Photo taken moments before the 2022 Florida-Georgia game. (Photo credit: Neil Shulman, In All Kinds Of Weather)
The Florida-Georgia game is set to stay in Jacksonville… for now.
The athletic departments of both Florida and Georgia announced that their rivalry would remain on the banks of the St. Johns River through 2025. The most recent iteration of the contract, signed in 2019, extended the game’s future in Jacksonville through 2023, with an option to remain in Jacksonville in both 2024 and 2025. The schools have exercised that option, but have not agreed to an entirely new contract.
Beyond that, though, the game’s future remains murky.
The Jacksonville Jaguars’ well-elucidated plans to renovate their stadium- plans with an opening date of 2026- is almost certainly going to relocate the game elsewhere for a couple of years by necessity. That was the case in 1994 and 1995, when the old Gator Bowl was renovated in preparation for the Jaguars’ entrance into the NFL, and Florida and Georgia each hosted the game for a year. Those remain the only instances since 1933 that the Florida-Georgia game has been played outside of Jacksonville.
But previously-illustrated logistical issues could make the game’s exodus from Jacksonville more than just a temporary thing. This quote from Georgia AD Josh Brooks was particularly noteworthy:
“We are pleased with the decision to exercise the option that will keep the game in Jacksonville for 2024 and 2025,” Brooks said in his statement. “We look forward to discussions that I’m sure will continue over the next couple of years exploring all the options for 2026 and beyond. We continue to be appreciative of the working relationship we have with the University of Florida and the City of Jacksonville.”
Obviously, Jacksonville wants to keep the Florida-Georgia game forever. The game- and the weekend surrounding it- nets the city north of $30 million per year, while Florida and Georgia are paid just under $3 million per year (including travel stipends). That actually would be more than each school would be projected to make by hosting the game, according to The Gainesville Sun.
However, the dreaded prospect of only playing five home games in a twelve-game regular season might be so unappealing that it overwrites that positive. It certainly hasn’t stopped either Florida or Georgia brass from publicly wondering aloud about where the game’s future lies. So as is the case with many things in life, we’ll have to wait and see.
