The Houston Gamblers were a professional American football team based in Houston. The Gamblers competed in the United Football League (UFL). The team was owned and operated by Dwayne Johnson's Alpha Acquico and Fox Corporation.
The team was a founding member of the USFL, as the Houston Gamblers in 2022, named after the 1980s USFL team of the same name. Though named after the city of Houston, the 2020s Gamblers never played there under that brand, instead playing its home games as the guest of other USFL teams in Birmingham, Alabama in 2022 and Memphis, Tennessee in 2023. When the USFL and XFL merged to form the UFL in 2024, the Gamblers took over the branding of the original Houston Roughnecks that had played the 2023 season in the XFL and played in Houston at Rice Stadium. The team played at TDECU Stadium (the home of the 2020 and 2023 Roughnecks) during the 2025 season. The team returned to the Gamblers name ahead of the 2026 UFL season, coinciding with a move to Shell Energy Stadium, but folded after that season.
History
Houston Gamblers (USFL, 2022–2023)
The Houston Gamblers were one of eight teams that were officially announced as a USFL franchise on The Herd with Colin Cowherd on November 22, 2021. On January 6, 2022, it was announced on The Herd with Colin Cowherd that former NCAA Football Head coach Kevin Sumlin was named the Head coach and General manager of the Gamblers. Houston was the only city in the USFL nominally based west of the Mississippi River and the only city that had a representative team in both professional spring football leagues, the USFL (the Gamblers) and the XFL (the Roughnecks), though the Gamblers never set foot in Houston, instead playing as a traveling team under the USFL's hub model.
On January 6, 2022, former college head coach, Kevin Sumlin was named the head coach and general manager for the Houston Gamblers. The Gamblers' first season game was on April 17, 2022, against the Michigan Panthers at Protective Stadium in Birmingham, Alabama. Kicker Nick Vogel made a 37-yard field goal in the first quarter (the first points for the franchise). The Gamblers defeated the Panthers 17–12, winning their first game in franchise history. The Gamblers lost their next seven games before winning for their final two games of the season, and failing to qualify for the USFL playoffs.
In September 2022, the Gamblers announced that Robert Morris was named their new general manager. In November 2022, the USFL announced that the Gamblers will play at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee for the 2023 season. In February, 2023, Sumlin announced his plans to join the coaching staff of the Maryland Terrapins, this led to the Gamblers hiring former New Orleans Saints assistant coach, Curtis Johnson as their new head coach.
Houston Roughnecks (UFL, 2024–2025)
On January 1, as part of the merger with the XFL, the Gamblers merged with their XFL counterpart, the Roughnecks. The merged team took on the Roughnecks name and identity (including history and social media presence), while maintaining the Gamblers' coaching staff, player rights and position in the USFL Conference. UNITED FOOTBALL LEAGUE REVEALS TEAM MARKETS AND HEAD COACHES FOR 2024 SEASON. Press release. Retrieved January 1, 2024. The team will play in Houston as the Roughnecks did, but renovations to TDECU Stadium, the Roughnecks' home in 2020 and 2023, required the use of a different venue; Rice University Stadium was approached about the possibility prior to the merger. On February 1, 2024, the Roughnecks announced an agreement to play the 2024 season at Rice Stadium. The Roughnecks announced their return to TDECU Stadium on September 13, 2024.
By August 2025, incoming UFL co-ownership had indicated it would be moving between two and four teams, reportedly all from the USFL Conference; the Birmingham Stallions were eventually spared from relocation, and the league was "trying" to save the Michigan Panthers with a more ideal stadium, effectively guaranteeing that the Roughnecks and Memphis Showboats would be the two minimum teams relocating, one of them to Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. Houston was unexpectedly spared from relocation on October 3, 2025, when the league chose to relocate Memphis, Michigan and the San Antonio Brahmas.
