Once major football programs like the Big 10 entered the marketplace, events like the Ohio Classic found the expense to schedule many of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities cost prohibitive. Factor 2: Pace noted that during this same time, fuel costs increased, driving up the cost to fly and bus football teams and marching bands to the Classic. Factor 3: Mergers and acquisitions in media industry reduced competition and increased the cost of advertising, especially in urban radio which was the primary source for advertising the Ohio Classic. Between the years 1999 and 2005, the event's operating budget increased from $1.1 million to over $2 million and sponsorship was not increasing at the same rate, according to Pace. More troubling, the rise of the internet as a less costly alternative form of marketing made it challenging to convince corporations like Procter & Gamble to invest $400,000 annually in event sponsorship. Back in 2001, the Classic football game was scheduled for Saturday, September 15 but had to be cancelled due to the September 11 terror attacks. That year, the Classic took a $1.3 million loss due to the cancellation. Every year thereafter the profit from the Classic was allocated to pay off that debt. In March 2006, Pace told the Cincinnati Business Courier that he planned to cancel the Ohio Classic indefinitely but could bring the event back some time in the future. On March 17, 2006, The Plain Dealer reported that the year's Ohio Classic has been cancelled due to mounting debt and a lack of sponsorship. Return of an African American Tradition Organizer John Pace cancelled the Ohio Classic in 2006 because the cost of producing a Classic in an NFL stadium with Division 1AA Historically Black Colleges and Universities had become cost prohibitive. Pace said in 2021 a Classic can be produced in a MLS Soccer stadium with Division II football programs at less than half the cost of his previous Ohio Classic budget, when the event rotated between Cincinnati and Cleveland. A 2021 event could generate a significant economic impact at a time when it is truly needed and raise $300,000 for scholarships and Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Pace plans to produce Classic For Columbus in Columbus, Ohio August, 2021 with support from a number of community groups and the Greater Columbus Sports Commission, according to Business First. Pace said that in 2022, Classic For