A planned landmark college football matchup that was set to make history as the first NCAA college football game ever held in South America has been scrapped for its original Brazilian venue, with organizers confirming this week the contest will instead be hosted at the home stadium of the Virginia Cavaliers.
The official announcement of the venue switch came Wednesday, just under three months before the NC State Wolfpack and Virginia Cavaliers were scheduled to kick off their 2025 season in Rio de Janeiro. According to a public statement released by the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), the decision to relocate followed a thorough operational review conducted with on-the-ground partners and international stakeholders. Local event organizer Athlete Advantage notified the conference and both participating institutions recently that the original plan to host the game in Brazil could not be executed as agreed, triggering the venue change.
The game was originally slotted for August 29, marking the opening Week Zero of the official college football season. Conference leaders confirmed that they are currently collaborating with broadcast partner ESPN and the NCAA to retain the game on its original scheduled date, with no plans to shift the contest to a different weekend at this time.
The matchup is part of a prearranged home-and-home non-conference series between the two programs, a series that does not count toward ACC regular season standings because it was added outside of the conference’s official scheduling framework. Historically, these two long-time ACC members, which are located in neighboring U.S. states, have not faced off frequently. This gap in matchups stems from multiple waves of conference expansion and national realignment that have reshaped ACC scheduling over the past decades.
NC State claimed a victory in the first matchup of the home-and-home series last season, when the Wolfpack hosted the game. The Rio de Janeiro contest was originally designed to replace Virginia’s scheduled home game in Charlottesville, and it was also set to be integrated into the ACC’s new 9-game conference slate as the league transitions to an expanded conference schedule. Following the relocation, the game will now take place at Virginia’s Scott Stadium, the program’s traditional home field.
For fans who purchased official tickets or travel packages through the official College Football Brasil website, full refunds will be issued, the conference confirmed.
The venue change announcement comes amid a busy week of college football headlines, which also included the release of kickoff times and broadcast details for College Football Playoff matchups, an ongoing eligibility case for quarterback Sorsby who is awaiting a court ruling after admitting to placing sports bets, and the news that legendary offensive innovator Mike Leach, who passed away in 2022, leads the ballot for induction into the College Football Hall of Fame.