Indianapolis to host college football national championship game in 2022

Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis will host the College Football Playoff's National Championship game in 2022, it was announced Wednesday.

Over a four-day period, the city will feature a fan fest inside the Indiana Convention Center, a music festival, a themed food event and plenty of championship tailgating.

The national championship game will be played on Monday, January 10, 2022.

Indiana Sports Corp said in a release that they believe the weekend will generate more than $150 million for the Indianapolis region.

“I’m confident this event will be much more than a game for our city,” said Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett in a statement. “As with other major sporting events, thousands of volunteers will step into our neighborhoods, classrooms, and local nonprofit centers to leave a positive footprint in our community. Hosting this game will also ensure the 78,000 residents in our local hospitality industry will continue to earn a paycheck.”

Indianapolis is no stranger to hosting marquee events. Indy has hosted the Super Bowl, men's basketball Final Four, women's Final Four, the Big Ten Football Championship and of course, the Indy 500 each year.

“Between the community events, fan experiences, and the game itself, the College Football Playoff National Championship will bring more than 100,000 visitors to Indy in 2022,” said Leonard Hoops, president and CEO of Visit Indy. “In addition to the significant economic impact it will generate, the event will also help boost the profile of Indy through global media coverage, enhancing Central Indiana's brand as a place to live, work, play and visit.”

Former director of NCAA Men’s Final Four and current College Football Playoff Executive Director Bill Hancock is looking forward to bringing this iconic event to the Hoosier state.

"Indianapolis offers a welcoming atmosphere that is second to none," said Bill Hancock, executive director of the College Football Playoff. "Those of us who have worked there for many years know that it's all about the people. The city has served as a renowned host to top collegiate events for many years-and, of course, to the Indianapolis 500, a great Super Bowl, Pan American Games and more. The community provides a state-of-the-art stadium, top-flight convention center, and a centralized, 'walkable' downtown that our fans will love."

The College Football Playoff's Management Committee selected the cities that will host the national title game from 2021-2024.

2021: Miami-South Florida (Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida)

2022: Indianapolis (Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, Indiana)

2023: Los Angeles (Los Angeles Stadium at Hollywood Park, Inglewood, California)

2024: Houston (NRG Stadium, Houston, Texas)

"Each of the four cities chosen met or exceeded our standards for selection," said Hancock. "Each has a first-class stadium that our fans will enjoy, a great convention center, excellent hotels for teams and fans, and the communities have successful track records of hosting major events. Each city also has wonderful, supportive people who we rely on to host a successful game."

This year's College Football Playoff national title game is in Atlanta. It will play played at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara in 2019 and New Orleans in 2020. Previous hosts include AT&T Stadium in Arlington in 2015, Arizona in 2016 and Tampa Bay last year. That means in its first 10 years, 10 different cities will host the national championship game.

"When we created the playoff, we said we wanted to move the national championship game around," said Hancock. "We have done that. We call it 'ten in ten'—ten different communities will have hosted the national championship game in the first ten years of the playoff. The CFP National Championship is one of the most popular sporting events in the United States and we're proud to bring the game to fans in different regions of the country."