The event formerly known as the world’s largest outdoor cocktail party is about to transform into the South’s largest traveling roadshow. Days before the latest Georgia-Florida game, news broke that the longtime rivalry will be played in Atlanta in 2026 and Tampa in 2027.
The news, first reported by Action Network’s Brett McMurphy, isn’t shocking or surprising, but it’s still a little depressing. Jacksonville’s Everbank Stadium (formerly known as TIAA Bank Field, Everbank Field, Alltel Stadium, and Jacksonville Municipal Stadium) underwent a long-planned major renovation during that time. will be held, making it unsuitable for the kind of jaw-dropping parties that always happen in Florida. Georgia game.
The series has been held in Jacksonville nearly every year since 1933. The 1994 and 1995 games were held in Gainesville and Athens, when the old Gator Bowl was demolished and Everbank was built as the home of the then-expanding Jaguars.
This leads to a fairly obvious question. Why not play out this glorious, vicious, vast and chaotic rivalry on the campuses of the two challengers? The campuses are A) beautiful, B) have their own pretty awesome stadiums, and C) It’s surprisingly close to the majority of students who attend the great universities of . So why put on a show on the street?
You already know the answer: money. So, so much money. Money trumps tradition and nostalgia, just as the decision was made to move another major rivalry, the annual Georgia vs. Georgia Tech game, to Mercedes-Benz Stadium for a year. be done.
Typically, in a home-and-home situation, the rivals trade revenue opportunities back and forth, with the home team claiming the Dawgs’ (or Gators’) share of ticket revenue. But in a neutral venue, both teams would share that revenue. And in the case of Georgia vs. Florida, the host city also collects the incentives and handles the logistics. This is a win-win for both universities, even if it means significant travel for the Blue and Orange and Red and Black faithful.
The agreement between the two schools, which runs through the 2025 game, will see each school receive $1.5 million annually from Jacksonville. Add to that a 50-50 split in ticket revenue, which has been reported at about $3.75 million annually in recent years. The city of Jacksonville will also reimburse each team $60,000 for travel, lodging and game day expenses, and Georgia State will receive an additional $350,000 in addition to air travel expenses.
Two years ago, Georgia’s Kirby Smart was angry about the fact that hosting a major game outside of Athens meant losing valuable recruiting opportunities, but that was just anger. Smart wonders how much money will be made by playing games at neutral venues, whether in Jacksonville, Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta in 2026, or Raymond James Stadium in Tampa in 2027. I know very well.
“I think the officials did a great job making (stadium tours) valuable for both universities,” Smart said Wednesday on an SEC coaches conference call. It’s going to be unique because it’s a different place and maybe we’ll learn from those experiences. ”
You don’t have to read between the lines to understand what it means to “step up and make it worthwhile.” Jacksonville put a number on a piece of paper and Georgia and Florida were happy to add a zero. Or something along those lines.
“Look, Kirby and I probably both agree that it would be great to play home-and-home, but to have this game at a neutral site,” Florida’s Billy Napier said. I also know that huge profits can be generated.” It moves the world and certainly there is a huge difference in the amount of revenue. ”
While it was fun for the campuses to welcome their hated rivals into their fold, economic realities were impossible to overcome or avoid. But there are some small signs of hope for traditionalists.
The first round of the College Football Playoff will be played at the home stadiums of No. 5 through No. 8 seeds and No. 9 through No. 12 seeds. Schools have the option of moving games from their home stadiums, but CFP Executive Director Rich Clark said Wednesday: None of the programs that might host the game sought to move the game off campus. So there’s a good chance playoff games will be played in Columbus (Ohio), Athens (Georgia), College Station (Pennsylvania), Clemson (South Carolina), or other notable campus locations.
Moving Florida vs. Georgia to another NFL stadium for two years isn’t necessarily a major blow to tradition. Well, at least that means the Jaguars won’t be the second-best team in their homegrown building for a while. But the more we get used to college teams playing in NFL stadiums, the more likely it is that college teams will play more games in NFL stadiums.
This year’s game between Georgia and Florida will begin on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. The overall record in the series is 55 wins, 44 losses, and 2 draws, favoring Georgia. The Bulldogs have won six of their past seven games and are a 16.5-point favorite to improve on that standings.
