Peach Bowl, Inc. events have surpassed the $1.5 billion mark in cumulative economic impact, following the $44.4 million impact delivered by its College Football Playoff Quarterfinal game between No. 5 Texas and No. 4 Arizona State on Jan. 1, 2025.

When added to the estimated $29 million delivered by the Aflac Kickoff Game (Clemson vs. Georgia), college football games hosted by Peach Bowl, Inc. during the 2024-25 season combined to drive a projected economic impact of $73.4 million, including $5.6 million in direct tax revenue.

Peach Bowl, Inc. events have now generated $1.53 billion in economic impact and $96.7 million in direct tax revenue since tracking began in 1999.  

“College football is a critical and dependable economic engine for our city on an annual basis,” said Gary Stokan, Peach Bowl, Inc. CEO and president. “Our core mission is to be a leader in Atlanta in creating annual sporting events that drive economic impact for our city and state and allow us to give back to our community through charity. Our Aflac Kickoff Games and Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl are two of the top five annual events in the city and that helps us remain college football’s most charitable bowl organization in the country.”

2024 Season and Cumulative Impact by the Numbers: Metro Atlanta

Over the last decade, Peach Bowl, Inc. events have contributed an average annual economic impact of $84 million per year and $6.6 million in direct tax revenue, further solidifying the organization’s position as the main economic driver for college football events in the city.

For perspective, if you compared the average annual economic impact over the past 10 years from Peach Bowl, Inc. football games to the impact of a Super Bowl – which was estimated at $180 million for Atlanta in 2018 (inclusive of ancillary events and NFL and corporate spending) – Peach Bowl, Inc. events would deliver an impact equal to a Super Bowl every 2.14 years.  

“Each year, the Aflac Kickoff Game and Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl draw thousands of fans, fueling our hotels, restaurants, small businesses, and local workforce while generating significant economic impact for our city,” said Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens. “We proudly celebrate this incredible achievement and look forward to many more successful years ahead. 

Every year, college football games hosted by Peach Bowl, Inc. are among the events bringing the most visitors to Atlanta. In fact, if you include the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl Quarterfinal game (Jan. 1), college football games were three of the top five highest-attended events in Atlanta in 2024. 

                             EVENT:                                                                                       ATTENDANCE:

1. Aflac Kickoff Game                                                                78,827
2. Dragon Con                                                                             75,000
3. SEC Football Championship                                                 74,916
4. Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl Quarterfinal (Jan. 1, 2025)          71,105
5. MomoCon Animation, Gaming & Comic convention       60,000        

Annual economic impact studies have been conducted by Dr. Bruce A. Seaman, associate professor emeritus of economics at Georgia State University, applying visitor survey and other data to a model that is designed to limit overstatement of incremental economic impacts. It includes information about how long visitors stayed and how much money they spent while they were here, as well as corporate and NCAA sponsorships where applicable, and media spending. 

“Major college football games attract tens of thousands of visitors to Atlanta who help the local economy by shopping and eating at local establishments, booking hotel rooms, utilizing transportation, etc.,” Dr. Seaman said. “Our model looks to generate data that accounts for the specific teams involved, the travelling origins of their fan bases, their discretionary spending habits and average length of stay, among many other factors, and does not include any spending from local sources, while adjusting for the motivation of visitors, and modest crowding out of customary visitor spending that might occur especially during the Kickoff Games.”  

For the 2025-26 college football season, Peach Bowl, Inc. will host two Aflac Kickoff Games between Syracuse vs. Tennessee and Virginia Tech vs. South Carolina over Labor Day weekend, followed by the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl on Jan. 9, 2026. Those three games are projected to deliver an estimated $130 million in economic impact and an additional $9 million in direct tax revenue, while being three of the top visitor-driving events of the year in Atlanta.