MADISON — Gov. Tony Evers, together with the Wisconsin Department of Tourism and the Green Bay Packers, celebrated the announcement of the historic return of Badgers hockey to Lambeau Field through the Department’s sponsorship of the Travel Wisconsin Frozen Tundra Faceoff in February. Earlier today, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Travel Wisconsin, and collegiate partners joined the Green Bay Packers to announce a doubleheader featuring the Badgers women’s and men’s hockey teams on Feb. 20, 2027. The doubleheader will be the first college hockey games played at the iconic Green Bay stadium in 20 years.

“This is a major moment for our Badgers, for Titletown, and for the state of Wisconsin, and we are thrilled that our administration could help champion the historic return of hockey to Lambeau once again for a matchup the likes of which hasn’t been seen in a generation,” said Gov. Evers. “Much like our UW Badgers have seen back-to-back championship wins, we’ve seen back-to-back-to-back-to-back record-breaking years for Wisconsin tourism, and big events like this help ensure that success continues. This historic faceoff will help bring in big bucks for the local businesses and economies by bringing together Badger fans, hockey fans, and sports fans from across the Midwest right here in Green Bay.”

The Travel Wisconsin Frozen Tundra Faceoff will see the Wisconsin Badgers women’s hockey team face the Ohio State Buckeyes, and the Wisconsin Badgers men’s hockey team square off against the Michigan Wolverines. This showcase brings three of college hockey’s most accomplished programs to one of the most iconic venues in all of sports. Pre-sale tickets for the Travel Wisconsin Frozen Tundra Faceoff will be available for purchase on Wed., Sept. 9, 2026, with general tickets available for purchase on Fri., Sept. 11, 2026. Fans are encouraged to register for the pre-sale at this pre-sale registration link. 

The Wisconsin Department of Tourism, under its Travel Wisconsin brand, is the title sponsor of the doubleheader. Hockey fans can anticipate an unrivaled gameday experience in Green Bay, and visitors can use TravelWisconsin.com to discover unique attractions in the area, including world-class spas, winter playgrounds, and local dining to extend trips and make memories on the way to and from the Travel Wisconsin Frozen Tundra Faceoff. 

“The Travel Wisconsin Frozen Tundra Faceoff combines the heritage of Lambeau Field, three storied hockey programs, and warm Wisconsin hospitality into an opportunity that promises lifelong memories,” said Wisconsin Tourism Secretary Anne Sayers. “We celebrate winter in Wisconsin, and hockey fans and viewers at home will discover so many reasons to love the season. These matchups will bring gameday-like energy to Green Bay, drive economic impact across the state, and turn hockey fans into fans of all things Wisconsin.”

Home to the only publicly owned team in the National Football League (NFL) and the team with the most wins in NFL history, the Green Bay Packers, Lambeau Field’s heritage and history are unmatched. Lambeau Field was established in 1957 as Green Bay City Stadium and renamed in honor of the team’s co-founder, Curly Lambeau, in 1965, making it the oldest continually operating stadium built for an NFL team. Additionally, each year, Lambeau Field welcomes hundreds of thousands of Cheeseheads and football fans from around the globe thanks to its legendary players, iconic games, and signature fan experience that have made it a must-visit stadium for generations of football fans. The stadium last welcomed hockey in 2006, when Wisconsin defeated Ohio State, 4-2, in the inaugural Frozen Tundra Hockey Classic. The 2027 doubleheader will be held during a February weekend in which no major events have ever taken place at Lambeau Field, giving college hockey a rare opportunity to take center stage in Green Bay.

“We are proud to welcome college hockey back to Lambeau Field for the first time in more than 20 years for the Travel Wisconsin Frozen Tundra Faceoff,” said Packers President and CEO Ed Policy. “With three storied programs and two highly anticipated matchups, this doubleheader will give fans a rare opportunity to experience hockey at historic Lambeau Field and bring an exciting winter event to Green Bay.”

