Want more from Front Office Sports
in your search results?
The “World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party” will hit the road due to the newly approved $1.4 billion renovations set for the Jaguars’ EverBank Stadium.
The annual Florida-Georgia college football game, which has been played in Jacksonville in all but two years since 1933, will be played in Atlanta and Tampa in 2026 and 2027, coaches for both programs confirmed Wednesday ahead of Saturday’s matchup. The No. 2 Bulldogs (6–1) are big favorites over the unranked Gators (4–3).
EverBank Stadium is set to have reduced capacity for Jaguars games in 2026 and will be closed in 2027, forcing one of college football’s oldest neutral-site rivalry games to look for a temporary home. (Coincidentally, the Jaguars could play some games at “The Swamp” in 2027.)
Earlier this week, Jacksonville mayor Donna Deegan said she was “optimistic” that a new contract to continue hosting the Florida-Georgia game in 2028 and beyond would be finalized soon.
Stadium Search
Georgia coach Kirby Smart indicated there were at least discussions about playing the 2026 and 2027 games in Athens and Gainesville, as was the case in 1994 and 1995—when the Jaguars’ current stadium was being built at the site of the old Gator Bowl. “I think that was a consideration,” Smart said during the weekly SEC football coaches’ media teleconference.
But the schools ultimately agreed to stay at neutral NFL sites, albeit ones that will give each school a more “home game” feel. The 2026 contest in Georgia will be played at the Falcons’ Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and the 2027 matchup in Florida at the Buccaneers’ Raymond James Stadium, according to the Action Network.
“Kirby and I probably both agree that it’d be awesome to play a home-and-home, but we also know that there’s a tremendous amount of revenue created by having this game in a neutral site,” Florida coach Billy Napier said.
For years, various coaches at both schools have lamented the missed recruiting opportunities of not being able to entertain top prospects on campus for such a big game. “I think the neutral site will present those same revenue opportunities, and that’s ultimately why the decision was made,” Napier said of playing in Atlanta and Tampa.
