Sugar Bowl

Sugar Bowl
Allstate Sugar Bowl
Stadium	Caesars Superdome
Location	New Orleans, Louisiana
Previous stadiums	Tulane Stadium (1934–1974)
Temporary venue	Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia (2006)[a]
Operated	1935–present
Championship affiliation	CFP (2014–present) BCS (1998–2013) Bowl Alliance (1995–1997) Bowl Coalition (1992–1994)
Conference tie-ins	SEC (unofficial 1935–1975, official 1976–present) Big 12 (2015–present)
Payout	US$17 million per team (As of 2014[update])[1]
Website	allstatesugarbowl.org
Sponsors
USF&G Financial Services (1988–1995) Nokia (1996–2006) Allstate Insurance (2007–present)
Former names
Sugar Bowl (1935–1987) USF&G Sugar Bowl (1987–1995) Nokia Sugar Bowl (1996–2006)
2023 season matchup
Washington vs. Texas (Washington 37–31)
2024 season matchup
Notre Dame vs. Georgia (Notre Dame 23–10)

The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed only by the Rose Bowl Game.^[2]

The Sugar Bowl was originally played at Tulane Stadium before moving to the Superdome in 1975. When the Superdome and the rest of the city suffered damage due to both the winds from and the flooding in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the Sugar Bowl was temporarily moved to the Georgia Dome in Atlanta in 2006. Since 2007, the game has been sponsored by Allstate and officially known as the Allstate Sugar Bowl. Previous sponsors include Nokia (1996–2006) and USF&G Financial Services (1988–1995).

The Sugar Bowl has had a longstanding relationship with the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Through 91 editions, only 12 games have not featured a representative from the SEC. The SEC's opponent varied from year to year, but prior to the advent of the Bowl Coalition, it was often a member of the Big Eight, the SWC, or a major independent. Starting in 2015, the Sugar Bowl also established a relationship with the Big 12 Conference.^[3]

Beginning in 1992, the Sugar Bowl joined with several other bowls to create the Bowl Coalition in an effort to produce an undisputed national champion in college football. It would subsequently participate in the Bowl Alliance and Bowl Championship Series. From 1993 to 2006, the Sugar Bowl served as the national championship game of these systems in 1993, 1997, 2000, and 2004. The Superdome and the Sugar Bowl Committee hosted the BCS National Championship Game in 2008 and 2012, in addition to the regular Sugar Bowl game.

In 2014, the Sugar Bowl, along with the "New Year's Six" bowls, became a part of the College Football Playoff. As part of the four team playoff from 2015 to 2023, the Sugar Bowl served as a semifinal game in 2015, 2018, and 2021. When not serving as a semifinal, the Sugar Bowl featured the best available teams from SEC and the Big 12 conferences.^[3]

With the expansion of the College Football Playoff to twelve teams in the 2024–25 season, the Sugar Bowl will serve as either a quarterfinal or semifinal each year. It served as a quarterfinal in 2025 and will do so again in 2026. When serving as a quarterfinal, the Sugar Bowl will host the higher-seeded SEC or Big 12 champion, if seeded in the top four. When serving as a semifinal, the game will be played one week after New Year's Day, and, if the SEC or Big 12 champion is one of the top two seeds, the higher-seeded team will be assigned to the Sugar Bowl.^[4]

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