Cole Pepper
Saturday’s Florida-Georgia game will be played, as usual, in Jacksonville. So will the game next year. But for two seasons, in 2026 and 2027, while EverBank Stadium is being renovated to create the Jaguars “Stadium of the Future,” the two SEC rivals will play elsewhere.
According to Action Network, the game will be played at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta in 2026 and at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa in 2027. After 2027, the series will return to Jacksonville for at least the next few years.
Both stadiums have previously hosted Super Bowls and the College Football National Championship game.
The Florida-Georgia series has been played in Jacksonville since 1933, with the exception of 1994 and 1995, when the Gators and Bulldogs played on campus while the Gator Bowl was being renovated for the Jaguars’ first NFL season in 1995.
Tampa hosted the game in 1919 and is the only Florida city to host the game other than Jacksonville and Gainesville. Three Georgia cities have hosted the game. Macon hosted a game in 1904 that is disputed as a varsity game by the University of Florida. Savannah hosted the game in 1928 and 1930. The game was played in Athens in 1920, 1926, 1932 and 1995.
The game is estimated to generate $30 million in economic impact for Jacksonville annually.
In past years, Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said holding the game in Jacksonville was detrimental to recruiting efforts. Despite that, Georgia has been ranked in the top 4 in recruiting for the last seven seasons.
This week, Smart said that the pregame atmosphere was much different in Jacksonville compared to home games in Athens.
“It’s a different vibe because it’s a different fan base,” Smart said. “It’s not a home game for anybody. It has more of an NFL feel to it. That’s not a complaint. It’s just a fact.”
