Why is Florida State vs Georgia Tech in Ireland? Game part of Aer Lingus College Football Classic

August 24, 2024 College Football

On Saturday, Florida State will kick off its much-anticipated 2024 football season.

Over the years, the Seminoles have started their season in a number of different locations. Usually, it’s at home, inside the sunny and steamy confines of Doak Campbell Stadium in late August or early September. In other instances, like against LSU each of the previous two seasons, it was at some sort of neutral site in the United States.

This year, Florida State will have to travel just a little farther to play its first game of the season.

REQUIRED READING: What FSU football QB coach Tony Tokarz said about the ‘continued growth’ of DJ Uiagalelei

Nearly nine full months after winning the ACC and being snubbed by the College Football Playoff, the Seminoles will take on Georgia Tech in Dublin in what will be the first FBS college football game of the 2024 season.

Though the benefits of such a game are evident, particularly for players and fans, the arrangement isn’t without some questions — namely, why is a game between a pair of conference foes whose campuses are separated by a 4.5-hour drive being played 4,000 miles away?

Here’s what you need to know about the Seminoles’ Week 0 game against Georgia Tech, and why it’s taking place in Dublin:

Florida State vs Georgia Tech location

Stadium: Aviva Stadium

Location: Dublin

Florida State and Georgia Tech will be playing in Dublin at Aviva Stadium, the home of Ireland’s national rugby and soccer teams. The venue seats 49,000 for American football games.

The matchup between the Seminoles and Yellow Jackets will be the third college football game in as many years at Aviva Stadium, coming on the heels of Northwestern-Nebraska in 2022 and Notre Dame-Navy in 2023.