List of NCAA conferences
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is divided into three divisions, based roughly on school size. Each division is made up of several conferences for regional league play. Unless otherwise noted, changes in conference affiliation will occur on July 1 of the given year.
Division I
Football Bowl Subdivision
| Conference | Nickname | Founded | Members | Sports | Headquarters | Map |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Athletic Conference | The American | 1979 [lower-alpha 1] | 12 [lower-alpha 2] | 22 | Providence, Rhode Island |  |
| Atlantic Coast Conference | ACC | 1953 | 15 [lower-alpha 3] | 27 | Greensboro, North Carolina |  |
| Big Ten Conference | Big Ten | 1896 | 14 | 28 | Rosemont, Illinois |  |
| Big 12 Conference | Big 12 | 1996 | 10 | 23 | Irving, Texas |  |
| Conference USA | C-USA | 1995 | 14 | 19 | Irving, Texas |  |
| Division I FBS Independents | Ind. | 6 | 1 | None |  | |
| Mid-American Conference | MAC | 1946 | 12 | 23 | Cleveland, Ohio |  |
| Mountain West Conference | MW MWC | 1999 | 11 [lower-alpha 4] | 18 | Colorado Springs, Colorado |  |
| Pac-12 Conference | Pac-12 | 1959 [lower-alpha 5] | 12 | 24 | San Francisco, California |  |
| Southeastern Conference | SEC | 1932 | 14 | 21 | Birmingham, Alabama |  |
| Sun Belt Conference | Sun Belt | 1976 | 12 [lower-alpha 6] | 18 | New Orleans, Louisiana |  |
- ↑ Known as Big East Conference prior to 2013.
- ↑ 12 full members with Wichita State as a non-football member; 12 football members with Navy as a football-only affiliate
- ↑ 15 members (14 football)
- ↑ 11 members (12 football) with Hawaii as a football-only affiliate
- ↑ Pacific Coast Conference chartered in 1915; current charter formed 1959 by five former PCC members, with three others joining by 1964
- ↑ 12 full members with Little Rock and Texas–Arlington as non-football members
Football Championship Subdivision
.PNG)
- ↑ 11 full members and 13 football members
- ↑ 11 full members and 6 football members
- 11 full members, 8 football members in 2019 with addition of Hampton football and North Alabama as a football-only member
- 11 full members, 7 football members in 2020 with Presbyterian football leaving for independent status and eventually the Pioneer League
- ↑ 10 full members and 12 football members
- ↑ 1 independent in 2019 with Hampton and North Alabama joining Big South football
- 1 independent in 2020 with North Dakota joining the MVFC and Presbyterian transitioning to non-scholarship football
- No independents in 2021 with Presbyterian football joining the Pioneer League
- ↑ While the Ivy League considers its athletic conference to have been established in 1954, the history of the athletic league can be traced back decades earlier:
- In 1901, the Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League (EIBL) was formed by five schools that would later become part of the current Ivy League; the EIBL membership eventually became identical to that of the future all-sports league. The EIBL was directly absorbed into the all-sports Ivy League, which considers the EIBL to be part of its history.
- In 1945, the Ivy Group Agreement, which governed competition and policies among the Ivy schools in football, was signed by all eight schools that eventually formed the all-sports league.
- The official formation of the athletic Ivy League came in 1954, when the Ivy Group Agreement was extended to cover all sports.
- ↑ 12 full members, 10 football members
- 11 full members, 9 football members in 2019 with loss of Savannah State
- ↑ While the MVFC began football competition in 1985, the conference charter dates to 1982. See History of the Missouri Valley Football Conference for more details.
