his experience from the 2023 Houston Showcase (referencing the XFL Combine as “the big one in Dallas”): “Fellas. This is a money grab
I broke the record in the triple broad jump and the 40-yard dash. Didn’t drop any of my balls and I never got a call or an invite to the big one in Dallas.” In a follow-up post, he continued, “they do combine testing and 2 solo position drills. So my point is you don’t have a real opportunity to show your skills and they already know who’s getting picked. No matter how good your numbers are or how your drills look.”

Even players from major colleges were discouraged by the lack of follow-up after attending and in their mind, excelling at the tryout. Former Auburn DT Marquis Burks noted on the same post, “Without a doubt a money grab, I killed my workout and didn’t even get a conversation out of a coach….you need a solid agent.”

WR Xavier Chatman attended an ANC-run Showcase (though he did not specify it was an XFL Showcase) in 2022 and expressed issues with communication after the event in a comment on a July 16 UFL Instagram post advertising the Showcases. “ANC Combines did this in 2022. Except they promised to also send your showcase film AND your most recent highlight tape to all of their resources…They sent me the YouTube link of my showcase, but NEVER gave me the point of contact to send my highlight tape. Definitely a money grab.”

A former Oregon linebacker – and former legacy USFL player – Bryson Young spoke out against the workouts in a response to a July 24 post, writing, “Do NOT attend these. They just want your money. Save your money.”

On a July 30 Instagram post, an apparently disgruntled player rhetorically asked, “Y’all really giving opportunities or just takin ppl money again?” while tagging the UFL account. Naturally, there was no reply.

One player replied to an August 13 Instagram post by the league saying “I did this for XFL and had great numbers and got no call lol this is a money grab fa showww.” Responding to that reply was a player unhappy with the start-and-stop nature of his workout: “At the Houston one last year, there was a thunderstorm coming in so they made us do individual drills, sit 40mins, then 40yrd dash. Literally a waste.”

Within the same August 13 post, another replied, “(s)peaking as someone whose been there & done that, if you don’t know anyone there & didn’t get a (sic) invite, yeah it’s a cash grab.” Even an agent used the term “money grab” in the replies to describe the Showcases.

At least these players had their signups honored and made it to the field. According to one person familiar with those having attended Showcases, no less than six players last year signed up and were accepted, only to be turned away at the registration table despite them each having e-mail proof of their acceptance. Is this all sour grapes from players overhyping their performance and coming up with excuses for why they weren’t signed? Or are these legitimate complaints from prospective players who feel slighted by a league not living up to its promise to give them a true opportunity? I guess that’s up to the reader to decide, but the more players that come forward with their negative experiences, the harder it is to ignore or simply write off as resentment.

So…what’s in it for the UFL?

If the league isn’t finding a substantial number of players to populate their rosters with UFL Showcases, why do they keep doing it? It has to be more than for public relations purposes, right? This is where you follow the money.

Let’s do some quick and dirty math here. The UFL has seven Showcases scheduled for this year at a minimum of $265 a pop for the players (the same get-in cost as last year). It’s an additional $130 if you want video of your workout. So let’s just look at the base price of entry and figure there’s 150 players per workout. That’s on the small side, but we’ll start with a conservative estimate.

That’s nearly $40,000 right there. Times seven Showcases is $280,000. And that’s on the conservative side. Let’s up it to 200 players per Showcase, which is likely more accurate. Then, let’s say one-third of players order the video – again, probably still light given the value the video plays in getting your work out there for others beyond the UFL to see.

Now we’re over $60,000 per Showcase and $430,000 in total. Granted, that’s gross revenue, but the cost to run these events doesn’t figure to be all that significant. Stadium rentals are likely cheap because four of the Showcases are held at high schools, two are at smaller-level colleges, and one is Choctaw Stadium, the league’s home base.

Head coaches on hand are paid a stipend since this takes place outside of their yearly contracts. Not all coaches attend each event, however. The shows are staffed and run by American National Combines. The UFL likely shares whatever they make with ANC, which helps ANC offset the cost of the manpower on hand. We just don’t know what that split looks like, though it’s hard to believe it’s anything near 50/50.

One agent familiar with the process told me that the revenue the UFL makes from these Showcases comes out to more than they make from ticket sales from some of the actual games, and without the financial overhead of the games.

Taking it this way, it doesn’t matter if no players from these Showcases end up making the UFL. As long as there are participants willing to pay the price, the UFL will continue to hold these Showcases and reap the financial benefits. It is worth noting that while Showcases used to sell out quickly, that’s not the case anymore; for example, the first Showcase in Atlanta this coming weekend had wide receiver and defensive back positions sold out, but that was all at the time registration closed a few days before the event.

In some ways, the UFL Showcases are like the league itself: Playing and even excelling in the UFL does not guarantee you a spot in the NFL; the UFL simply gives you the opportunity to showcase yourself for those scouts. In the same way, attending and even excelling at UFL Showcases does not guarantee you a spot in the UFL; it does give you the opportunity to perform in front of UFL personnel. Are the slim odds worth players parting with their hard-earned money? To this point, the allure of playing high-level football on national TV and chasing a childhood dream has led many to answer that question with a “yes.”