In December 1984, Grant Broadcasting System signed on competing independent WBFS-TV (channel 33) with a stronger general entertainment lineup, and surpassed WDZL in the ratings immediately.

In mid-January 1994, the station began airing the Action Pack programming block with a TekWar TV movie.

By that point, WBZL began airing more first-run talk and reality shows during the daytime hours, along with children's programming, and off-network sitcoms in the evenings.

[7] By February 2012, the station rebranded as "SFL-TV" to de-emphasize its connection to the Sun-Sentinel, as WSFL no longer offers full-scale local newscasts.

The split was finalized in 2014, and WSFL-TV remained with the Tribune Company (which retained all non-publishing assets, including the broadcasting, digital media and Media Services units), while its newspapers (including the Sun-Sentinel) became part of the similarly named Tribune Publishing Company.

[10][11] In order to meet regulatory approval, Sinclair agreed to divest WSFL to Fox Television Stations[12] in what was part of a $910 million deal;[13] Fox executives declined to make any public statement regarding the status of current affiliate WSVN[14] which had a contract with the network through June 30, 2019.

[15] Both transactions were nullified when Tribune Media terminated the merger and filed a breach of contract lawsuit against Sinclair;[16][17] this followed FCC chairman Ajit Pai rejecting the deal[18] and the commission voting to put it through a hearing.

In 1997, NBC owned-and-operated station WTVJ and the Sun-Sentinel entered into a partnership to co-produce a nightly 10 p.m. newscast on WDZL, titled WB 39 News at 10.

The format de-emphasizes the traditional use of anchors and reporters, in favor of using footage featuring those involved and continuity provided by a narrator to help illustrate the story.

On November 14, 2019, Scripps announced that they would bring local news back to WSFL, originally starting in spring 2020.

On March 10, 2021, it was announced that WPLG (now owned by BH Media) would produce 7–9 a.m. and 10 p.m. newscasts for WSFL, which began on June 1.

The station's signal is multiplexed: WSFL-TV ended regular programming on its analog signal, over UHF channel 39, on June 12, 2009, the official date on which full-power television stations in the United States transitioned from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate.