TheEast–West Shrine Bowl is a postseasoncollege football all-star game that has been played annually since 1925; through January 2019, it was known as theEast–West Shrine Game.^[2] The game is sponsored by thefraternal groupShriners International, and the net proceeds are earmarked to some of the Shrine's charitable works, most notably theShriners Hospitals for Children. The game'sslogan is "Strong Legs Run That Weak Legs May Walk."

East–West Shrine Bowl
The game's logo, featuring a young girl recovering from surgery walking withBoston College playerMike Esposito before the 1974 game.[1]
Stadium	AT&T Stadium
Location	Arlington, Texas
Previous stadiums	Kezar Stadium (1925–1941, 1943–1968, 1971–1973) Stanford Stadium (1969, 1974–2000) Tulane Stadium (1942) Oakland Coliseum (1970) AT&T Park (2001–2005) Alamodome (2006) Reliant Stadium (2007) Robertson Stadium (2008–2009) Orlando Citrus Bowl (2010–2011) Tropicana Field (2012–2020) Allegiant Stadium (2022–2023) Ford Center at The Star (2024)
Previous locations	San Francisco, California (1925–1941, 1943–1968, 1971–1973, 2001–2005) New Orleans, Louisiana (1942) Stanford, California (1969, 1974–2000) Oakland, California (1971) San Antonio, Texas (2006) Houston, Texas (2007–2009) Orlando, Florida (2010–2011) St. Petersburg, Florida (2012–2020) Paradise, Nevada (2022–2023) Frisco, Texas (2024)
Operated	1925–present
Website	shrinebowl.com
Sponsors
Shriners (1925–present)
Former names
East–West Shrine Game (1925–2019)
2024 matchup
East vs. West (West 26–11)
2025 matchup
East vs. West (East 25–0)

Teams consist of players from colleges across the country, and players may be college seniors or college underclassmen who have declared for the NFL Draft who are eligible to play for their schools.^[3] The game and the practice sessions leading up to it attract dozens ofscouts from professional teams. Since 1985, Canadian players playing inCanadian university football have also been invited (even thoughU Sports and theNCAA play by different football codes). As such, this is the only current bowl or all-star game in either the Canadian or American college football schedules to include players from both Canadian and American universities.

The game has been played in various locations. Most editions have been held in California, although the most recent edition played there was in 2005. The game has been played in Texas since the February 2024 edition. Since 1979, the game has been played in January or February, and has been played on January 10 or later since 1986. The later game dates allow players from teams whose schools were involved inbowl games to participate.

For most of its history, the game was played in theSan Francisco Bay Area, usually at San Francisco'sKezar Stadium orStanford Stadium atStanford University, with Pacific Bell Park/SBC Park (nowOracle Park) as a host in its final years in Northern California. For more than half of the games played in the Bay Area, entertainment was provided by themarching band fromSanta Cruz High School.^[4]

In January 1942, the game was played inNew Orleans, due to the December 7, 1941, Japaneseattack on Pearl Harbor. This one-year relocation was based upon fears that playing the game on the West Coast could make the contest and the stadium a potential target for an additional attack. The game, originally planned for January 1 in San Francisco, was played on January 3 atTulane Stadium, two days after the1942 Sugar Bowl was held there.^[5]

During this era, the game was not restricted to college seniors—for example, the January 1944 edition of the game featuredRobert Hoernschemeyer,Dean Sensanbaugher, andHerman Wedemeyer, each then college freshmen.^[6]

A similar all-star game, theNorth–South Shrine Game, was played inMiami from 1948 to 1973, and a final time inPontiac, Michigan, in 1976.

