Georgia to receive $4 million+ for 2021 Clemson football game in Charlotte

The Georgia Bulldogs will receive a guarantee of the greater of $4 million or 45% of Net Revenue for their 2021 football game against the Clemson Tigers. News of the guarantee was first reported at FBSchedules.com.

The Georgia Bulldogs and Clemson Tigers are set to square off at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C., to open the season on Saturday, Sept. 4, 2021. The Georgia-Clemson neutral-site matchup was officially announced in February.

Below is how Net Revenue for the Georgia-Clemson game will be calculated, per the terms of the agreement:

“Net Revenue” shall equal “Total Income” less “Games Expenses.” Total Income shall be the sum of (i) total ticket sales revenue less applicable taxes; (ii) sponsorship fees (net of applicable commissions); and (iii) media rights, if applicable. Game Expenses shall be the sum of all customary and reasonable fees to stage and conduct the game. CSE shall prepare a detailed Game Expense budget for the Game and present said budget to Clemson and Georgia for mutual acceptance no later than February 1,2021. Game Expenses will be detailed in the contract, including the following: ticketing expenses, stadium costs, game operations, CSE management fee, events expense, marketing and promotions, stadium rent, other operating expenses and a contingency not to exceed Ten Thousand Dollars.

Each school is responsible for its own travel, hotels and meals.

Each school will also be required to purchase 27,000 tickets, which shouldn’t be a problem for fans of the Bulldogs and Tigers.

If either team cancels the contest, they must pay the other team plus Charlotte Sports Events, LLC the sum of $4 million within 30 days of cancellation.

The 2021 Georgia-Clemson will be dubbed the Duke’s Mayo Classic, which is the new name for the season-opener hosted by the Charlotte Sports Foundation. The matchup was formerly known as the Belk College Kickoff.

In order to schedule the matchup, Georgia canceled their Sept. 4, 2021 home game against San Jose State, which cost the Bulldogs $1.8 million.

“This is another great opportunity to schedule a national non-conference game with a top level opponent,” UGA head coach Kirby Smart said in February. “Playing a regular season game in Charlotte will give our fans the opportunity for a completely new experience in a great city and top level stadium. I know our coaches and players will be excited for the challenge to kick off the season in this kind of environment.”

Other non-conference opponents for Georgia in 2021 include UAB (Sept. 11) and Charleston Southern (Nov. 20) at home and a road game at in-state rival Georgia Tech on Nov. 27.

Georgia and Clemson are also scheduled to meet at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga., to open the 2024 season. The two schools will then play a pair of home-and-home series beginning five seasons later — 2029 at Clemson, 2030 at Georgia, 2032 at Georgia, and 2033 at Clemson.

Georgia currently leads the overall series against Clemson 42-18-4. In their most recent matchups, the two schools split a home-and-home series with Clemson winning 38-35 at Memorial Stadium in 2013 and Georgia winning 45-21 at Sanford Stadium in 2014.

Future UGA Football Schedules