- UNF will open a new esports arena, the Flight Deck, in January 2026 thanks to a $3 million investment from the city of Jacksonville.
- The arena aims to attract local, state, and national esports tournaments, boosting Jacksonville's tourism and contributing to the growing $3 billion esports industry.
- This initiative is part of UNF's strategy to increase enrollment to 25,000 students and strengthen its connection with the local community.
University of North Florida computer science major Jacob Yoast has traveled to esports tournaments in Connecticut, New York, Los Angeles, Dallas and Orlando for the thrill of teams facing off in video game contests that put a premium on strategizing together.
"It's electric," said Yoast, who is president of the UNF Esports Club. "It's insane the amount of people you meet and the time you spend with all these like-minded people from all across the world."
Those tournaments could come to Jacksonville after UNF opens it own gaming arena in the fast-growing, multibillion dollar world of esports.
Mayor Donna Deegan was on the campus Tuesday to sign legislation approved by City Council that will provide $3 million to UNF for launching an esports arena in the John A. Delaney Student Union building.
It marks the city's biggest expenditure to the UNF campus since the city paid for top-level upgrades to the track that made it possible for UNF to be a repeat host of NCAA track and field regional championships, bringing thousands of athletes and spectators to Jacksonville.
UNF President Moez Limayem said "the sky is the limit" for how the esports arena can have the same impact on Jacksonville landing esports tournaments.
"Our intention is to host local, state and national tournaments and maybe even beyond," he said. "So we're very audacious. We're going to build something that will last, something that is scalable, and I can assure you this will be the platform that everyone wants to mimic and wants to be here."
Esports is a $3 billion industry that is projected to double to $6 billion by 2030, and Limayem said it "calls for a lot of the skills we want our students to acquire."
The Flight Deck, which is what UNF calls the esports arena, is scheduled to open in January 2026 on the second floor of the student union.
UNF isn't alone in embracing esports. Jacksonville University and Florida State College at Jacksonville have esports gaming arenas on their campuses, responding to the popularity of that competition among students.
The Flight Deck at UNF will be larger with 42 high-performance PC gaming stations where students working in teams compete against each other.
The space also will have a competition stage for tournaments and team play. Broadcast studio space will transmit live streams connecting the competition to spectators watching online.
UNF student Will Raffier, a communications major who is in the UNF Esports Club, said the investment in Flight Deck means a lot to students who have felt like their interest in competitive gaming put them on the fringe.
"I always felt with gaming or with esports, it was never really taken seriously and it was never really legitimized," he said after he joined Deegan and Limayem for the bill-signing ceremony
He said gamers who might be on the shy side or hear that gaming is somehow weird "can finally come out of their shell and be more open" about the enthusiasm they have for it.
"It gives power to the nerds, and I'm all about that," he said.
For UNF, the outreach to gamers is part of its goal of expanding student enrollment, which currently is at roughly 17,000 students, up to 25,000 students by 2028.
In addition to Flight Deck being a stop on campus tours for prospective students, the school also will work with public schools for their students to visit Flight Deck so they get a taste of the college experience and see how esports fits into science, technology, engineering and math degrees.
Deegan said the STEM connection sold her on the city supporting UNF. She said when she ran for mayor she learned it's a passion for many young people. The more she discovered about the esports industry and what's happening in other places, the more she saw it as a piece in making Jacksonville a technology hub.
"We want to get our students ready for the technologies and the jobs of the future," she said.
City Council member Will Lahnen, who sponsored the legislation for the funding and represents the district containing UNF, took a long view of school's growth when he recalled his parents were in the school's first graduation class in 1974.
"I think they had three or four buildings at the time," he said.
UNF has grown considerably since then. Lahnen said the connection between the esports arena and UNF's goal of expanding to 25,000 students brought City Council around in support of the $3 million in city support.
UNF says 70% of its graduates stay in Jacksonville so it provides a pipeline into the city's workforce. Lahnen said STEM careers are becoming a bigger part of Jacksonville's economy.
He said along with UNF's growth and workforce development, the third piece of support for the $3 million involves the the tourism potential.
"Hopefully, people come here for tournaments or other events and they're staying in our local hotels and eating in our local restaurants and having that economic impact as well," he said.
