August 28, 2026
By Sam Weiger
Both semifinals showcased dominant performances from the winning sides, who established themselves as the clear superiors in their matchups. The stage is now set for a championship between two top tier squads, who demonstrated they operate in a class of their own as the UFA's top two teams.
Semifinal 1: Oakland Spiders vs. New York Empire
Thursday's opening semifinal produced an upset few had predicted, though the true shock was the margin of victory. Oakland routed New York, 27-21.
Oakland proved to be a mismatch New York simply couldn't solve. Both the Spiders' offensive and defensive units leaned on superior speed, chemistry, and strategy to send the East Division champions packing.
The Spiders dominated nearly every phase of the game right from the start. Their O-line looked even sharper than usual, powered by an MVP-caliber effort from Walker Frankenberg, clutch drive-saving plays from athletic attackers like Dexter Clyburn, Raekwon Adkins, and Stefan McCall, and constantly shifting offensive movement that kept the Empire D-line flustered.
The Spiders' O-line made nearly every possession look effortless, and the numbers back that up. They finished with a 98 percent completion rate, a 90 percent huck completion rate, and a 91 percent hold rate. Brutally efficient offense, and a big factor was having their O-line fully healthy again for the first time in a while.
Still, it was Oakland's defense that tipped the scales. One of Spiders Head Coach Liam Kreiss's smartest calls was the straightforward decision to double-team Alex Atkins. The stat sheet doesn't fully reflect it, but Atkins didn't get many of the looks he wanted, particularly early on. Much of his impressive final numbers came late in the game, once the Empire were already out of reach.
The Spiders excelled at taking away unders, forcing the Empire into more hucks than they wanted to throw. Their ability to make an all-time great 2026 New York offense look pedestrian was completely unexpected, and it proved to be the deciding factor on Thursday night. At halftime, Kreiss pointed out just how impactful his disruptive defense had been, particularly on break chances. The Spiders held the Empire to a break rate of just four percent on 23 chances.
For Oakland, this was their cleanest game of the season. With only seven turnovers, the Spiders delivered a masterclass that was unquestionably their best performance of the year. Not bad timing to hit their peak in a near-perfect game.
As for New York, it's hard to find many silver linings in a six-goal loss. The defeat marked their second straight season-ending blowout loss, though this one likely stung differently. With the major additions of Atkins, Daan De Marrée, and Nick Whitlock, it seemed the Empire had finally climbed back to the top of the league after two years of clearly falling a notch below the best teams.
Thursday's loss made clear that patching over their deeper issues with star power wasn't nearly enough, and it may finally be time to accept that a new era in the UFA is overtaking the one they once ruled.
New York's core concerns remain the same: aging stars, a lack of depth, a defense that isn't disruptive enough, and a slower-paced style that struggles against certain teams. All four issues surfaced on Thursday night, and after a defeat this thorough against an Oakland squad that represents the direction the league seems to be heading, it genuinely looked like the Empire are now a thing of the past. There are only so many stars they can add to mask that potential reality.
If they do continue chasing star power next offseason, it's clear defense needs to be the priority, especially after this showing. The fact that De Marrée, arguably the best player in the world, co-led all players on both teams in plus/minus (+7), and Atkins led everyone in total yards with nearly 900, yet New York still lost by six goals, is a strong sign their defense fell well short of where it needed to be.
Watching Antoine Davis get his ankles broken by teenagers and John Randolph beaten by speedy cutters must have been demoralizing for an Empire team that believed they were the league's best, yet had no defensive answer for an offense that outplayed them from start to finish.
If New York wants any real shot at going all the way next year, they might need to bring in young, fast defenders who can keep pace with speedy cutters, players like Austin's George Gust or Carolina's Christian Belus.
That push for youth shouldn't be limited to the D-line, either. It needs to extend to the O-line as well. If they want to defeat a team like Oakland next year, New York might even need to consider changing the roles of Ben Jagt and Solomon Rueschmeyer-Bailey, as both looked visibly rattled by Oakland's defense throughout the contest.