This is the second time the Evers Administration has teamed up with the Packers to highlight the storied Lambeau Field and its unique tourism appeal. Last year, Gov. Evers joined Travel Wisconsin and the Packers in announcing Lambeau Field as a “Wonder of Wisconsin,” a Travel Wisconsin designation for sites of natural, historic, and cultural significance. 

Thanks to historic investments in the governor’s Biennial Budgets over the past nearly eight years, Travel Wisconsin has continued to expand its reach, and earlier this summer, the governor and the Wisconsin Department of Tourism celebrated that Wisconsin’s tourism industry saw its fourth consecutive record-breaking year of economic impact under the Evers Administration in 2025. According to 2025 economic impact data, the tourism industry generated a record-high $27 billion in total economic impact, or about $74 million a day, surpassing the previous record of $25.8 billion set in 2024. 

Not only was 2025 another record-breaking year for total economic impact, but 2025 continued the state’s “hat trick,” with another record-breaking number of visits to the state and record-high state and local revenue generated. In 2025, Wisconsin saw 117.9 million visits—a 3.5 million increase from the previous year and eclipsing the former record of 114.4 million. The state’s tourism industry also generated a record amount of state and local revenue, more than $1.7 billion, that goes back to local communities and essential state services. Further, according to the report, the state’s tourism industry also supported more than 183,000 part-time and full-time jobs across diverse sectors of the industry.  

ADDITIONAL EFFORTS BY THE EVERS ADMINISTRATION TO BOLSTER WISCONSIN’S TOURISM INDUSTRY

Since 2019, and especially in the wake of the pandemic, Gov. Evers and his administration have made investing in Wisconsin’s tourism industry a top priority. The governor has directed investments totaling more than $1 billion of Wisconsin’s federal pandemic relief funds in economic resilience, with significant investments in the travel and tourism, hotels and lodging, and entertainment industries alone.

The 2023-25 Biennial Budget signed by Gov. Evers included a historic $34 million investment over the biennium for the Department of Tourism to promote Wisconsin as a premier destination for leisure, business, and group travel, amounting to the largest increase in tourism marketing and advertising funds in state history. These funds ensured the department could run strategic campaigns and remain competitive with neighboring states. Building upon efforts of the 2023-25 Biennial Budget investment, the most recent 2025-27 Biennial Budget signed by Gov. Evers provided $31 million over the biennium for tourism marketing, which will help the agency attract events and increase advertising in key tourism markets.

Additionally, after several years of demonstrated success in strengthening Wisconsin’s outdoor recreation economy, the 2025-27 Biennial Budget made the Wisconsin Office of Outdoor Recreation, which was created by Gov. Evers in the 2019-21 state budget, a permanent state office. In March, Gov. Evers, along with Secretary Sayers and Wisconsin Office of Outdoor Recreation Director Cassie Mordini, announced another record-breaking year for Wisconsin’s outdoor recreation industry in 2024. According to the latest data from the Outdoor Recreation Satellite Account from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, outdoor recreation contributed more than $12 billion to Wisconsin’s gross domestic product in 2024, a 3.8 percent increase over the previous record-breaking year in 2023.

Building on this work, during his 2026 State of the State address, Gov. Evers announced the highly anticipated launch of Wisconsin’s new film office, Film Wisconsin, and the state’s new film tax credit program, ushering in a new tool to bring creative endeavors to Wisconsin’s doorstep, bolster the state’s travel and tourism economy, and strengthen the film industry in Wisconsin.

The state has also worked to secure major events to showcase Wisconsin on national and global stages, from hosting the Democratic National Convention and Republican National Convention in recent years to sporting events like bringing IndyCar back to the Milwaukee Mile and hosting the Ryder Cup in 2021 and the NFL Draft in 2025, as well as supporting the filming of Season 21 of Bravo’s Top Chef in state and a Christmas movie filmed in Door County and released last year.