ATLANTA (Feb. 26, 2026) – The 2025-26 college football season represented another record year for Peach Bowl, Inc. related to economic impact, attendance, viewership and charitable donations.
 
The organization opened the season with two Aflac Kickoff Games over Labor Day weekend featuring Syracuse vs. Tennessee and Virginia Tech vs. South Carolina, then capped off the college football season with its fourth College Football Playoff Semifinal between No. 5 Oregon and No. 1 Indiana.  With the Hoosiers' victory in the CFP National Championship, the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl became the first CFP bowl to have three consecutive national title winners play in its Semifinal game (2019 LSU, 2022 Georgia, 2026 Indiana).
 
"We had another historic season setting new benchmarks across the board thanks to our two Aflac Kickoff Games and the CFP Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl," said Gary Stokan, Peach Bowl, Inc. CEO and president. "Our games allowed us the opportunity to showcase why Atlanta is the 'The Capital of College Football' to the nearly 180,000 fans in attendance, along with more than 25 million viewers who watched on television. When it's all said and done, the true winner is the broader Atlanta community who received a $63.2 million economic impact boost and tax revenues of $8 million, as well as the countless lives who will be positively touched thanks to the $5.4 million in charitable donations raised as a result of these games."
 
HIGHEST ECONOMIC IMPACT IN BOWL'S HISTORY:
 
The 2026 College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl – No. 5 Oregon vs. No. 1 Indiana – generated $63.2 million in economic impact and $4.64 million in direct tax revenue, representing the largest economic impact in the Bowl's history according to an analysis done by Dr. Bruce Seaman of the Georgia State University Department of Economics.
 
"Although the total attendance was only modestly higher than some other high profile games, the enthusiastic takeover of downtown and the metro Atlanta area by Indiana fans also led, based on high response survey results, to somewhat higher per capita per diem spending, more hotel rooms occupied and a notably higher stated motivation for visiting the region solely because of this Semifinal game," said Dr. Bruce Seaman, Georgia State University Department of Economics.
 
When combined with the estimated economic impact of the two Aflac Kickoff Games, Peach Bowl, Inc. events delivered an estimated $111 million in economic impact and $8 million in direct tax revenue for the 2025-26 college football season.
 
College football games hosted by Peach Bowl, Inc. have now driven a projected $1.64 billion in total economic impact, and approximately 104.9 million in combined direct state and local tax revenue since 2002.
              
Note: Direct (not linked to multiplier effects) tax revenues include those from local hotel-motel taxes and state per night fees (recently expanded to include B&Bs); state and local sales taxes (with local tax rates varying based on jurisdiction), and transportation taxes linked to airport fees and car rental taxes.  Some events will qualify for exemption from sales taxes on ticket purchases.
 
SECOND-HIGHEST ATTENDED BOWL GAME OF 2025-26 SEASON:
 
This year's sold-out CFP Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl drew 75,604 fans to Mercedes-Benz Stadium, making it the second-highest attended bowl game of the 2025-26 bowl season, trailing only the CFP Quarterfinal at the Rose Bowl. It represented the 26th sellout in the last 29 games for the Bowl and also marked the fourth-highest attendance in the game's 58-year history.
 
A combined 177,053 fans attended last season's Aflac Kickoff Games and Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, representing the 17th time in the last 18 years where Peach Bowl, Inc. events have drawn more than 100,000 fans to Atlanta.
 
A total of 3.45 million fans have now attended the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, while 1.48 million fans have been in attendance for Aflac Kickoff Games.
 
TOP-10 MOST-WATCHED COLLEGE FOOTBALL GAME OF THE SEASON:
 
With 18 million viewers on ESPN, the 2026 CFP Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl became the seventh most watched game of the entire 2025-26 college football season and the fourth most-viewed Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl of all-time.
 
A combined total of 25.8 million viewers tuned in to watch the Aflac Kickoff Games (7.8 million) on Labor Day weekend and the CFP Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (18 million) on Jan. 9.
 
More than 275.1 million viewers have now watched the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl since it began being broadcast on ESPN in 1991, while an additional 116.4 million have watched the Aflac Kickoff Games since their creation in 2008.
 
MOST CHARITABLE BOWL ORGANIZATION:
 
Peach Bowl, Inc. made $5.4 million in charitable donations for the 2025-2026 college football season, which represented the largest donation by any bowl organization in the country. This marked the 19th straight year the Peach Bowl has donated more than $1 million and the eighth time it has eclipsed $5 million in giving in a single year.  It also solidified the Peach Bowl's position as college football's most charitable bowl organization, having now donated $70.9 million to philanthropic efforts.
  
For the 2025-26 season, recipients included the Peach Bowl LegACy Fund that is benefiting Children's Healthcare of Atlanta with 18 pediatric cancer trials involving 79 children, the College Football Hall of Fame, various university head coach foundations, contributions to the John Lewis Legacy of Courage Endowed Scholarship Program at the six participating universities and the Georgia Lions Lighthouse, among others. 
  
UPCOMING SEASON:
 
The 2026-27 college football season will open with the Aflac Kickoff Game over Labor Day weekend, which will feature a Big 12 vs. SEC showdown between Baylor and Auburn. The CFP Quarterfinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl will then be played on New Year's Day, showcasing a top four team against one of the nation's best teams as part of the 12-team College Football Playoff.