ORLANDO, Fla. — The 2026 college football season kicks off with Week 0 games this weekend, marking the unofficial start of the year. 

Camping World Stadium in downtown Orlando has hosted four season-opening marquee games in the past, like Alabama against Louisville and Florida versus Miami. The last one was in 2023 when Florida State took on LSU.

But it doesn’t have any of those games this season.

Florida Citrus Sports Chief Executive Officer Steve Hogan said the sports organization wants to get more Week 0 games in the future but that it is going to have to buy into some of those games.

“Maybe buy some games and move them,” Hogan said. “You’re going to have arranged marriages.”

This year will mark the third in a row that downtown Orlando won’t host Week 0 games.

“The kickoff games really are something that are going to be important to the cadence of energy every single season,” Hogan said. 

“And it takes money, right? It takes money. And if you’ve been paying attention in college athletics, money wins the day right now, and it’s going to for a long time.”

Hogan said Florida Citrus Sports recently received approval from Orange County’s Sports Incentive Committee for at least some annual funding for 2028-2030 as it seeks to attract those games.

Athletes and college coaches speak highly of the experience of playing in Orlando.

ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit said he has fond memories of playing in Orlando when he was at Ohio State. He also was on the broadcast team for LSU-Florida State in 2023.

“Opening weekend and you get big brands in a town like this, it’s a home run,” Herbstreit said. “People are already anxious for college football, and if you can get a matchup like that, to be able to showcase some high-profile talent, and especially if it’s teams that are highly ranked brands that are recognizable, to me, it’s a grand slam. Where else would you want to play than here to kick off the season?”

Former UCF and current Tennessee coach Josh Heupel knows the area well firsthand and led the Volunteers to the 2024 Citrus Bowl.

“The city of Orlando itself is a great venue, great destination for fan bases,” Heupel said. “They do a great job hosting the teams.”

The college football calendar keeps evolving with the talk of playoff expansion, raising questions about whether it’s worth it in terms of raising their profiles for teams to schedule marquee games early in the season. 

Even when teams agree to them, high-profile, nonconference games are scheduled years in advance.

Florida played in the Week 0 game at Camping World Stadium in 2019.

“There’s always open for conversation on could there be a Week 0 game,” first-year Gators coach Jon Sumrall said. “What does that look like, opponent-wise, location, all those things? My response is never no. It’s always like, ‘Yeah, that could make sense’.” 

Florida Citrus Sports officials said they are also looking at other opportunities to bring major-college games to the stadium. The ultimate would be hosting a national championship game or another iconic game, Hogan said.

“Army-Navy, which we’re going to go hard after again, which is essentially a national championship game if you really look at it, standalone date, just the architecture around it from military complex retirees,” Hogan said. “That is a beast of an event. And we want that.”

Right now, Camping World Stadium is undergoing a $400 million renovation as it prepares to host the NFL’s Jaguars in 2027 while Jacksonville’s stadium undergoes an overhaul. That will mark the first time Camping World Stadium will host an NFL regular-season game. 

Hogan said Florida Citrus Sports wants events in Orlando year-round, with football and pro football at the center of them all.