NFL and college football luminaries, first-rate hospitality, and brand activations are all part of the third season of the Athletes First Tailgate Tour, the top traveling college football festival. The improved tour will start on Friday, August 29. The 2025 Athletes First Tailgate Tour begins in Columbus, Ohio, ahead of Ohio State’s game against Texas. This will be the first of 11 sites before the nation’s biggest college football rivalry matchups.
The tour’s main attraction at each destination will be the Athletes First bespoke hauler, which will travel to each location. A live event stage, a podcast studio, a VIP lounge, and a dedicated hospitality area are all included in the 55-foot transporter.
This year’s Tailgate Tour schedule includes the following stops in addition to Texas’s visit to Ohio State on Friday: Michigan at Oklahoma on September 6, Texas A&M at Notre Dame on September 13, Alabama at Georgia on September 27, Texas at Florida on October 4, Washington at Michigan on October 16, Texas A&M at LSU on October 25, LSU at Alabama on November 7, Texas A&M on November 15, Arkansas at Texas on November 21, and Army vs. Navy (Baltimore, MD) on December 12.
The Tailgate Tour this season will be the first to feature Sinclair’s AMP Sports as its official media partner, producing original material from the tour’s destinations. Bud Light, NÜTRL Vodka Seltzer, Dollar Shave Club, and Pop-Tarts are among the other major brand partners that have sponsored the tour and will interact with fans during it.
“The Athletes First Tailgate Tour has become a staple of the college football season, bringing unmatched energy and access to some of the sport’s most iconic games,” stated Danielle Spencer, Vice President of Events & Clients for Athletes First. “This year, our new partnership with Sinclair’s AMP Sports, along with the support of all our brand partners, will elevate the experience to a whole new level — combining premium hospitality, dynamic content, and fan engagement like never before.”
AMP Sports will broadcast live, original video podcasts from many tour stops as part of Athletes First and Sinclair’s recent media and events collaboration for the Athletes First Tailgate Tour and Athletes First presents The Block. The Stampede, which will feature former Longhorns Vince Young and Mack Brown in Austin, Texas, along with The Echoes in South Bend; The Script, which will feature former Buckeyes Cardale Jones and Beanie Wells in Columbus, Ohio; The Dynasty, which will feature former Crimson Tide AJ McCarron and Trent Richardson in Tuscaloosa, Alabama; The Blue Print, which will be in Ann Arbor; and The Triple Option at the Army-Navy game are among the live events on AMP Sports. To increase visibility and interaction, event content will also be shared on Sinclair’s sports platforms.
Additionally, there will be a lot of on-site activation from sponsors during the Tailgate Tour, such as:
- Bud Light, the Official Beer Sponsor, as well as NÜTRL Vodka Seltzer, the Official Vodka Seltzer Sponsor, who will both activate on site at the Ohio State, Oklahoma, Florida, and LSU stops. These experiences will include fan-first moments, as well as touchpoints with top NFL players.
- Dollar Shave Club will also serve as an official partner of the tour with on-site activations including branded tailgate games and product sampling on site. The partnership will also feature original game day digital content created by some of the biggest college football stars from each tailgate market.
- Pop-Tarts will serve as an official partner of the tour and will feature the viral Pop-Tarts Edible Mascot at four tailgate stops – Notre Dame, Georgia, LSU, and Texas. Athletes First NFL clients will be on site to help attendees sample some Pop-Tarts and engage with the Edible Mascots, while capturing content of their experience.
Athletes First, the top NFL agency, created the Tailgate Tour in 2023 to take football clients, their families, and friends to some of the most famous college football stadiums and games. The Tour grew and went to ten of the most famous college football games last year, where attendees were treated to first-rate hospitality and had the opportunity to meet college football stars and the agency’s football clients.
The agency’s main list of owned and controlled events throughout the year includes the Athletes First Tailgate Tour. They also include Big & Beautiful Las Vegas, an exclusive summit for NFL offensive linemen that offers top-notch training sessions, cutting-edge recovery offerings, and carefully curated hospitality experiences; the Athletes First Classic, which brings athletes and celebrities together for a series of charity events, highlighted this year by the inaugural Newport Beach Celebrity Classic, which has raised more than $20 million for those in need since its inception; and Athletes First presents The Block, an exclusive hospitality and brand activation destination that made waves at its debut in New Orleans prior to the Big Game in February.
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