February 19, 2025
By Evan Lepler

The 2025 UFA season begins nine weeks from tomorrow, and the competitive landscape looks absolutely fascinating. International talent is flocking to contenders, free agents are bouncing around and steadily reshaping the race, and the official schedule release set the stage for a 13-week, 144-game regular season sprint toward the playoffs. 

One of the most prominent preseason storylines is that more teams than ever will enter the 2025 campaign with genuine championship ambitions. At the top of the Association, a reasonable argument could be made why at least eight different franchises should be viewed as the league-wide favorite heading into the year.

Here’s the best news: we actually get to settle these arguments on the field, with so many marquee matchups throughout the regular season journey. Along with the already-released "Friday Night Frisbee" schedule, many of the must-see moments will unfold as part of the "Game Of The Week" package. This collections of contests—which will all air exclusively on WatchUFA.tv—will offer fans a chance to see virtually all the top players and teams across the league throughout the 2025 season. Furthermore, the outcomes of these tremendous games will go a long way into determining who can make it to Championship Weekend in Madison this August. 

Before diving into each matchup individually, a quick explanation/reminder.

Every week during the season, "Friday Night Frisbee" will air live on WatchUFA.tv AND also be shown FOR FREE on the UFA YouTube channel. 

Then, the “Game Of The Week” will typically be the best matchup each Saturday. As you’ll see, it’s a mix of classic rivalries, highly-anticipated interdivisional action, and pairings that will carry significant consequence in the playoff and championship chase. 

Alright, here are the 13 “Game of the Week” duels, along with my initial thoughts on the key storylines in play heading into the season.

Week 1: Salt Lake at Atlanta

Saturday, April 26 — 1st meeting

The “Game of the Week” slate opens with this absolute banger, a massive West vs. South showdown in Week 1. And while some of the details are certainly different, the Shred and Hustle franchises are in very similar positions entering the 2025 season. They are arguably the two most talented, powerful teams in their respective divisions, but they have also shown an inconsistent ability to handle big moments against their respective rivals. Last year, Salt Lake and Atlanta both finished atop the table in the regular season, only to fall one goal short in a heartbreaking home loss in the playoffs. Now, it’s a certainty that one of these teams will begin the new season 0-1. When you contrast each of their full-season schedules, though, is it crazy to think that this game seems way more important for Atlanta? If they can’t take care of business at home in Week 1, it could get very tricky very quickly for the Hustle.

Week 2: Carolina at Atlanta

Saturday, May 3 — 28th meeting, Flyers lead 16-11

Case in point: whereas the Shred return home following their opening epic for presumably a Week 2 cupcake against expansion Vegas, there’s definitely no let up for Atlanta. This game will be Carolina’s 2025 lid-lifter and the first of four regular season meetings between the Flyers and Hustle. Once again, it’s imperative that Atlanta shows that it can protect home field, particularly in the wake of last summer’s playoff loss at the hands of the Flyers, when Carolina ruthlessly possessed the disc for five excruciating and exhausting minutes to brutally halt the Hustle’s championship dreams yet again. So far this offseason, both teams of lost some key contributors, but between the two organizations, only Atlanta has announced some noteworthy free agent splashes, bringing in accomplished goal scorers Cameron Brock and Alec Wilson Holliday. The Flyers, of course, could still deliver some key signings in the next couple months; but Carolina also has a new head coach and feels like it’s in a bit more transition than the Hustle, who, despite losing veterans Matt Smith and Bobby Ley, expect to bring back many of the core playmakers who helped the squad produce double-digit victories each of the past two years. 

Week 3: DC at Carolina

Saturday, May 10 — 9th meeting, Breeze lead 5-3

The Flyers home opener is anything but a cupcake. In fact, the Breeze are 2-1 all-time on the road at Carolina. The lone meeting last year came in DC, and it was also the biggest blowout in the history of the rivalry, as DC dominated Carolina 25-13 at Carlini Field. In many ways, that served as a wake-up call for the Flyers, who won six of their next seven to advance all the way to the finals. Frankly, both of these teams have questions heading into 2025. For Carolina, how will they replace the leadership and production of Anders Juengst or the unreal playmaking of Tobias Brooks? For DC, Jonny Malks, who’s been the Breeze’s mainstay center handler for the past half decade, has not yet publicly clarified whether he will play this year. The infrastructure in both locales is sturdy enough that it’s reasonable to remain high on both these teams’ potential, however this will definitely be an important measuring stick game for their long-term ambitions. Furthermore, aside from the surprising rout late last June, every other meeting between DC and Carolina has been full of thrilling highlights, tension, and late-game drama. Personally, I think the Breeze and Flyers have the greatest interdivisional rivalry in the league, and, quite frankly, I don’t think anything else is particularly close. 

