Navy – Notre Dame football rivalry The Navy – Notre Dame football rivalry is a college football rivalry game between the United States Naval Academy Midshipmen and the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish . The series has been played annually since 1914 , making it the longest uninterrupted intersectional series in college football . Notre Dame holds a 73 - 12 - 1 series edge . Before Navy won a 46 - 44 triple - overtime contest in 2007 , Notre Dame had a 43 - game winning streak that was the longest series win streak between two annual opponents in the history of Division I FBS football . Navy ' s previous win came in 1963 , 35 - 14 with future Heisman Trophy winner and NFL QB Roger Staubach at the helm . Navy had come close to winning on numerous occasions before 2007 : Navy subsequently won the game again in 2009 and 2010 . Though the game is often played at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend , it has not been played at Navy - Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis in more than 50 years . Games have been played at Memorial Stadium and M & T Bank Stadium in Baltimore , John F . Kennedy Stadium and Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia , Giants Stadium in East Rutherford , New Jersey , Cleveland Stadium in Cleveland and the Citrus Bowl Stadium in Orlando . The 1996 and 2012 games were played in Dublin , Ireland . History . Despite the one - sided result the last few decades , most Notre Dame and Navy fans consider the series a sacred tradition for historical reasons . Both schools have strong football traditions going back to the beginnings of the sport . Notre Dame , like many colleges , faced severe financial difficulties during World War II . The US Navy made Notre Dame a training center and paid enough for usage of the facilities to keep the University afloat . Notre Dame has since extended an open invitation for Navy to play the Fighting Irish in football and considers the game annual repayment on a debt of honor . The series is marked by mutual respect , as evidenced by each team standing at attention during the playing of the other ' s alma mater after the game , a tradition that started in 2005 . Navy ' s athletic director , on renewing the series through 2016 , remarked " . . . it is of great interest to our collective national audience of Fighting Irish fans , Naval Academy alumni , and the Navy family at large . " The series is scheduled to continue indefinitely ; renewals are a mere formality . Streak . Notre Dame ' s NCAA - record 43 - game win streak against Navy began in 1964 : Location . The series is a " home and home " series with the schools alternating the home team . Due to the relatively small size of the football stadium in Annapolis , the two teams have never met there . Instead , Navy usually hosts the game at larger facilities such as Baltimore ' s old Memorial Stadium or current M & T Bank Stadium , FedEx Field in Landover , Maryland , Veterans Stadium and later Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia , or at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford , New Jersey . During the 1960s , the Midshipmen hosted the game at John F . Kennedy Memorial Stadium in Philadelphia . The game has been played twice in Dublin , Ireland — in 1996 at Croke Park and 2012 at Aviva Stadium . The game was also occasionally played at old Cleveland Stadium . Television . In years when Navy hosts ( even - numbered ) , it is one of few non - Southeastern Conference games aired on CBS . In years when Notre Dame hosts ( odd - numbered ) , it is carried on NBC as are other Notre Dame home games .