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INDIANAPOLIS--Indiana benefited from hosting the College Football Playoff game at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, with more money being made than was originally projected before COVID. The numbers were discussed on this weekend’s Inside Indiana Business, also hosted by Lucas Oil Stadium.

“It was $53 million that went directly into the pockets of residents and workers here in the hospitality…industry,” said Susan Baughman, president of the 2022 College Football Playoff (CFP) Host Committee, on IIB.

The projected economic impact was $150 million. The actual impact was $156 million, which Baughman called “solid”.

The state and city also got positive exposure, she said, with a record number of viewers for the game, seeing Indianapolis through their TVs.

“The ESPN broadcast was 22.2 million. That set a record for non-NFL games. Our media impact across the four days of the event was over $34 million,” she said. “It was a great way to get Indianapolis and Indiana back in the eye of the public.”

Though the weather was cold, the city got positive feedback from people using the skywalks to travel from building to building.

“The CFP out of their national office was very happy. They’re getting lot of good feedback from around the country and showed signs of interest in coming back,” she said. Baughman said the city and state government are interested in hosting another such event, as well.

“We felt like there was a great return on our investment.”