The United Football League had a problem earlier this month. Its Orlando Storm franchise had earned a home game in the semifinal round of the 2026 playoffs, but Inter&Co Stadium was already booked for the weekend. League officials failed to find a nearby alternative and settled on a neutral site nearly 1,000 miles away in Columbus, Ohio.
The local pushback was fierce -- and UFL co-owner Mike Repole was thrilled.
"It was a great problem and a terrible problem," said Repole, a billionaire entrepreneur who lives near Orlando, Florida, and invested in the UFL last summer. "I mean, I was the most hated guy in Orlando. I joked that I had to pull my daughter out of school. It was amazing the negativity that we got. Honestly, I didn't think people would care that much. There was an uproar and it was nuts, and that was a good thing."