In 2006, the game moved toTexas, leaving the San Francisco Bay area for the first time since 1942, and was played at theAlamodome inSan Antonio. In 2007, the game relocated toHouston and was played atReliant Stadium, home of the NFL'sHouston Texans, to be closer to one of the 22Shriners Hospitals for Children; Texas has two Shriner's hospitals, one in Houston and the other inGalveston. The 2008 and 2009 games were held atRobertson Stadium on the campus of theUniversity of Houston.^[7][8]

In 2010, the game moved toFlorida, and was held at theCitrus Bowl inOrlando. Television coverage moved fromESPN/ESPN2 to theNFL Network, starting with the 2011 game.^[9] After two years in Orlando, the 2012 game was held atTropicana Field inSt. Petersburg; it was the sixth different venue (in five cities and three states) in a span of eight contests.

Starting with the January 2017 game, the NFL supplies coaching staffs for the game, drawing from assistant coaches of teams who did not advance to the NFL postseason, and the game is now officiated by NFLofficials.^[10] The game is played under NFL rules, with some restrictions, such as nomotion orshifts by the offense, and nostunts orblitzes by the defense.^[11] Prior to the January 2020 playing, organizers renamed the game from East–West Shrine Game to East–West Shrine Bowl.^[2]

The 2021 edition of the game, which had been scheduled for January 23, was cancelled due to concerns related to theCOVID-19 pandemic.^[12]

In July 2021, it was announced thatAllegiant Stadium would host the East–West Shrine Bowl on February 3, 2022; the game was scheduled as part of festivities for the2022 Pro Bowl being held there the following Sunday.^[13]

In June 2023, organizers announced that the game would move toFord Center at The Star inFrisco, Texas, for its 2024 playing.^[14]

Through the January 2025 game (100 editions, 99 games played), the West leads all-time with 54 wins to the East's 40 wins, while 5 games have tied.^[15][16][17]

† For the December 1925 game, NCAA records list a 7–0 final score,^[16] while contemporary newspaper accounts report 6–0.^[18]

The game first named a Most Valuable Player for the January 1945 playing (Bob Waterfield, UCLA quarterback), and named a single MVP through the December 1952 game. Starting with the January 1954 game, two MVPs are selected for each game; they receive the William H. Coffman Award for Most Outstanding Offensive Player, and the E. Jack Spaulding Award for Most Outstanding Defensive Player.^[19] Coffman was managing director of the game for 40 years, while Spaulding was one of the organizers of the inaugural playing of the game.^[19] MVPs starting with the January 2000 game are listed below; a complete list is provided on the official website.^[20]

Although the game is anAmerican football competition, players ofCanadian university football, contested underCanadian football rules, have been invited to each game played since 1985, whenCalgary Dinosoffensive lineman Tom Spoletini played. Usually, Canadian players on the West team come fromCanada West schools, while Canadian players on the East team are from the other three Canadian conferences (Ontario University Athletics,Atlantic University Sport, andQuebec Student Sport Federation). One exception wasSean McEwen of the Calgary Dinos (a Canada West school), who played on the East squad in the 2016 game. The only Canadian team that competed under American football rules is the now-defunctSimon Fraser Red Leafs; the only Simon Fraser player to be invited to the game isIbrahim Khan, who played in 2004 when Simon Fraser still played Canadian football.

Through the 2025 game, the Calgary Dinos have had the most invitees, with 13.

In 2024, the lone Canadian invitee wasQwan'tez Stiggers, an American who did not play college football but instead became a professional player for theToronto Argonauts of theCanadian Football League.^[23][24]

A hall of fame was established in 2002, with additional inductees typically named in the weeks leading up to each annual playing.^[25] Through 2024 inductees, there are currently 64 members of the hall of fame.

Inductees range from having played in game No. 10 (January 1935) to game No. 78 (January 2003), with game No. 48 (December 1972) having the most players honored, five.

Game organizers initiated aPat Tillman Award in 2005, the year that Tillman was posthumously inducted to the game's hall of fame, to recognize "a player who best exemplifies character, intelligence, sportsmanship and service."^[32]

Several Shrine Bowl players have gone on to serve as a head coach in a later Shrine Bowl.^[37]

• Maxwell Stiles,The Shrine East-West Game: Football's Finest Hour. Los Angeles, CA: Nashunal Publishing Co., 1950.

• Official website