The first edition of the rebooted XFL’s Championship Game arrives this weekend at San Antonio’s Alamodome.
The DC Defenders, the North winners, face off with the Arlington Renegades, the South victors, in the “new" spring league’s “first" title showdown. (The 2020 pandemic halted the first season at just five games.) Oklahoma legend Bob Stoops (Renegades head coach) and former NFL wide receiver Reggie Barlow (Defenders head coach) will look to pilot their squads to win the hardware.
Read on for our odds to win the XFL Championship. Who’s the favorite to go big in Texas, and is that team the best bet?
XFL Champion Odds 2023
XFL odds are provided courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook and are current as of Wednesday, May 10, at midnight ET.
Moneyline to win XFL Championship Game
DC Defenders (-255) • Arlington Renegades (+215)
With the Vipers and Guardians now officially eliminated, the XFL champion odds board is down to six teams.
Unsurprisingly, the one-loss Defenders are still setting the pace, even though they squeaked out yet another close win against the Renegades in Week 9. The Roughnecks continue to hold the No. 2 spot despite also struggling to pull out a 28-21 victory over a Vegas team playing for nothing but pride.
The Sea Dragons and Battlehawks continue to linger in the second tier as arguably the only other two viable contenders, although the Renegades do have some intrigue as an extreme longshot due to their typically strong defense and improving offense under Luis Perez.
XFL Champion Favorites
DC Defenders (-255) • DraftKings Sportsbook
The Defenders won plenty of close contests this year but were able to breathe during their 37-21 conquest of the North against the Seattle Sea Dragons.
D.C.’s balanced offense includes dual-threat quarterback — and XFL Offensive Player of the Year — Jordan Ta’amu; XFL leading rusher Abram Smith; and a trio of talented wideouts in Lucky Jackson, Chris Blair, and Josh Hammond.
- Read our full preview of Defenders vs Renegades in our full XFL Championship Game predictions analysis.
Despite a shaky secondary that has led to D.C. giving up the most passing yards per game, the Defenders’ aggressive approach has produced 24 sacks and nine interceptions, including a league-leading four pick-sixes.
They look set to pester Arlington signal-caller Luis Perez.
XFL Champion Underdogs
Arlington Renegades (+215) • DraftKings Sportsbook
Arguably the sleeper team coming into the four-team playoff, the Renegades have rambled their way to the finals on the back of Perez, who despite his history of mild performance in XFL 2020 has transformed the downfield game for Stoops’ gang.
Arlington’s talented defense could be the key to an upset, especially if they can contain the mobile Ta’amu and force him into more frequent obvious passing situations.
In a league where the competition separation is razor-thin most weeks, that trend continues with a sneaky team with experience who could shock the league against the juggernaut and cash in on a bold XFL pick of the day.
