SB Nation Tampa Bay - East-West Shrine Game To Move To Tropicana Field, St. Petersburghttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/49019/tb-fave.png2011-04-27T11:18:42-04:00http://tampabay.sbnation.com/rss/stream/19006122011-04-27T11:18:42-04:002011-04-27T11:18:42-04:00East-West Shrine Game To Move To Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg
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<p>Wednesday morning at 11 AM, St. Petersburg Mayor Bill Foster announced that the <a href="http://www.tampabay.com/sports/college/east-west-shrine-game-expected-to-move-to-st-petersburg/1166302" target="_blank">East-West Shrine Game will be played in St. Petersburg</a> for the next two years. The announcement was made at Tropicana Field, where the games are scheduled to be played.</p>
<p>The East-West Shrine game is a yearly NCAA football all-star match played between the top players from West Coast and East Coast schools. The game is sponsored by the <a href="http://www.shrinegame.com/" target="_blank">Nobles of the Mystic Shrine</a>, and the money raised through the event goes to support their charities.</p>
<p>While the game has been poorly attended over the past few seasons - drawing only around <a href="http://www.tampabay.com/sports/college/east-west-shrine-game-expected-to-move-to-st-petersburg/1166302" target="_blank">10,000 fans </a>each year - the Shriners are likely hoping that a change in location will help renew fan interest. The East-West game had been played in Orlando the past few seasons, but St. Petersburg is closer to the Shrine's main charity, the <a href="http://www.shrinershospitalsforchildren.org/Hospitals/Locations/Tampa.aspx" target="_blank">Shriners Hospital for Children</a> in Tampa.</p>
<p>But somehow, I don't see that happening. It's common knowledge that the Rays have to fight tooth and nail to get fans to come to games, so why would fans all of a sudden want to watch a football game in a baseball stadium? I guess we'll see, but I think the Shriners might end up disappointed.</p>
https://tampabay.sbnation.com/2011/4/27/2334207/east-west-shrine-game-to-move-to-tropicana-field-st-petersburgSteve Slowinski