Upcoming 68 Ventures Bowl dates
Dates and live ticket listings appear here as soon as they are on sale. The guide below covers what to know before you buy.
Your 68 Ventures Bowl seat, decided quickly
The 68 Ventures Bowl takes place at Hancock Whitney Stadium, home of the South Alabama Jaguars, a 25,450-seat venue on the west side of Mobile, Alabama. For most fans, the smartest ticket is a sideline seat in the upper rows, roughly between the 30-yard lines. The stadium is compact enough that height costs you very little closeness, and the extra elevation lets you see plays unfold. If you want to be in the middle of your team's crowd instead, buy near your band and bench once sideline assignments are known.
Edition No. 28 falls on Saturday, December 26, 2026, with kickoff at 4:30 p.m. Central on ESPN. The bowl draws on the Group of Five (FBS leagues that sit below the Power Four), typically from the Sun Belt and the Mid-American Conference.
Sideline, end zone and premium seats in a 25,450-seat bowl
The stadium was first used on September 12, 2020, and began hosting this bowl in 2021. Its small footprint changes the usual seat math. Even the top sideline rows sit nearer the grass than mid-level seats do at a stadium twice or three times this size, so you are choosing angle and atmosphere more than distance.
- Lower sideline, 30 to 30. The most balanced view of both teams and a straight look at the video board. These seats sell first once the matchup is set.
- Upper sideline rows. The value pick. You pay less, see formations clearly and still feel close to the game.
- End zones and corners. Usually the lowest cost. Good if you want to stand with a band or student section and accept a head-on angle that makes yardage hard to read.
- Premium areas. The building has 11 suites and 42 loge boxes, plus a standing-room terrace lined with drink rails, according to stadium descriptions. These suit groups who want space and service more than a pure football view.
Where your team's fans will be
In a stadium of this size, each fan base tends to gather near its own band and bench. Sideline assignments follow the matchup announcement, which typically comes the first weekend of December once league title games are done. If sitting among your own fans matters, wait for that news before choosing a side.
Seat trade-offs for a late-afternoon Gulf Coast kickoff
Kickoff times move around. In 2025 the game was a Wednesday night affair on December 17, kicking off at 7:30 Central. For 2026 it moves to December 26 and a 4:30 start, which means sunshine for the opening quarter and stadium lights by the finish. Pack a jacket for after dark, Gulf Coast or not.
Price movement follows the pairing. Before the teams are picked, listings reflect general interest only. After the announcement, schools within driving distance of Mobile, or with a big traveling crowd, push sideline prices up quickly, while teams from far away tend to soften the market. Because there are so few seats, the best lower sideline rows thin out first. If you already know you are going, buying a few days after the matchup news, before the holiday rush, is usually the steadier window.
Mardi Gras floats, a pep rally and a street party
Mobile folds the bowl into its parade tradition. Ahead of the 2025 edition, Visit Mobile promoted the eve-of-game downtown procession as the largest Mardi Gras-style parade the city stages, and a pep rally with each school's band and cheer squad came right after. Expect floats, horns and crowds along the route.
On game day, a pregame party takes over the lots outside the stadium. In 2025 it featured a children's area called the Kidzone, a player walk through the crowd toward the gates, and a band competition. An outside company also sold a ticketed tailgate package. Event names and start times shift annually, so read the bowl's schedule for the year you attend.
Outside bowl week, the bowl organization stays busy with community work such as flag football, clinics for young athletes, an art competition for students and a spelling bee for the county.
Campus lots, clear bags and a cashless gate
The stadium is at 500 Stadium Drive on the South Alabama campus in west Mobile, not downtown. Driving or a rideshare is the realistic way to get there.
- Lots by entrance. In 2025, parking off John Counts Drive and off Stadium Drive was presold only, parking off Jaguar Boulevard was sold the day of the game, and the USA South Drive lots cost nothing but had no shuttle. RV and bus spaces required advance purchase.
- Bag rules. As of 2025, the gates admitted a transparent bag no larger than 12 by 6 by 12 inches, a gallon-size clear zip bag, or a clutch of 4.5 by 6.5 inches or less, with exceptions for medical and diaper bags. Coolers, backpacks and big purses stayed outside.
- Payment. Cards and mobile pay only for parking, food and merchandise.
- Tailgating. No glass and no open flames in the lots, per the 2025 rules.
Policies can change each season. The bowl posts its current parking map and rules on its game day page.
GMAC, GoDaddy, LendingTree: one bowl, six names
The first game was played on December 22, 1999, under the name Mobile Alabama Bowl, and TCU defeated East Carolina 28–14. That game, and every edition through 2020, took place at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, which the city owns and which opened in 1948. In 2021 the bowl relocated to South Alabama's new stadium, the same year the Senior Bowl did.
- 1999: Mobile Alabama Bowl, with no sponsor.
- 2000–2010: GMAC Bowl, the longest run, named for the auto finance company.
- 2011–2015: GoDaddy Bowl, a name many fans still use.
- 2016–2018: Dollar General Bowl.
- 2019–2022: LendingTree Bowl. For part of 2019, before LendingTree signed, the game briefly carried the Mobile Alabama Bowl name again.
- 2023 onward: 68 Ventures Bowl.
The calendar moved too. The 2006 through 2014 games were played in early January, and the bowl came back to December in 2015.
Games people still mention
The 2001 edition set the standard. Marshall trailed East Carolina 38–8, then won 64–61 in double overtime as quarterback Byron Leftwich threw for 576 yards, one of the highest-scoring bowls ever played. In January 2008, Tulsa routed Bowling Green 63–7. The latest result came on December 17, 2025, when Delaware beat Louisiana 20–13.
Planning a Mobile bowl trip
- Choose your base by priority. Downtown hotels put you close to the parade and pep rally. West Mobile is closer to the stadium for game day.
- Get to campus early. Pregame activities and the no-cost lots draw crowds hours ahead, and campus traffic squeezes through a handful of entrances.
- Leave time for the bay. Visitors often add Battleship Memorial Park and the USS Alabama, the Carnival Museum downtown, or the National Maritime Museum of the Gulf.
- Know what the order covers. Every Reserved Seat order carries a 100% guarantee.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the best place to sit at the 68 Ventures Bowl?
High sideline rows near midfield are the value play, because the 25,450-seat stadium keeps even high rows close to the field. Lower sideline seats offer the closest balanced view but sell first.
Is this the bowl that used to be called the GoDaddy Bowl?
Yes. GoDaddy held the naming rights from 2011 through 2015. Before that it was the GMAC Bowl, and after it came Dollar General, LendingTree and, starting in 2023, 68 Ventures.
What time does the 2026 68 Ventures Bowl start?
Kickoff is set for 4:30 p.m. Central on Saturday, December 26, 2026, on ESPN.
Which conferences send teams to Mobile?
Recent matchups have come from the Sun Belt and the MAC, and the bowl's 2026 announcement adds Conference USA to the pool. Agreements shift, so wait for the early-December pairing.
Does Hancock Whitney Stadium take cash?
No. As of the 2025 game, parking, concessions and merchandise were card or mobile pay only.
Is there free parking for the bowl?
For the 2025 game, the USA South Drive lots were free but had no shuttle. Lots closer to the stadium required advance or game-day purchase.