French
DeutschList of college athletic conferences in the United States
In college athletics in the United States, institutions typically join in conferences for regular play under different governing bodies.
Varsity sports
[edit]There are several national and regional associations governing the varsity teams of colleges and universities. Varsity teams are typically funded by an institution's athletic department, and under some governing bodies players are eligible for athletic scholarships.
- Multi-sport conferences
- America East Conference
- American Athletic Conference
- Atlantic 10 Conference
- Atlantic Coast Conference
- Atlantic Sun Conference
- Big 12 Conference
- Big East Conference
- Not to be confused with the original Big East. For more details, see 2010–2013 Big East Conference realignment.
- Big Sky Conference
- Big South Conference
- Big Ten Conference
- Big West Conference
- Coastal Athletic Association
- Conference USA
- FBS Independents (applies only to football)
- FCS Independents (applies only to football)
- Horizon League
- Independents (in sports other than football)
- No all-sports independents in 2024–25, with Chicago State joining the Northeast Conference.
- Ivy League
- Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference
- Mid-American Conference
- Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
- Missouri Valley Conference
- Mountain Pacific Sports Federation – does not sponsor football or basketball
- Mountain West Conference
- Northeast Conference
- Ohio Valley Conference
- Pac-12 Conference
- Patriot League
- Southeastern Conference
- Southern Conference
- Southland Conference
- Southwestern Athletic Conference
- Summit League
- Sun Belt Conference
- West Coast Conference
- Western Athletic Conference
- Football-only conferences
- Big South–OVC Football Association – Technically a football-only alliance between the all-sports Big South and Ohio Valley Conferences.
- CAA Football – legally a separate entity from the all-sports Coastal Athletic Association, but both leagues have the same administration
- Missouri Valley Football Conference
- Pioneer Football League
- United Athletic Conference – Not officially recognized by the NCAA, instead being treated as the continuation of a preexisting football alliance between the all-sports Atlantic Sun and Western Athletic Conferences.
- Ice hockey conferences
- Atlantic Hockey America
- Central Collegiate Hockey Association (men) – previously operated from 1971 to 2013; revived in 2021
- ECAC Hockey
- Hockey East
- Independents (only men in 2023–24)
- National Collegiate Hockey Conference (men)
- New England Women's Hockey Alliance
- Western Collegiate Hockey Association (women)
- Other single-sport conferences
This list also includes conferences in sports that the NCAA does not split into divisions.
- Central Collegiate Fencing Conference
- Central Collegiate Ski Association – includes one junior-college team alongside NCAA-sanctioned teams
- Coastal Collegiate Sports Association (women's beach volleyball)
- Collegiate Water Polo Association
- Eastern Intercollegiate Gymnastics League (men)
- Eastern Intercollegiate Ski Association
- Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (men)
- Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association
- Eastern Women's Fencing Conference
- Golden Coast Conference (women's water polo)
- Great America Rifle Conference
- Intercollegiate Fencing Conference of Southern California
- Metropolitan Swimming Conference
- Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Fencing Conference
- Mid-Atlantic Rifle Conference – includes a mix of NCAA-sanctioned teams and club teams
- Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference
- Midwest Fencing Conference
- Midwest Independent Conference (women's gymnastics)
- Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (men)
- National Intercollegiate Women's Fencing Association
- Northeast Fencing Conference
- Patriot Rifle Conference
- Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association
- Western Water Polo Association
- California Collegiate Athletic Association
- Conference Carolinas
- Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference
- Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association
- East Coast Conference
- Great American Conference
- Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
- Great Lakes Valley Conference
- Great Midwest Athletic Conference
- Great Northwest Athletic Conference
- Gulf South Conference
- Independents
- Lone Star Conference
- Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association
- Mountain East Conference
- Northeast-10 Conference
- Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference
- Pacific West Conference
- Peach Belt Conference
- Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference
- Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference
- South Atlantic Conference
- Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
- Sunshine State Conference
- Single-sport conferences
- Appalachian Swimming Conference
- New South Intercollegiate Swim Conference
- Pacific Coast Swim Conference
- Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference
- American Rivers Conference
- American Southwest Conference
- Atlantic East Conference
- Centennial Conference
- City University of New York Athletic Conference
- Coast to Coast Athletic Conference
- College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin
- Collegiate Conference of the South
- Conference of New England
- Empire 8
- Great Northeast Athletic Conference
- Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference
- Independents
- Landmark Conference
- Liberty League
- Little East Conference
- Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference
- Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association
- Middle Atlantic Conferences – an umbrella organization that operates three conferences.
- The following conferences sponsor the same set of 14 sports, including both men's and women's basketball, but not football:
- The third league, the Middle Atlantic Conference (note the singular), combines schools from the Commonwealth and Freedom conferences in a total of 13 sports, including football.
