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) in 2023 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. 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. 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. Head coach Curtis Johnson was fired on November 29, 2025 in favor of bringing back the 2020s Gamblers' original head coach, Kevin Sumlin. == Current roster ==