General racing activities during the Irving Tools Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
David J. Griffin | David J. Griffin Graphic Sports Line | Getty Images
Baseball fans, start your engines.
NASCAR’s iconic Bristol Motor Speedway will host the MLB regular season for the first time next year, Major League Baseball announced Friday.
The game is scheduled to be played on August 2, 2025, between the Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds. This will also be the first game of the Major League Baseball (MLB) season to be played in Tennessee.
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said, “We look forward to celebrating our games with our vast fans on and off the field throughout the weekend and highlighting the richness of sports in Tennessee and throughout the region. , music and community traditions.
Bristol Motor Speedway is one of the largest sports venues in the United States, with a seating capacity of nearly 150,000.
Next August’s game will likely break the single-game attendance record for an MLB game. In 2008, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum hosted exhibition games The game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Boston Red Sox was played in front of 115,300 spectators, setting a Guinness World Record for the largest attendance at a baseball game. By comparison, the average MLB ballpark seats 40,000 to 45,000 fans.
The news comes as Major League Baseball is updating plans to expand the game to new venues and fans in the United States and around the world. MLB has held games at a number of non-traditional ballparks, including in 2016 at active military base At Fort Bragg, North Carolina, or in 2021, the Chicago White Sox take on the New York Yankees at the iconic “Dream Field” in Dyersville, Iowa. Just in June, the league held “Major League Baseball’s Rickwood Field: A Tribute to the Negro Leagues” event in Birmingham, Alabama. two days after death Hall of Famer Willie Mays.
MLB has also laid out an ambitious international schedule, including games in cities including Tokyo, Mexico City, Paris and San Juan, Puerto Rico, during the 2025 season.
March 15, 2014: Competing in the Drive To Stop Diabetes 300. Thor’s Bristol Motor Speedway wins the Drive To Stop Diabetes 300 race.
Jeffrey West | Illustrated Sports Line | Getty Images
Bristol Motor Speedway, meanwhile, is no stranger to high-profile non-NASCAR events. The track hosted an NFL exhibition game in 1961. Attracted 156,990 followersThe largest crowd ever to attend an NCAA football game.
Atlanta Braves third baseman Austin Riley told The Athletic, The first to report the news on Tuesday“You see all this stuff, teams traveling (abroad), change it up a little bit. I think it would be cool and unique. It would be a fun experience.”
