The Tampa Bay Bandits were one of eight teams that were officially announced as a USFL franchise on The Herd with Colin Cowherd on November 22, 2021.[1]
On November 15, 2022, it was announced that the Tampa Bay Bandits would not play during the 2023 season. This came with the announcement of the creation of the Memphis Showboats.[3] The players and coaches on the existing Bandits team were transferred to the Showboats.[4] In June 2023, league president Daryl Johnston acknowledged that the change was not a "temporary hiatus" as it was portrayed at the time, stating "It was a very difficult decision to move away from Tampa Bay and to bring the franchise here to Memphis, but it was the right decision and if we have an opportunity to go back and engage with Tampa Bay, we can."[5]
Roster
Final roster
Initially, each team carried a 38-man active roster and a 7-man practice squad, but the rosters were increased to 40 active players and 50 total in May, 2022.[6][7]
The Tampa Bay Bandits shared a rivalry with the New Orleans Breakers called the Breaker Bay Brawl.[8] The rivalry only lasted one season as it was announced on November 15, 2022 that the Tampa Bay Bandits would be replaced by the Memphis Showboats.[9] The Bandits finished with a 0–2 record against New Orleans.
