The College Football Hall of Fame Announces Opening Date & New Logo

New look reflects the “Fan Experience” and Chick-fil-A’s lead sponsorship; Attraction includes contributions from all Founding Partners

Atlanta Hall Management (AHM) today announced that the new College Football Hall of Fame will open its doors on Saturday, August 23, in the heart of downtown Atlanta’s sports and entertainment district. The Hall also revealed its new logo and Chick-fil-A’s lead sponsorship of the new College Football Hall of Fame. The attraction will officially be called the “College Football Hall of Fame and Chick-fil-A Fan Experience.” Tickets and memberships will be available beginning August 1 for purchase through the Hall’s newly-launched website, www.cfbhall.com.

An alliance of corporate sponsors and donors joins Chick-fil-A in delivering the Hall, including the Hall of Fame’s founding partners – AT&T, the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, Coca-Cola and Kia. The Hall’s other official sponsors currently include Brasfield & Gorrie, Georgia Pacific, Georgia Power, The Home Depot, Invest Atlanta, Omni Hotels & Resorts, Piedmont Healthcare, Regions Bank, Southwest Airlines, Sporturf and Under Armour.

In addition to housing the national College Football Hall of Fame, previously located in South Bend, Indiana, the attraction offers a total Fan Experience, providing fans a powerful opportunity to experience the game’s pageantry and passion in a revolutionary setting. The attraction matches traditional, museum-quality memorabilia with modern, interactive, multimedia exhibits that will invite fans and visitors to engage with their favorite college football team or Hall of Famer.

"Chick-fil-A continues to be an important part of the college football landscape here in its hometown of Atlanta,” said John Stephenson, president and CEO of AHM and the College Football Hall of Fame. “Chick-fil-A’s partnership and leadership have played a critical role in helping our team develop the Fan Experience. Its financial investment, along with that of all of our founding partners and official sponsors, enables us to provide a completely redefined Hall of Fame experience. This is a fun, celebratory, fully immersive attraction that takes the college football fan into the game as never before.”

Chick-fil-A Executive Vice President Steve Robinson said, “Chick-fil-A has been a sponsor of the College Football Hall of Fame since it announced its relocation to Atlanta. Chick-fil-A truly values its involvement in the great game of college football, and the new Hall will deliver a unique combination of the history of the game and very current, engaging experiences, making this attraction the ultimate destination for college football fans.”

AHM, with the National Football Foundation (NFF) & the College Football Hall of Fame, also unveiled the new branding that will represent and promote the institution that is the Hall of Fame and all it has come to signify. Featuring a classic look and prominently displaying the founding year of the Hall – 1951, the logo will be used for all matters not limited to the Atlanta attraction.

“The National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame has always maintained a long and storied history as an integral part of the college football landscape,” said Steve Hatchell, president and CEO of the NFF. “The new Hall of Fame will be a credit to the college game and a must see for anyone who has played, coached, watched, or supported it. We are excited to be in Atlanta and to create this national platform, which will enable us to promote the game from border-to-border and coast-to-coast. No matter the conference or the division, every fan of the game will find a strong connection at the new Hall.”
Each of the attraction’s multiple galleries celebrates a unique aspect of college football, employing new technologies and allowing visitors to personalize their experience based on their favorite team. The pinnacle experience will be a reverential journey to the Hall of Fame gallery, which sits in the heart of the building’s iconic architectural feature, where the game’s finest coaches and players are enshrined. The galleries will include exciting, engaging and interactive exhibits made possible by the Hall’s founding partners, a sampling of which are:

• Chick-fil-A “Why We Love College Football” features iconic trophies and a large, touch-sensitive, 52-foot media wall filled with dynamic content such as photos and videos of players, fans, cheerleaders and marching bands. A multi-touch system allows for fun interaction with content specific to a fan’s favorite college football team. 
• Coca-Cola Fans’ Game Day allows visitors to feel the excitement on campus around the big game and highlights tailgating, digital face painting, bands, fight songs, mascots, cheerleading, and countless rich traditions.
• Kia Building a Champion takes visitors inside the world of players and coaches, including halftime speeches and a Q&A with current players. Fans are also invited to peruse John Heisman’s 1905 playbook, explore a timeline matching college football history with American history milestones, and learn what it truly takes to be a student athlete.
• AT&T Game Time Gallery allows visitors to explore the rich rivalries of college football and invites visitors to call one of college football’s most memorable plays from the broadcast booth. Visitors of Game Time will also be treated to college football’s greatest moments, and will be able to guide their own college football program to the championship.
• The National Football Foundation’s Building Leaders through Football Exhibit, presented by Chick-fil-A, pays tribute to the mission and programs of the NFF and the profound and positive impact the organization has had on promoting the good in the game since 1947. Fans will learn about NFF major awards and the stories of the recipients who have gone on to become some of our nation’s most impactful leaders because of the lessons that they learned on the football field.
• Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl Skill Zone is located on the 45-yard long football field and will allow fans to sharpen their football skills through a variety of physical activities.

