Joey Chestnut, Kobayashi To Compete In Hot Dog Eating Contest In September

Joey Chestnut and his longtime nemesis Takeru Kobayashi are going head-to-head in a hot dog eating contest once again -- but it won't be part of the usual Fourth of July event ... it's a Labor Day extravaganza!!

The showdown is 15 years in the making -- the two last went at it in 2009 at the traditional Nathan's competition in Coney Island ... when Jaws beat Kobayashi to defend his mustard belt.

The timing of the announcement is pretty interesting -- on Tuesday, Major League Eating announced Chestnut was OUT of the Independence Day contest due to an endorsement deal he inked with a rival food company.

Just weeks ago, Kobayashi -- who is 0-3 against Chestnut -- claimed he was retired from competitive eating ... but he explained in a press release there is some unfinished business to attend to before hanging up his gut for good.

"Retiring for me will only happen after I take him down one last time," Kobayashi said on Wednesday. "This rivalry has been brewing for a long time."

Chestnut -- the 16-time Nathan's contest champ with 8-straight hot dog victories -- also weighed in ... saying, "Through all of my years in competitive eating, Kobayashi stands out as my fiercest rival."

"Competing against him pushed me to be so much better. I know that fans have waited a long time for another chapter of our rivalry and I can't wait for our massive showdown live on Netflix! It's time to give the people what they want!"

Chestnut and Kobayashi might be big-time foes, but they're both kinda in the same boat now -- after all, the latter had a highly-publicized spat with MLE back in 2010 after the org. tried to get him to sign an exclusive contract ... and he never competed in the hot dog contest again.

Kobi famously attended in protest that same year ... and he was later arrested after he stormed the stage, despite claiming he was only trying to congratulate Joey on his victory.