Week 4: Chicago at Minnesota

Saturday, May 17 — 36th meeting, Series tied 17-17-1

Has any team made more offseason waves than Chicago? Nate Goff, Pawel Janas, Kyle Rutledge, and Tim Schoch, who all previously played for the Union but were not on the team in 2024, are back. Additionally, they have signed Victor Luo from Madison, Brandon Van Deusen from Los Angeles, Simon Dastrup from Salt Lake, and Xavier Payne and William Wettengel from Indy. Oh, and you could definitely make the case that the team’s biggest pick-up was not any of these returners or team-changers but instead the European superstar Daan De Marree, not to mention another noteworthy international acquisition in Sofiene Bontemps. Quite simply, the Union are loaded and ready to challenge the champs in the Central. Of course, it’s not like Minnesota’s just been sipping cocktails and admiring their 2024 championship gear. The Wind Chill have also made some huge splashes, bringing aboard James Pollard from Philly and Justin Burnett from Atlanta. All these moves mean that the top of the Central can comfortably match up with any other collection of talent across the league. And the two regular season meetings between Chicago and Minnesota—the second one’s scheduled for "Friday Night Frisbee" on the Fourth of July—will both be titanic must-see matchups. 

Week 5: San Diego at Atlanta

Saturday, May 24 — 1st meeting

The UFA’s offseason realignment, with LA and San Diego shifting into the South Division alongside Atlanta, Austin, Carolina, and Houston, creates a bunch of intriguing first-time matchups that double as key divisional dates in the playoff race. This east coast road trip will be a doozy for the Growlers, going to Carolina on Friday and then Atlanta on Saturday over Memorial Day Weekend. But it’ll also be a huge opportunity for a San Diego squad that will enter the season with a real belief that they can finish among the top three and make the playoffs in their debut journey through the South. Remember how Dallas made Championship Weekend in each of its first four seasons in the league? Well, perhaps you’ve forgotten that it was the Growlers who were the team that halted Dallas’ string of semifinals, winning the 2021 West final in pretty convincing fashion. After that, Dallas was never the same. Can San Diego rise up amidst realignment once again? 

Week 6: Atlanta at Chicago

Saturday, May 31 — 1st meeting

On the one hand, yes, I recognize that the "Game of the Week" schedule is super hot on the Hustle. On the other, if you have followed this league even remotely closely over the past few years, you undoubtedly understand a couple things: a) Atlanta has a fascinating roster of talent, full of players who are more than capable of winning the whole thing and enter 2025 with significant unfinished business; and b) the Hustle’s 12-game schedule is full of so many challenges that almost every single week feels like a huge must-see game. It’s truly a gauntlet unlike anything any team has ever seen before. In this instance, the Hustle venture to Minnesota on a Friday and Chicago on a Saturday, with another trip to Carolina coming up in the very near future. There’s something to be said about becoming battle-tested, but you also have to wonder if the Hustle, or anyone, can handle this type of pressure-cooker over the course of a season. Looking at Atlanta’s schedule, it’s super possible they have another really quality campaign, but struggle to do better than 6-6 or 7-5. Or maybe they replicate their recent regular season excellence again, going 11-1 or 10-2. Either way, though, the Hustle can only exorcize their recent demons come the playoffs. Assuming they survive to make it that far. 

Week 7: Atlanta at Carolina

Saturday, June 7 — 30th meeting, Flyers lead 16-11 

This June date marks the third of the four regular season meetings between the Hustle and Flyers. Atlanta hosts Carolina twice in May, while the Hustle visit Durham County Memorial Stadium on June 7 and July 12, respectively. How important is home-field in this rivalry? Well, since the pandemic pause, the home team has lost just three of the most recent 14 contests. During that same time, eight of the games have been decided by three goals or fewer. Overall, since 2021, the teams have traded punches back and forth, with the Flyers narrowly leading 8-6 over the past four seasons. If they meet in the playoffs again this summer, that would mean 19 meetings between these two teams in the first five seasons of the decade. No doubt there’s plenty of respect going both ways, but that type of familiarity can’t help but also breed plenty of bitterness and contempt. 

Week 8: DC at New York

Saturday, June 14 — 36th meeting, Empire leads 20-14

Eight days before this one, on the June 6 edition of Friday Night Frisbee, the Breeze and Empire will square off in DC. Here, just over a week later, we’ll see the rematch, at which point one team will be seeking some pretty quick revenge. But here’s the somewhat odd thing about this rivalry: more often than not, the team with the upper hand finds a way to win every game each season. We think of these two teams as often being neck and neck, but scope this nugget: DC and New York have been battled multiple times in each of the past 11 seasons. In eight of those 11 years, including each of the past three seasons, the same team has won every matchup. Here’s the year-by-year look at the rivalry:

2013: 3-0 New York
2014: 2-2, teams split
2015: 3-0 New York
2016: 4-0, DC
2017: 3-0, DC
2018: 2-2, teams split
2019: 3-0 New York
2021: 1-1, teams split
2022: 3-0, New York
2023: 3-0, New York
2024: 2-0, DC

Will 2025 be a split or another sweep? We will get the answer—for the regular season, at least—right here in mid-June. 