The state-of-the-art College Football Hall of Fame and Chick-fil-A Fan Experience will feature priceless historic and contemporary artifacts, interactive multimedia displays, children’s activities, an immersive theater featuring an originally produced ultra-high-definition film on the history and excitement of college football, meeting facilities, and special event spaces.

The Hall attraction is connected to the Georgia World Congress Center, and represents the latest addition to the dynamic, world-class collection of attractions surrounding Centennial Olympic Park in downtown Atlanta, including the World of Coca-Cola, Georgia Aquarium, CNN Center, the National Center for Civil & Human Rights, Philips Arena, Georgia Dome, Skyview and the Children’s Museum.

To download renderings of the College Football Hall of Fame & Chick-fil-A Fan Experience, as well as logos, please visit our media page.

About Atlanta Hall Management & The College Football Hall of Fame
Scheduled to open on August 23, 2014, the new College Football Hall of Fame and Chick-fil-A Fan Experience will be a 94,256-square-foot attraction located in the heart of Atlanta's sports, entertainment and tourism district. Adjacent to the Georgia World Congress Center and Centennial Olympic Park, the new Hall will provide visitors with a highly immersive, interactive and engaging experience using a blend of historic college football artifacts and state-of-the-art, interactive multimedia exhibits. The National Football Foundation (NFF) launched the Hall in 1951 to stand as one of the nation's premier sports shrines, immortalizing the game’s greatest players and coaches as positive role models for future generations. In 2009, Atlanta Hall Management, Inc., partnered with the NFF to construct and operate the new Hall of Fame attraction, which will also provide a platform for community outreach, education and character development initiatives, as well as serve as one of Atlanta’s premier special event spaces. For more information, please visit www.cfbhall.com.

About Chick-fil-A, Inc.
Atlanta-based Chick-fil-A, Inc. is a family owned and privately held restaurant company dedicated to serving the communities in which its restaurants operate. Known for its original chicken sandwich, Chick-fil-A serves nutritious, freshly prepared food in more than 1,800 restaurants in 39 states and Washington, D.C.

Founded by S. Truett Cathy in 1967, Chick-fil-A produced sales of $5 billion in 2013. Chick-fil-A was recognized in 2014 as one of America’s “Top 20 Most Admired Brands” by The Harris Poll and “Top Fast Food Chicken Chain” by Consumer Reports, among other honors. More information on Chick-fil-A is available on the chain’s website, located at www.chick-fil-a.com.

About National Football Foundation & College Football Hall of Fame
Founded in 1947 with early leadership from General Douglas MacArthur, legendary Army coach Earl "Red" Blaik and immortal journalist Grantland Rice, The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Football Hall of Fame is a non-profit educational organization that runs programs designed to use the power of amateur football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in young people. With 120 chapters and 12,000 members nationwide, NFF programs include the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, the NFF Leadership Hall of Fame, the NFF Scholar-Athlete Awards presented by Fidelity Investments, the NFF High School Showcases, the NFF Hampshire Honor Society, the NFF Faculty Salute Initiative presented by Fidelity Investments, the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Alumni Association, and scholarships of more than $1.3 million for college and high school scholar-athletes. The NFF also collaborates with the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) to release the FWAA-NFF Grantland Rice Super 16 Poll; presents the William V. Campbell Trophy endowed by HealthSouth and hosted at the New York Athletic Club; and bestows several other major awards at the NFF Annual Awards Dinner. NFF corporate partners include the Allstate Sugar Bowl, Fidelity Investments, Herff Jones, PrimeSport, the Sports Business Journal, and Under Armour. Learn more at www.footballfoundation.org.