Report: Battle For The Victory Bell Rivalry Coming to an End

It's unmatched across college football in a few ways.

The Cincinnati Bearcats defeated the Miami (Oh) Redhawks 38-17 in the 126th Battle for the Victory Bell on Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022 at Paycor Stadium. Cincinnati Bearcats Football Vs Miami Redhawks Sept 17 2022 / Stephanie Scarbrough/The Enquirer / USA

CINCINNATI — The Battle for the Victory Bell is coming to an end.

BearcatJournal first reported that Miami (OH) backed out of the pending games in 2025 and 2028 and the football series will end after the game at Paycor Stadium in 2026. This year's contest at Yager Stadium is still on as planned.

It caps off one of the most historic rivalries in college football.

"We understand the importance of this historic rivalry to our fans and college football, and we are disappointed Miami University will not be coming to Nippert Stadium next season," Cincinnati athletics director John Cunningham said in a statement. "However, we look forward to facing the RedHawks at YagerStadium in the Battle for the Victory Bell this fall and at Paycor Stadium in 2026. We will continue to explore opportunities to play Miami in the future. We thank Miami for the many memorable moments over the years."

The Victory Bell was the oldest current non-conference college football rivalry in the United States (though they briefly played in the same conference during the late 1940s and early 1950s), the oldest rivalry in the FBS, having first played in 1888 (UNC-Wake Forest and Carolina-Duke are tied), and it also was the fourth-most played college football rivalry game ever, with 127 meetings total.

The two sides are tied all-time at 60-60-7.

Cincinnati lost the game last season for the first time since 2005 and will look to recapture the bell for good on Sept. 14.

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