The home of Georgia Tech football has a new name. Bobby Dodd Stadium will now be called Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field following a naming rights agreement with the South Korean automaker.
Under the terms of the agreement, Hyundai will pay Georgia Tech $55 million over 20 years for naming rights to the field, AP reports.
A ‘transformative’ deal
The stadium was known as Grant Field when it opened in 1913. In 1988, the school renamed it Bobby Dodd Stadium in honor of the former Georgia Tech coach and athletic director.
Georgia Tech plans to memorialize the historic Grant Field name with a display at the stadium.
“Like Georgia Tech, Hyundai is a global brand that is synonymous with quality, innovation, and a commitment to advancing technology to make a positive difference in the world. The more we have gotten to know each other, the more obvious the alignment of our values has become,” Georgia Tech President Ángel Cabrera said in a statement.
Georgia Tech Athletic Director J Batt called the partnership “transformative.” Batt has been looking for ways to increase funding for the athletic program to make the Jackets more competitive with their peers.
In addition, “The new revenue will also allow Georgia Tech Athletics to continue to provide Tech students, alumni, and fans with a world-class experience as supporters of the Yellow Jackets,” a press release from the university says.
History and innovation
Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field is the oldest on-campus stadium in Division I football.
Hyundai, headquartered in Seoul, has become a major economic driver in Georgia, spending $5.54 billion to build an electric vehicle and battery plant in Bryan County. The facility is expected to create more than 8,100 jobs.
Hyundai created a $120,000 scholarship for the study of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) at Georgia Tech when it broke ground on the site in October 2022.