Return to Gamblers identity (UFL, 2026) On October 7, 2025, the UFL announced that the Roughnecks would be rebranding, returning to the Houston Gamblers name for the 2026 season. The color scheme was updated to Gamblers red and black. The UFL also announced that the team would be moving into Shell Energy Stadium in Downtown Houston.
League co-owner Mike Repole stated he chose to revert to the Gamblers name because of its "iconic" history, mentioning Pro Football Hall of Famer Jim Kelly's tenure with the 1980s incarnation of the team. Head coach Curtis Johnson was fired on November 29, 2025 in favor of bringing back the 2020s Gamblers' original head coach, Kevin Sumlin.
Following the 2026 season, the UFL announced that the Gamblers and Birmingham Stallions were folding. Repole acknowledged that in Houston's case, the instability that the merger had caused, and efforts to correct the problem by constantly changing stadiums each year, had damaged relations between Houston and the league beyond repair. On September 30, 2026, Sumlin and the Gamblers roster were summarily assigned to the Dallas Renegades.
Culture Mascot
On April 5, 2026, Ace the Armadillo was introduced as the team's mascot following a fan vote held as part of the team's rebranding process.
Player history
Current NFL players SeasonPosNameNFL Team2022LSTucker AddingtonMiami Dolphins2026SMajor BurnsMiami Dolphins2026WRKaden DavisChicago Bears2026CBAmeer SpeedDallas Cowboys2026WRJalen Moreno-CropperNew Orleans Saints2026OTGottlieb AyedzeMiami Dolphins2026LBEugene AsanteArizona Cardinals
Notable players SeasonPosNameNotes2024LBReuben FosterFormer San Francisco 49ers Linebacker, 2017 1st Round Pick2025–2026CBDamon ArnetteFormer Las Vegas Raiders cornerback, 2020 1st Round Pick2026OTJackson CarmanFormer Cincinnati Bengals offensive tackle, 2021 2nd Round Pick
USFL Offensive Player of the Year award winners Gamblers USFL OPOY winnersYearPlayerPositionSelector2023Mark ThompsonRBUSFL
USFL Defensive Player of the Year award winners Gamblers USFL DPOY winnersYearPlayerPositionSelector2022Chris OdomDEUSFL
Coach history
Head coach history #NameTermRegular seasonPlayoffsAwardsGCWLWin %GCWLHouston Gamblers1Kevin Sumlin20221037.300 - - -Houston Gamblers / Roughnecks2Curtis Johnson2023–2025301119.367 - - -Houston Gamblers3Kevin Sumlin2026 10 4 6 .400 - - -
Offensive Coordinator history #NameTermRegular seasonPlayoffsAwardsGCWLWin %GCWLHouston Gamblers1David Beaty20221037.300 - - -*Co Offensive Coordinator2J. D. Runnels20221037.300 - - -*Co Offensive CoordinatorHouston Gamblers / Roughnecks3Eric Price2023–2026401525.375 - - -
Defensive Coordinator history #NameTermRegular seasonPlayoffsAwardsGCWLWin %GCWLHouston Gamblers1Tim Lewis20221037.300 - - -Houston Gamblers / Roughnecks2Chris Wilson2023–2025301119.367 - - -Houston Gamblers3Marvin Sanders2026 10 4 6 .400 - - -
Records All-time Gamblers/Roughnecks leadersLeader Player Record Years with Gamblers/Roughnecks Passing yards Kenji Bahar 2,250 passing yards 2022–2024Passing TouchdownsClayton Thorson Kenji Bahar10 passing touchdowns2022 2022–2024 Rushing yards Mark Thompson 1,341 rushing yards 2022–2024Rushing TouchdownsMark Thompson21 rushing touchdowns2022–2024 Receiving yards Justin Hall 1,816 receiving yards 2023–2026Receiving TouchdownsJustin Hall12 receiving touchdowns2023–2026ReceptionsJustin Hall195 receptions2023–2026TacklesJeremiah Tyler150 tackles2023–2025 Sacks Chris Odom 17.5 sacks 2022, 2024 Interceptions William Likely 4 interceptions 2022Coaching winsCurtis Johnson11 wins2023–2025
