Jacksonville Jaguars identify NASCAR’s Daytona 500 track as a potential temporary home amidst $2 Billion worth TIAA Bank Field renovation: Reports

Jacksonville Jaguars’ current stadium will be unavailable for two years for a $2 Billion worth renovation.

Jacksonville Jaguars identify NASCAR’s Daytona 500 track as a potential temporary home amidst $2 Billion worth TIAA Bank Field renovation: Reports

Daytona International Speedway (Credits: Daytona Beach)

Four times AFC divisions champions, Jacksonville Jaguars, have reportedly identified the Daytona International Speedway as a potential home. It’s one of the most iconic race tracks in the world and hosts events such as NASCAR’s Daytona 500 and WEC’s 24 Hours of Daytona. Alongside the race track, two soccer stadiums from London are also under consideration.

Jacksonville Jaguar’s current home stadium, the TIAA Bank Field, will be unavailable for a projected two years. With financial support from the city of Jacksonville, the team has planned a renovation project that might exceed $2 Billion. Jaguars initially planned to build a new stadium but dropped it and decided to renovate the current stadium with infrastructure dating back to 1928. The project will also facilitate the extension of the lease the city signed with the team, which will end in 2029.

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According to the reports from Venues Now, the team management will meet with the track officials soon to discuss the possibility of having the NFL games there. University of Florida’s Ben Hill Griffin Stadium and Camping World Stadium, owned by the city of Orlando, are two other candidates the team has identified for replacement.  

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“It would be an interesting solution but would also require significant investment in terms of infrastructure. It can accommodate a big crowd. It would be a little wonky, but it’s worth considering. After the [Daytona Rising] renovations [inside the facility], it’s nice,” Jaguars president Mark Lamping said about holding the games in Daytona.

Shifting the home stadium to a prominent race track is a huge project, and the team must make a substantial investment. But choosing one of the other two options instead of the track comes with a cost too. Lamping said, “There could also be a temporary solution in Jacksonville, adding seats to the (city’s minor league) baseball stadium or the track stadium at the University of North Florida. Both options come with a big (retrofit) of $125 million,”.

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NASCAR tracks have previously hosted football games with historic attendance  

Bristol Motor Speedway
Virginia Tech and Tennesse, Bristol Motor Speedway, 2016 (Credits: Business Insider)

Daytona International Speedway has hosted football games in the past. In 1959, the track hosted several high school football games. Bethune-Cookman HBCU used to infield the track, which will be used by the Jaguars if they play as well, as home turf in 1974 and 75.

The most recent football game hosted by the NASCAR track was in 2016. The Bristol Motor Speedway, an oval that hosts two NASCAR races a year, was the venue for a clash in 2016 between Virginia Tech and Tennesse college football teams.

The Bristol game had an attendance of 150,000. Daytona can host more than 100,000 fans with proper upgrades; the number can be increased. Hosting races at the track will help the team to seat 20,000 more fans than the NFL stadium, which has the highest capacity.

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