Miami (OH), Cincinnati to play final Victory Bell matchup at TQL Stadium
College football's oldest non-conference rivalry concludes at a soccer stadium.
It's World Cup season. Some of America's most famous football venues are hosting soccer games. Now, the reverse is happening. A soccer stadium will host the final installment of one of college football's oldest rivalries.
TQL Stadium will host the matchup between the Miami RedHawks and Cincinnati Bearcats on Saturday, Sept. 19. The 26,000-seat venue northwest of downtown Cincinnati opened in May 2021, and this marks its first time hosting a college football game.
It's a significant game too.
The Battle for the Victory Bell is college football's oldest non-conference rivalry in existence, as Cincinnati and Miami (OH) first squared off in 1888. In fact, it's tied with Duke vs. North Carolina and North Carolina vs. Wake Forest as the oldest FBS rivalry, as both of those matchups also originated in 1888. Only Minnesota-Wisconsin (135), Auburn-Georgia (130), North Carolina-Virginia (130), and Oregon-Oregon State (129) have been played more often than the 128 meetings shared by Cincinnati and Miami.
However, despite being located less than 40 miles apart, the crosstown rivals are no longer scheduled to meet after this 2026 matchup at TQL Stadium. The cause of the rivalry's demise? Conference realignment, which also upstaged other longstanding regional non-conference rivalries such as SMU-TCU and Houston-Rice. When Cincinnati moved from the American Conference to the Big 12 in 2023, the Bearcats' non-conference slate reduced from four to three games, giving them less scheduling flexibility. The rivalry was slated to continue through 2029, but Miami bought out the 2025 and 2028 road matchups at Nippert Stadium while Cincinnati similarly bought out its 2026 and 2029 road matchups at Yager Stadium.
This fall won't be the first time the rivalry will transpire at a neutral site. Three meetings from 2014-22 kicked off at the Cincinnati Bengals' Paycor Stadium (formerly Paul Brown Stadium), while four meetings from 1982-90 were set at the Bengals' former venue Riverfront Stadium.
Another unique feature of the Victory Bell rivalry is the close proximity of the series. Heading into the final Sept. 19 meeting at TQL Stadium, Cincinnati leads the series, 61-60-7. Miami controlled the upper hand for the majority of the rivalry's history, but the Bearcats rattled off 16-straight wins from 2016-22 to flip the narrative. In the first meeting after Cincinnati moved to the Big 12 in 2023, Miami pulled off an overtime stunner at Nippert Stadium to tie the all-time series. In the most recent 2024 matchup, Cincinnati exacted its revenge at a sold-out Yager Stadium, defeating the RedHawks 27-16 to regain the series edge.
The 2026 outcome carries historical significance. Either Cincinnati leads the series, 62-60-7, or Miami ties it 61-61-7. But most importantly, the winner retains the Victory Bell in its trophy case for the foreseeable future, owning a significant piece of memorabilia representing one of college football's oldest rivalries.
The final edition of the Victory Bell rivalry kicks off at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, Sept. 19 at TQL Stadium and is available for streaming on ESPN+.
