Auburn is moving next season’s scheduled home game against Baylor to a neutral-site matchup at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on September 5, 2026, as part of the Aflac Kickoff Game, the school announced this week.

News broke this week that despite already having played the road portion of the home-and-home against Baylor, Auburn agreed to Atlanta largely because of the potential NIL benefit it will bring to the athletic department.

According to reporting on the topic from Brett McMurphy of On3, the move is going to create roughly $5 million in NIL opportunities for Tigers athletes across the board, not even just on the football field.

The agreement is a multi-million-dollar partnership with the Peach Bowl and the Aflac Kickoff game which will have the organizations work with third parties in order to secure marketing assets and promotional appearances for Auburn athletes and raise the overall budget for the University’s NIL fund.

“Any time we have the ability to advance Auburn student-athletes’ ability to earn third-party NIL compensation, we will take that opportunity,” said Auburn Athletics Director John Cohen in a statement.

“The exposure of playing on a national stage against a Power Four opponent in one of the premier neutral-site games in the country will not only benefit our student-athletes financially, but it will also enhance their brands. This is not only a win for Auburn student-athletes but for Auburn Athletics.”

Fans who were unhappy with the decision argued against the fairness not only of losing a home game for students and season-ticket holders, but for local businesses in Auburn who rely on fall Saturdays in their yearly budget.

Clearly, these factors were all taken into account, but Cohen and his department decided the pros outweigh the cons.

It will be Auburn’s first appearance in Atlanta since 2018 and be their fourth appearance in the Aflac Kickoff Game (2012, 2015 and 2018).