Bahamas Bowl shifts from The Bahamas again

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The annual Bahamas Bowl football showdown will once again be missing from the country's sports tourism calendar.

For the second time in three years, the marquee collegiate football bowl game will not return to its original home, according to Brett McMurphy, a college football insider with the Action Network which is a sports media company featuring news and analysis focused on sports betting in the United States.

"Bahamas Bowl will not be held in The Bahamas this year, sources said. The bowl will be played this season at a site to be determined," McMurphy posted on the social media platform X.

The Bahamas Bowl previously relocated to Charlotte, North Carolina, in 2023, due to ongoing repairs at the Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium ahead of the 2024 BTC World Athletics Relays.

That year, the event was hosted at Jerry Richardson Stadium, and the name was changed to the Famous Toastery Bowl, in honor of the title sponsor - a restaurant chain based in Charlotte, North Carolina.

During the 2023 game, Western Kentucky University rallied from a 28-0 deficit to pull off a narrow 38-35 victory against Old Dominion University in overtime.

Western Kentucky quarterback Caden Veltkamp was named Offensive Most Valuable Player (MVP), while Western Kentucky defensive back Anthony Johnson Jr. earned Defensive MVP honors.

Traditionally held in December, the Bahamas Bowl returned to the capital in January of this year -- the first time the game was held in January in The Bahamas.

The University at Buffalo faced off against Liberty University and secured a decisive 26-7 victory in the final non-playoff game of the college football season.

Buffalo running back Al-Jay Henderson was named Offensive MVP, and Buffalo linebacker Red Murdock claimed Defensive MVP honors.

It remains unclear whether the event's relocation is due to ongoing renovation at the national stadium.

The Bahamas Bowl is one of 17 bowl games owned and operated by ESPN Events.

The college football event traditionally features teams from Conference USA and the Mid-American Conference (MAC).

Since debuting in The Bahamas in 2014, past winners have included Western Kentucky (2014), Western Michigan University (2015), Old Dominion University (2016), Ohio University (2017), Florida International University (2018), Buffalo (2019), Middle Tennessee State University (2021), the University of Alabama at Birmingham (2022), Western Kentucky (2023), and Buffalo (2025).

The Bahamas Bowl is the only current international bowl game.