Florida vs. Georgia Contract Approved by Jacksonville City Council
The Jacksonville (Fla.) City Council voted unanimously on Tuesday night to approve a contract that will keep the annual Florida Gators vs. Georgia Bulldogs football game at TIAA Bank Field in the city through the 2023 season, with an extension option for the 2024 and 2025 seasons.
"Pleased to see our City Council unanimously approved a new contract that will keep one of our great traditions in Jacksonville through 2025," Mayor Lenny Curry tweeted on Tuesday night. "Many thanks to my City Council colleagues, UF, and UGA for keeping this rivalry where it belongs."
As it's been since 1933, aside from a two-year stretch of home-and-home games while a new stadium was being built in the city from 1994-95, Florida-Georgia will remain in Jacksonville and feature the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party. There will be one change, however.
Unlike previous years, additional seats will not be installed in the North End Zone of TIAA Bank Field which will result in an occupancy decrease of about 6,000 people. Each school will be compensated $400,000 to make up for lost profits from ticket sales, according to News4Jax.
The seating change will take effect this weekend when the Gators "host" the Bulldogs at 3:30 P.M. on Saturday.
An agreement on the new contract was initially struck in Oct. 2019. Curry shared at the time that the economic impact of the game being held in Jacksonville topped $30 million in 2018.
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