If there are two major takeaways from this semifinal, it's that Oakland's strength and fast pace are setting the new standard in the UFA, while slower-paced teams like the Empire may need to do some serious soul-searching this offseason.
Semifinal 2: Austin Sol vs. Minnesota Wind Chill
The takeaways from the night's second semifinal weren't nearly as dramatic, but the scoreline told a similar story. Like the first semi, this one ended in a blowout, with both teams topping 20 goals. Minnesota even out-scored the Spiders' output, closing the night with a 28-24 win over the Austin Sol.
Minnesota's revamped offense, built around patient, cross-field movement, paid off. The player at the center of that movement, Gordon Larson, was by far the best player on the field Thursday night, finishing with a 97 percent completion rate on 69 throws. Larson was pinpoint accurate all night, delivering gorgeous hucks from start to finish and closing the game with eight assists, 726 throwing yards, and five hucks completed at an 83.33 percent clip.
Larson turned in arguably the best individual performance of either game Thursday night, and in terms of standalone value, he'd be at the very top of my list. When fellow handler and star Will Brandt went down with a leg injury, it felt like Austin might have a real chance to slow Minnesota's offense down. But thanks to Larson's playmaking, the offensive onslaught kept rolling without Brandt on the field.
It certainly helped Larson to have college-aged receivers like Zach Morton and Nate de Morgan playing like seasoned veterans, and a veteran like Bryan Vohnoutka playing like he's 20 years old again. All three receivers stepped up big on Thursday, a very encouraging sign heading into Friday's final. The receiving from that trio, paired with the throwing from Larson, Josh Klane, and Brandt, showed the rest of the league just how far the Wind Chill offense has come since last year. Austin had no answer for the Chill, especially in the red zone, where Minnesota converted all 20 of their attempts.
But it wasn't just the red zone where the Chill thrived, they looked excellent across the middle of the field too. Their cross-field throws deserve serious credit, as it was that ability to stretch the field that made it so easy for Minnesota to find openings in Austin's defense and punish them repeatedly. Their 81 percent hold rate and 97 percent completion rate owe a lot to that field-stretching ability.
Another area where Minnesota dominated, and the one that hurt Austin most, was end-of-quarter (EOQ) battles. The Wind Chill swept them all, and Larson revealed in his postgame interview that the team had specifically drilled a variety of EOQ situations in practice. As usual, Minnesota's head coach deserves credit for preparing his team so thoroughly for a game of this magnitude.
Austin looked far less prepared for the moment, despite plenty of Championship Weekend experience on their roster. Evan Swiatek rushed his throws, the team committed a string of errant pulls, and even their best player, Kyle Henke, made costly mistakes. It wasn't Austin's worst performance by any means, they stayed within reach for three quarters, but by the end, they looked like the clearly inferior team.
The blame can't fall entirely on Austin's O-line, though. Their D-line simply couldn't contend with Minnesota's offense, plain and simple. They left far too many cutters wide open, gifting the Chill some of the easiest goals they'll get all Championship Weekend. From start to finish, the Sol looked too casual on defense, despite their D-line producing some big plays that kept them in the game. Austin's D-line pushed hard in the second quarter, keeping them within striking distance at halftime. Gust, despite his errant pulls, stood out defensively and was a real bright spot for the Sol, he'll be an important piece for this team going forward.
Another bright spot, Mark Henke, continued his trend of coming up big in back-to-back UFA games. He did it last year, and for the second straight game this year, the younger Henke brother reached at least six goals. He finished with 13 goals across his two postseason games, raising some eyebrows about a potential All-UFA nod.
The future is bright for Austin, but they still look like a project in the works. Minnesota, on the other hand, has all the pieces in place and is clearly ready to win a title. This semifinal against Austin was just an appetizer for the Chill, who clearly didn't face an opponent of their caliber on Thursday. That changes in the final, when Minnesota gets their main course.