- Midwest Conference
- Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
- New England Small College Athletic Conference
- New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference
- New Jersey Athletic Conference
- North Atlantic Conference
- North Coast Athletic Conference
- Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference
- Northwest Conference
- Ohio Athletic Conference
- Old Dominion Athletic Conference
- Presidents' Athletic Conference
- St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
- Skyline Conference
- Southern Athletic Association
- Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
- Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference
- State University of New York Athletic Conference
- United East Conference
- University Athletic Association
- Upper Midwest Athletic Conference
- USA South Athletic Conference
- Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
- Single-sport conferences
- Coastal Lacrosse Conference (men)
- Continental Volleyball Conference (men)
- Eastern Collegiate Football Conference
- Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League (men)
- Midwest Lacrosse Conference (men)
- Midwest Women's Lacrosse Conference
- New England Collegiate Conference (men's volleyball; also operates in the non-NCAA esports)
- United Collegiate Hockey Conference
- United Volleyball Conference (men)
- American Midwest Conference
- Appalachian Athletic Conference
- California Pacific Conference
- Cascade Collegiate Conference
- Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference
- Continental Athletic Conference
- Crossroads League
- Frontier Conference
- Golden State Athletic Conference
- Great Plains Athletic Conference
- HBCU Athletic Conference
- Heart of America Athletic Conference
- Football Independents
- Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference
- Mid-South Conference
- North Star Athletic Association
- Red River Athletic Conference
- River States Conference
- Sooner Athletic Conference
- Southern States Athletic Conference
- Sun Conference
- Wolverine–Hoosier Athletic Conference
- Football-only conference
- Eastern Metro Athletic Conference
- Eastern States Athletic Conference
- Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
- Penn State University Athletic Conference
- Yankee Small College Conference
- Central Region
- Mid-East Region
- Mid-West Region
- North Region
- North Central Region
- South Region
- Southwest Region
- West Region
- Alabama Community College Conference
- Arizona Community College Athletic Conference
- Arrowhead Conference
- Bi-State Conference
- Carolinas Junior College Conference
- Colorado Community College Athletic Conference
- Eastern Pennsylvania Athletic Conference
- Garden State Athletic Conference
- Georgia Junior College Athletic Association
- Great Rivers Athletic Conference
- Illinois Skyway Conference
- Iowa Community College Athletic Conference
- Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference
- Maryland Junior College Athletic Conference
- Massachusetts Community College Athletic Association
- Michigan Community College Athletic Association
- Mid-Florida Conference
- Mid Hudson Conference
- Mid-State Athletic Conference
- Mid-West Athletic Conference
- Missouri Community College Athletic Conference
- Midwest Football Conference (NJCAA)
- Minnesota College Athletic Conference
- Mississippi Association of Community & Junior Colleges
- MISS-LOU Junior College Conference
- Metro Athletic Conference
- Mon-Dak Conference
- Mountain Valley Conference (NJCAA)
- NJCAA Region 9
- Nebraska Community College Athletic Conference
- North Central Community College Conference
- North Texas Junior College Athletic Conference
- Northeast JC Football Conference
- Ohio Community College Athletic Conference
- Panhandle Conference
- Pennsylvania Collegiate Athletic Association (Defunct)
- Scenic West Athletic Conference
- Southern Conference
- Southwest Junior College Conference
- Southwest Junior College Football Conference
- Suncoast Conference
- Tennessee Community College Athletic Association
- Western Junior College Athletic Conference
- Western New York Athletic Conference
- Western Pennsylvania Athletic Conference
- Western States Football League
- Wyoming Community College Athletic Conference
- Bay Valley Conference
- Big 8 Conference
- Central Valley Conference
- Coast Conference
- Golden Valley Conference
- Inland Empire Athletic Conference
- Orange Empire Conference
- Pacific Coast Athletic Conference
- South Coast Conference
- Western State Conference
Northwest Athletic Conference (NWAC)
[edit]- Northern Region
- Southern Region
- Eastern Region
- Western Region
Independent conferences
[edit]- Independent Junior College Athletic Association
- Northern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (basketball only)
- Pacific Christian Athletic Conference
- Wisconsin Collegiate Conference
- Ohio Regional Campus Conference
- New South Athletic Conference
- South Western States Intercollegiate Conference
Other collegiate sports associations
[edit]Boxing
[edit]- National Collegiate Boxing Association (NCBA)
- United States Intercollegiate Boxing Association (USIBA)
Cycling
[edit]- ACCC: Atlantic Collegiate Cycling Conference
- RMCCC: Rocky Mountain Collegiate Cycling Conference
- ECCC: Eastern Collegiate Cycling Conference
- SCCCC: South Central Collegiate Cycling Conference
- MWCCC: Midwestern Collegiate Cycling Conference
- SECCC: Southeastern Collegiate Cycling Conference
- NCCCC: North Central Collegiate Cycling Conference
- SWCCC: Southwestern Collegiate Cycling Conference
- NWCCC: Northwestern Collegiate Cycling Conference
- WCCC: Western Collegiate Cycling Conference
Fencing
[edit]- Baltimore-Washington Collegiate Fencing Conference (BWCFC)
- Northern California Intercollegiate Fencing League (NCIFL)
- Southern Atlantic Conference (SAC)
- Southwestern Intercollegiate Fencing Association (SWIFA)
Gymnastics
[edit]- East Atlantic Gymnastics League (EAGL) (women)
- Eastern Intercollegiate Gymnastics League (EIGL) (men)
Lacrosse
[edit]Rowing
[edit]- Eastern Association of Rowing Colleges (EARC) (men)
- Eastern Association of Women's Rowing Colleges (EAWRC)
- Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) (men)
Sprint football
[edit]Volleyball
[edit]Water polo
[edit]Wrestling
[edit]- National Collegiate Wrestling Association
- Mid-Atlantic – Teams from Tennessee, the Carolinas, Virginia, Maryland, and Delaware
- North Central – Teams from Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, and Wisconsin
- Northeast – Teams from New York, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Vermont
- Northwest – Teams from Washington and British Columbia
- Southeast – Teams from Florida, Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi
- Southwest – Teams from Texas, Colorado, New Mexico, Louisiana, and Kansas
- West – Teams from California, Nevada, Utah and Arizona
List of oldest college sports conferences
[edit]The following table is a sortable listing of the oldest college sports conferences (organizations of athletic teams at the collegiate level) in the United States of America. This includes U.S. collegiate sports organizations of NCAA Divisions I, II, and III; as well as various sports including Rowing, Cricket, Basketball, Hockey, Wrestling, Football, Basketball, Track, and more.
