Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has announced the Cincinnati Reds and Atlanta Braves will play a regular season game in the MLB Speedway Classic at Tennessee’s Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday, August 2, 2025. This historic announcement marks the first American or National League game played in Tennessee.
The MLB Speedway Classic is the second event to be awarded funding from the Special Event Fund. In 2022, Gov. Lee partnered with the General Assembly to appropriate $25 million in the state budget for a fund designed to attract and retain high-profile events that deliver significant economic impact, create jobs, and showcase the state to a global audience. Eligible events will generate direct economic impact greater than $10 million, and a net economic benefit of at least $1 million in state tax revenue.
A major league field will be constructed across the famed track at Bristol Motor Speedway, one of the largest sporting venues in the world. The MLB Speedway Classic will include a range of festivities, including a musical presence in the “birthplace of country music.”