Week 9: Toronto at Boston

Saturday, June 21 — 9th meeting, Glory lead 6-1 (entering the season)

Meanwhile, the other top two contenders in the East get the ‘Game of the Week’ billing on June 21, and this contest arrives just six days after the first matchup of the year between Toronto and Boston. On Sunday, June 15, they’ll meet north of the border, with the Glory on the second day of a tricky back-to-back. Perhaps justly then, the Rush will also be on fumes a little bit here, having played the night before at New York. Beyond the tough travel circumstances, these are two fascinating teams, with Boston aiming to build upon their most successful season ever and Toronto determined to regain relevance and return to the playoffs after a half-decade of struggles. In pursuit of that goal, the Rush’s offseason signings certainly rival Chicago in terms of how they will impact the race. Toronto has not only re-added a bunch of former Rush who chose not to play last year, but they injected energy and excitement with a plethora of marquee European additions. In case you missed it, after the initial splash of Toms Abeltins, Tom Blasman, and Arvids Karklins, they’ve since announced Italy’s Simone Gasperini and Great Britain’s Connor McHale, two more of Europe’s ultimate elite. Add in Mark Lloyd’s return and fellow Team Canada addition Martin Gallant, and the Rush look like they have the horses to compete with the other beasts of the East. But can they stay stride for stride with Boston on the second night of a back-to-back? We will answer that particular question in June for sure. 

Week 10: Austin at Carolina

Saturday, June 28 — 19th meeting, Flyers lead 14-4

The Austin Sol have been far from the loudest team on the offseason rumor mill, but I’ve got a hunch that Head Coach Steven Naji will have some tricks up his sleeve to keep the Sol in the mix amongst the South’s other headliners. The regular season for the Sol will be much tougher in 2025, and that’s definitely a good thing for an Austin team that seemed a bit bored over the past couple regular seasons. Or maybe it’s just me that was bored watching the Sol smash their fellow Texas teams over and over again. Regardless, with interdivisional games against Madison and Colorado, the Sol’s 12-game slate, is definitely more interesting. At the same time, with four games against Houston and two against Los Angeles, their schedule strength still looks advantageous to potentially earn a home playoff opportunity. This late-June date at Carolina is both the first meeting of the season between the Flyers and the Sol and the last time that Austin will play outside of Texas during their the regular season. As an aside, it’s worth mentioning that the Sol have never won at Carolina. Furthermore, in each of the past three seasons, the Flyers and Sol have met in the playoffs, with Carolina knocking out Austin in 2022 and 2024, with the Sol getting the first round win in 2023. Might it possibly be Austin’s turn again in 2025?

Week 11: Salt Lake at Colorado

Friday, July 4 — 8th meeting, Summit lead 4-3

Another interesting quirk in the schedule: like Austin and Carolina, Salt Lake and Colorado do not meet at all until the final month of the season. The Shred and Summit will intersect on Independence Day in Golden before rematching seven days later in Utah. While both franchises have some questions to answer in the opening months of the 2025 campaign, it feels pre-ordained that these two late-season collisions will absolutely have significant ramifications in the West race. By the way, Fourth of July is shaping up to be a pretty huge day and night of frisbee. This is presently the lone date where the Friday Night Frisbee broadcast and the "Game of the Week" create a de facto doubleheader for ultimate diehards. At 5:00 PM/ET, it’s Minnesota at Chicago in the Central. Then, at 9:00 PM/ET, the Shred and Summit launch the opening pull out West. Truthfully, it’s hard to imagine better holiday fireworks than what the UFA is putting out there this July!

Week 12: Boston at DC

Saturday, July 12 — 10th meeting, Breeze lead 6-1

The spotlight shifts back East for the last couple weeks of the season, with Boston closing its campaign with tough road tests at DC and New York. By the way, this game against DC also is the second game of a back-to-back for the Glory, who are in Philly on July 11, one night earlier. Additionally, this Saturday showdown is actually the third meeting of the season between DC and Boston; they also play in DC on May 18 and in Boston on July 6. A year ago, the Breeze and Glory split their pair of regular season contests—both of which were decided by one—with DC narrowly prevailing at Carlini Field in the East Division final. If nothing else, all of these schedules are a reminder that none of the top teams will have an easy road in 2025.

Week 13: Boston at New York

Saturday, July 19 — 11th meeting, Empire lead 7-2

More than two months after their opening meeting on May 16 in Boston, the Glory and Empire reconvene in New York for both teams’ regular season finale. It’s obviously a rematch of last year’s thrilling opening round playoff contest, when Jeff Babbitt’s buzzer-beating score eliminated his old team. Depending on how things play out in the East race, this could very well become an even earlier elimination game for one or both of these teams. It could also potentially mimic the end-of-season circumstances from 2024, when Boston, New York, and DC all entered the final weekend with the chance of being anywhere from the one-seed to the three-seed. As it turned out, the higher seed at home won both playoff games in the East, suggesting that the 2025 finale could also help dictate who emerges from the deepest East Division ever later this summer.