- ^ The Pacific Coast Conference operated under a separate charter from the conference now known as the Pac-12. While the PCC dissolved in 1959, the Pac-12 claims that conference's history as its own.
- ^ The Yankee Conference was an all-sports conference until 1976, when it became a football-only league.
- ^ CAA Football is technically separate from the all-sports Coastal Athletic Association, though administered by the latter.
- ^ Despite significant continuity between the New England Conference and Yankee Conference, CAA Football does not recognize the former as an ancestor.
- ^ The all-sports CAA and CAA Football consider the latter's history to have started with the formation of the Yankee Conference.
See also
[edit]- List of NCAA conferences
- List of NAIA conferences
- National Junior College Athletic Association
- List of defunct college football conferences
References
[edit]- ^ "IRA – Friends of Rowing History". Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "IRA Regatta". May 17, 2008. Archived from the original on May 17, 2008. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "The Home of CricketArchive". cricketarchive.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "Ivy League Index". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association".
- ^ "About the Ivy League". ivyleague.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "About the Conference". Big Ten Conference. Archived from the original on August 20, 2018. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "Welcome cfbdatawarehouse.com - BlueHost.com". www.cfbdatawarehouse.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "TSHA | Southwest Conference". www.tshaonline.org. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "Big 12 Biography". big12sports.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "About the Pac-12". pac-12.com. Archived from the original on April 25, 2022. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "This is The Valley". mvc-sports.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "Big Eight Conference - Athletic History Site". October 12, 2013. Archived from the original on October 12, 2013. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "Conference Champions". February 13, 2010. Archived from the original on February 13, 2010. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "New League Is Established". The Daily Inter Lake. October 12, 1961. p. 6. Retrieved February 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Western Athletic Conference".
- ^ "History lesson: Super-conference concept rooted in 1990 proposal". www.sportsbusinessjournal.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "American Athletic Conference". theamerican.org. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "BIG EAST Conference History". www.bigeast.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "Prospects for Sport: The Southern Inter-Collegiate Association Organized". Richmond Times-Dispatch. 29 Dec 1892. p. 2. Retrieved February 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "The History of the Southern Conference". soconsports.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "SEC History". www.secsports.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "2022 ACC Annual Report (PDF) - Atlantic Coast Conference" (PDF). theacc.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "History of the MAC". getsomemaction.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "SWAC History". swac.org. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "About The Big West". bigwest.org. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "West Coast Conference History". wccsports.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "About the Atlantic 10 Conference". atlantic10.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "N.E. Conference Formed Among Six Colleges". The Berkshire Eagle. December 18, 1946. p. 20. Retrieved February 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "THE CAA & CAA FOOTBALL". caasports.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "New England Schools Begin Organization". Pittsburgh Daily Post. January 30, 1923. p. 12. Retrieved February 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Home". Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "Mission, Purpose, and History". wcha.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "History and Records". ecachockey.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "North Central Conference". northcentral.prestosports.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "Conference Champions". February 13, 2010. Archived from the original on February 13, 2010. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "About The CIAA". theciaa.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "Conference Carolinas History & Roots". conferencecarolinas.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "CCAA Champions". goccaa.org. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "Lone Star Conference History". lonestarconference.org. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "About The Association". themiaa.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "History of the NSIC". northernsun.org. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "RMAC History". rmacsports.org. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "SIAC HISTORY". thesiac.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ MetroNews (June 19, 2012). "A Break Up For WVIAC". WV MetroNews. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "Conference History". rollrivers.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "Conference Champions". gomacsports.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "MWC History". midwestconference.org. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "The MIAC Story: Collegiate Athletics at its Best". miacathletics.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "NWC History". nwcsports.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ "About the OAC".
- ^ "SCIAC".
- ^ "History". wiacsports.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
External links
[edit]- Previous Conferences, A–F, College Football Data Warehouse
- Previous Conferences, G–M, College Football Data Warehouse
- Previous Conferences, N–Z, College Football Data Warehouse