Florida Beach Bowl

The Florida Beach Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game contested between NCAA Division II teams from the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) and Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC), two athletic conferences traditionally consisting of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). The first edition of the bowl was played on December 13, 2023, at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The Florida Beach Bowl is one of three Division II sanctioned bowl games. The others are the America's Crossroads Bowl and Heritage Bowl.

History


The bowl was announced in September 2023 by organizers and officials with Inter Miami CF, who operate the host stadium. Urban Edge Network (UEN) was subsequently announced as the broadcaster for the bowl, and Amerant Bank as the official sponsor.

The Florida Beach Bowl revives the CIAA–SIAC postseason matchup of the defunct Pioneer Bowl, contested from 1997 to 2012. To be eligible for the bowl, a team must have at least six wins, and not be participating in the NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs. According to Victor Robenson, bowl CEO, the ultimate goal is to have the game match the champions of the two conferences in a Black college championship for Division II, similar to the way the Celebration Bowl functions as the Black college title game for the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).