For 90 of the past 123 Army-Navy games, the Black Knights and Midshipmen have met in Philadelphia, a neutral ground between the two service academies. The 2022 Army-Navy Game was the latest to be held there, at the city's Lincoln Financial Field.
But the next four years takes the game around the Northeast, to Boston, Washington, Baltimore and New York before returning to Philadelphia in 2027.
Dec. 9, 2023: Boston/Foxborough
Dec. 14, 2024: Washington, D.C./Landover, Maryland
Dec. 13, 2025: Baltimore
Dec. 12, 2026: New York City/East Rutherford, N.J.
Dec. 11, 2027: Philadelphia
The historic Army-Navy Game dates to 1890 when the two sides first met at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York. There have been interruptions in the annual game, which most notably wasn't played during World War I, but the 1926 game, held at Chicago's Soldier Field, was played in honor of World War I veterans.
There have been many notable football firsts to make their debut at "America's Game," too. The first football helmet was used in the 1893 game, the first sitting president to attend a game was Theodore Roosevelt in 1901, and the first use of instant replay in a football game came during the 1963 Army-Navy matchup.
Philadelphia is the traditional venue for the Army-Navy Game, not only because it lies somewhere between the schools' home fields. It's also because the game is so popular, it attracts crowds that couldn't possibly be accommodated by Army's Michie Stadium or Navy's Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.
The venues chosen for the 2023-2027 Army-Navy Games are not only capable of handling the massive crowds drawn to watch the two, the road trip will kick off with a location chosen for some important historical anniversaries.
This year, the game comes to the Boston area, specifically Foxborough's Gillette Stadium, home of the NFL's New England Patriots. The Army-Navy Game will coincide with the 250th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party and the 225th anniversary of the USS Constitution's maiden voyage. It will also be the first time the game is played in New England.
The 2024 Army-Navy Game, the 125th game, will be hosted by the nation's capital, Washington, D.C., for just the second time. It will be played at the home of the Washington Commanders, at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland. In 2025, the game will be at Baltimore's M&T Bank Stadium, home of the Ravens, with Fort McHenry, where Francis Scott Key wrote the lyrics to the U.S. national anthem, serving as the backdrop.
In 2026, the game will be in the New York-New Jersey area. While much of the fanfare associated with the game -- the pep rallies, debate team faceoff and other associated events -- will be in New York City, the game will be played where the New York Giants and New York Jets play, MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
The Army-Navy Game will return to Philadelphia for the 2027 matchup, the 91st meeting between the teams in the City of Brotherly Love.
"Our destinations over the next five years provide the academies with an opportunity to share the economic impact, history and tradition of Army-Navy with a number of communities in diverse geographic areas," Naval Academy Director of Athletics Chet Gladchuk said in a statement. "We are certain that each location will present a uniquely accommodating experience for our fans and will make for an incredibly memorable event for our midshipmen and cadets."
-- Blake Stilwell can be reached at blake.stilwell@military.com. He can also be found on Twitter @blakestilwell or on Facebook.
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