Minnesota Wind Chill vs. Oakland Spiders | 2026 UFA Championship Game
Friday, August 28 - 8:00 PM/ET - Watch live on YouTube
Both Minnesota and Oakland should brace for a much different matchup than what they saw Thursday. This is a matchup between the two deepest teams in the UFA (by far), and that depth is the biggest of several intriguing storylines heading into Friday's game.
Experts have recently floated the idea that the key to future success in the UFA, and perhaps the sport as a whole, lies in fielding a team full of good players rather than a handful of world-class superstars. Neither Minnesota nor Oakland has a statistical juggernaut like De Marrée or Tobe Decraene, and this final makes the case that those players may no longer be necessary to win a title.
In 2022 and 2023, the Empire won with a superteam. Minnesota's 2024 title run came with an asterisk thanks to the extreme winds, and 2025 saw another superteam take the crown. So the 2026 final really does feel like it could mark the start of a major shift, at least within the UFA.
Minnesota's 2024 team, which could reasonably be credited with starting this trend, is now in its third straight UFA final. So even if that year felt like a fluke at the time, this group clearly isn't one, and it starts with Wind Chill Head Coach Ben Feldman. Over the past several years, Feldman has built a roster that thrives in the playoffs when the stakes are highest. Minnesota now has a chance to win its second title in three seasons and be crowned the league's next dynasty after the Empire.
Feldman's ability to turn the O-line around so dramatically in one season is why this team can beat Oakland on Friday and kick off their dynasty. But as Larson said after the semifinal win, Oakland will be a much different animal, mainly because their D-line figures to force Minnesota to expend far more energy and complete even more deep shots.
With Brandt's status for tomorrow completely up in the air, Larson will once again carry the pressure to deliver, only this time, the pressure will be even greater. After watching the Spiders throw double teams at Atkins all game, I'll be very interested to see whether they take the same approach with Larson. That potential matchup between Larson and Oakland's double teams could be a crucial thread in this game.
Another major factor will be Minnesota's youth, which will need to step up big once again like it did Thursday night. The Chill will need all the speed and youthful energy they can get from players like de Morgan, Morton, Micah Davis, and Thomas Shope, players that match up well against Oakland's relentlessly swift movement on both sides of the disc.
Not all the key matchups involve players, though. I'll be fascinated to see what Feldman tries to do to slow down the Oakland offense, since several of his D-liners could struggle to keep pace. Can players like Justin Burnett, Dylan DeClerck, and Lukas Ambrose really hold up defensively against faster counterparts like McCall and Adkins?
Oakland's speed should, believe it or not, make Minnesota's defense look less deep than it actually is. Only certain D-liners may find success against it, so I wouldn't be surprised if Feldman spent every hour between Thursday night and Friday night studying film, hunting for whatever weaknesses he can find in Oakland's game, from Leo Gordon's occasional questionable throws to the reckless fouls Oakland has been guilty of, as they were against New York.
The amount of youth and speed Oakland brings on Friday simply can't be overstated, and it's on Feldman to make this Spiders team seem less deep than it actually is now that all their pieces are finally in place.
The Oakland team Minnesota beat back in Week 8 didn't have young, speedy players like Daniel Ritthaler, Adkins, and Anton Orme, so the Spiders will look considerably different this time around. Adam Rees may also see time on D-line now that McCall is spending more time on O-line, a notable shift that could make a real impact.
The good news for Minnesota is that this game should feel much more like a home game than their Week 8 win in Oakland, though the Spiders' fans have traveled well for the occasion, given their showing on Thursday night.
Like Thursday's second semi, this one could see little to no wind affecting throws, which would work in Oakland's favor.
One Big Number:
13 - Oakland now has 13 players with at least 20 total scores, more than any of the last six UFA champions.
1,111 - Larson and Morton posted career-best games in throwing and receiving yards on Thursday, respectively. Larson finished with 726 throwing yards and Morton reached 385 receiving yards, combining for 1,111 yards between the two career-bests.
