CANTON, Ohio — Last year, Canton made history when it hosted the United States Football League's (USFL) inaugural championship game.
On Wednesday, the league and city announced that they will be continuing their partnership, with the Pittsburgh Maulers and New Jersey Generals practicing and playing their games at the Pro Football Hall of Fame Village in 2023. Additionally, Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium will once again play host to the North Division Playoff Game in late June and USFL Championship Game in early July.
The league also announced that the Maulers and Generals will kickoff their 2023 seasons against one another in a matchup at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium on April 23.
“The USFL is excited that the Pittsburgh Maulers and the New Jersey Generals will practice and play games in Canton during the 2023 regular season,” said Daryl Johnston, USFL Executive Vice President of Football Operations. “The outstanding regional support we received during our first postseason from football fans in Ohio and Pennsylvania, including the great city of Pittsburgh, coupled with our successful partnership with the Hall of Fame Village, led to this moment.”
A joint venture between founder Brian Woods and Fox Corporation's sports unit, Fox Sports, the USFL played the entirety of its inaugural regular season in Birmingham, Alabama before playing its postseason in Canton. In 2023, eight-team league is expanding its satellite sites, with Canton (Pittsburgh and New Jersey), Birmingham (Birmingham and New Orleans) and Memphis (Memphis and Houston) serving as host cities. A press conference for the league is also scheduled for Detroit on Thursday, with a host city having yet to be announced for the Michigan Panthers and Philadelphia Stars.
In 2022, Hall of Fame Village held a groundbreaking ceremony for a new football-themed waterpark and opened the largest inflatable dome in the country.
EDITOR'S NOTE: The video above previously aired on 3News on Dec. 5, 2022.