The Central Florida Sports Commission, the City of Orlando and Edgewater High School will serve as co-hosts for the Dodge FHSAA Football Finals.  It will mark the first time that the football finals have been held in Orlando since the FHSAA began staging the event at a central site in 1989.

“We are very excited about bringing the Association’s biggest state finals event to Orlando,” Commissioner John A. Stewart said.  “We’ve long wanted to bring a major state finals event to the Orlando area and we’re pleased that we now have the opportunity to do so.  The setting provided at the Florida Citrus Bowl will provide a great atmosphere for the 16 participating teams.”

The four-day event consists of eight state championship games.  It is held over two weekends, with two games played on Friday and two games played on Saturday of both weekends.  The dates for the 2007 football finals are Dec. 7, 8, 14 and 15.  The dates for the 2008 event are Dec. 12, 13, 19 and 20.

“One way to build a great city is by attracting great events,” noted Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer. “We have once again accomplished that goal by bringing the Dodge FHSAA Football Finals to Orlando for the first time. Our city is already the home of two of our nation’s great college bowl games. Now playing at the Citrus Bowl is also the ultimate goal for the state’s top high school players and teams.”
 
“We are proud to align Central Florida with the most popular, high-profiled high school championship of the school year,” said John Saboor, president of the Central Florida Sports Commission. “The I-4 corridor is a hotbed for storied prep football programs, making the Citrus Bowl a natural fit for the Dodge FHSAA Football Finals. Thanks to the hard work of our partners at the City of Orlando and Edgewater High School, the state’s spotlight will shine on our community for the next two Decembers.”