Starting quarterbacks
Regular season – As of June 2, 2026 Season(s) Quarterback(s) Notes RefHouston Gamblers 2022 Clayton Thorson (1–6) / Kenji Bahar (2–1) 2023 Kenji Bahar (4–5) / Terry Wilson (1–0) Houston Roughnecks 2024 Reid Sinnett (1–4) / Jarrett Guarantano (0–3) / Nolan Henderson (0–2) 2025 Anthony Brown (1–2) / Nolan Henderson (0–1) / Jalan McClendon (4–2) Houston Gamblers 2026 Nolan Henderson (1–3) / Hunter Dekkers (2–2) / Taulia Tagovailoa (0–1) / John Rhys Plumlee (1–0)
Most games as starting quarterback Name Period Houston Gamblers 2022–2023 16 12 6 6 2022 7 7 1 6 Terry Wilson 2022–2023 7 1 1 0 2026 5 4 2 2 2026 4 1 0 1 2026 4 1 1 0 Houston Roughnecks 2025 7 6 4 2 2024 10 5 1 4 Anthony Brown 2025 3 3 1 2 2024–2026 15 7 1 6 2024 5 3 0 3
Attendance Top 10 CrowdsRankingAttendanceDateScore19,157March 31, 2024 Roughnecks 12, Showboats 1827,744April 5, 2026 Gamblers 22, Stallions 2037,179April 21, 2024 Roughnecks 17, Renegades 947,124March 28, 2025 Roughnecks 6, Battlehawks 3156,684May 25, 2025 Roughnecks 24, Defenders 2166,613April 19, 2025 Roughnecks 16, Stallions 2376,527May 26, 2024 Roughnecks 22, Panther 2686,285April 27, 2024 Roughnecks 9. Stallions 3296,217May 24, 2026 Gamblers 15, Battlehawks 21106,134May 12, 2024 Roughnecks 12, Brahmas 15
Year by year
SeasonHead CoachAvg. CrowdLargest CrowdHome Record 2024Curtis Johnson 7,056 9,157 1–4 2025 5,712 7,124 2-3 2026 Kevin Sumlin 5,683 7,744 2-3
Statistics and records
Season-by-season record
UFL champions (2024–present)USFL champions (2022–2023)Conference champions Division championsWild Card berth
SeasonTeamLeagueConferenceDivisionRegular seasonPostseason resultsAwardsHead coachesPct.Finish20222022USFLSouth4th37Chris Odom (DPOY)Kevin Sumlin20232023USFLSouth3rd55Mark Thompson (OPOY)Curtis Johnson20242024UFLUSFL4th1920252025UFLUSFL3rd5520262026UFLT–5th46Kevin SumlinTotal1832All-time regular season record (2022–2026)00All-time postseason record (2022–2026)1832All-time regular season and postseason record (2022–2026)
Rivalries Double Down Derby The Houston Gamblers have shared a rivalry with the Birmingham Stallions since 2022. This rivalry was called the Double Down Derby. As of 2026, the Gamblers hold a 4–6 record against the Stallions.
Memphis Showboats The Houston Gamblers / Roughnecks shared Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee with the Memphis Showboats during the 2023 season. In 2024, the two teams played against each other in the season finale for the number one overall pick in the 2024 UFL draft. The winner would get the number one pick, the Showboats won the game 19–12 and earned the 2025 number one pick. The series record is tied at 3–3.
Franchise matchup history +TeamRecordPct.Birmingham Stallions4–6Columbus Aviators1–1Dallas Renegades1–2DC Defenders1–2Louisville Kings0–1Memphis Showboats3–3Michigan Panthers2–4New Jersey Generals1–1New Orleans Breakers1–3Orlando Storm0–1Pittsburgh Maulers1–1Philadelphia Stars1–1San Antonio Brahmas1–1St. Louis Battlehawks1–3Tampa Bay Bandits0–2
Defunct teams in light gray.
References
External links