Wake Forest to play Notre Dame in Charlotte in 2020

Wake Forest has struck a deal with the Charlotte Sports Foundation to host Notre Dame in Charlotte at Bank of America Stadium in 2020.

The game will take place on September 26th, 2020.

This will come at the expense of a home game for the Demon Deacons, but sources indicate that the revenue from the game will come out to about 3x the amount of a normal Wake Forest home football game.

Usually these games have guaranteed monetary amounts ahead of time and do not rely on gate receipts for the revenue.

The 2018 game against Notre Dame will still take place in Winston-Salem at BB&T Field.

If everything stays the same schedule-wise, Wake Forest will have 6 home games in 2020, as they host Appalachian State and Tulane in non-conference play before welcoming Boston College, Clemson, Syracuse, and Miami (FL) to Winston-Salem.

At face value this neutral site game comes off as a predominantly financial motivated move, as a game in Charlotte will draw significantly less Wake Forest fans than a home game in Winston-Salem would. It is no secret that Notre Dame travels well to any venue, and a larger stadium will bring more Fighting Irish fans than would come to BB&T Field.

This move sets up to be a very positive one because of the exposure and the money that it will bring to Wake Forest. A neutral site game brings new opportunities to attract a larger audience, both in person, as well as on a national viewing platform. It also provides an easy, fun trip for fans in Winston-Salem to make the hour+ trek south to Charlotte.

This seems like a win-win for both schools, as Notre Dame has one less true road game in 2020, will likely receive some compensation from the Charlotte Sports Foundation as well, and Wake gets much needed exposure for recruiting purposes.

As more details on this game come out we will update and provide further evaluation as necessary.