- ↑ 11 members in 2020 with addition of North Dakota
- ↑ 10 full members, 7 football members
- 11 full members, 9 football members in 2019 with the following:
- Addition of Merrimack
- Merger of the athletic programs of non-football LIU Brooklyn and Division II football-sponsoring LIU Post into a single Division I LIU athletic program that will include football
- 11 full members, 9 football members in 2019 with the following:
- ↑ 24 sports in 2019 with addition of field hockey
- ↑ 12 full members, 9 football members (one full member, Morehead State, plays football outside the OVC in the Pioneer Football League)
- ↑ 10 full members and 7 football members
- ↑ 11 members in 2021 with addition of Presbyterian
- ↑ 10 full members, 9 football members
- ↑ 13 full members, 11 football members
Non-football, multi-sport conferences
| Conference | Nickname | Founded | Members | Sports | Headquarters | Map |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| America East Conference | America East AmEast | 1979 | 9 | 19 | Boston, Massachusetts |  |
| Atlantic Sun Conference | ASUN | 1978 | 9 | 19 | Macon, Georgia |  |
| Atlantic 10 Conference | A-10 | 1975 | 14 | 21 | Newport News, Virginia |  |
| Big East Conference | Big East | 2013 [lower-alpha 1] | 10 | 22 | New York City, New York |  |
| Big West Conference | Big West BWC | 1969 | 9[lower-alpha 2] | 18 | Irvine, California |  |
| Coastal Collegiate Sports Association | CCSA | 2008 | 24 [lower-alpha 3] | 3 [lower-alpha 4] | Macon, Georgia |  |
| Horizon League | Horizon | 1979 | 10 | 19 | Indianapolis, Indiana |  |
| Division I Independents | 0 | |||||
| Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference | MAAC | 1980 | 11 | 24 [lower-alpha 5] | Edison, New Jersey |  |
| Missouri Valley Conference | MVC The Valley | 1907 | 10 | 17 | St. Louis, Missouri |  |
| Mountain Pacific Sports Federation | MPSF | 1992 | 38 | 10 | Woodland, California |  |
| Summit League | The Summit | 1982 | 9 | 19 | Sioux Falls, South Dakota |  |
| West Coast Conference | WCC | 1952 | 10 | 14 | San Bruno, California |  |
| Western Athletic Conference | WAC | 1962 | 9 [lower-alpha 6] | 19[1] | Englewood, Colorado |  |
- ↑ Although the charter of the current Big East dates only to the 2013 split of the original Big East, both the current Big East and the American Athletic Conference claim 1979 as their founding dates. The current Big East maintains the pre-split history of the original conference in all sports that it sponsors. In football and rowing, the two sports that are sponsored by The American but not the current Big East, neither conference recognizes the history of the original Big East.
- ↑ 11 members in 2020 with addition of CSU Bakersfield and UC San Diego
- ↑ Total conference membership; no more than 12 schools compete in any one of the CCSA's three sports.
- ↑ Sponsors only men's and women's swimming & diving, plus beach volleyball.
- ↑ 23 sports in 2019 with dropping of field hockey.
- ↑ 8 members in 2020 with loss of CSU Bakersfield
Ice hockey conferences
| Conference | Nickname | Founded | Members (Men/Women) | Headquarters | Map |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlantic Hockey | Atlantic Hockey | 1997 | 11 (11/none) | Haverhill, Massachusetts |  |
| College Hockey America | CHA | 1999 [lower-alpha 1] | 6 (none/6) | Haverhill, Massachusetts |  |
| ECAC Hockey | ECAC | 1962 | 12 (12/12) | Albany, New York |  |
| Hockey East | Hockey East HEA | 1984 | 12 (11/10) | Wakefield, Massachusetts |  |
| Independents | 6 (1/5) [lower-alpha 2][lower-alpha 3] |  | |||
| National Collegiate Hockey Conference | NCHC | 2011 [lower-alpha 4] | 8 (8/none) | Colorado Springs, Colorado |  |
| Western Collegiate Hockey Association | WCHA | 1951 | 15 (10/7) | Edina, Minnesota |  |
- ↑ College Hockey America was formed in 1999 as a men's-only conference; women's play began in 2002. The men's side of CHA folded after the 2009–10 season.
- ↑ All five current women's independents participate in a scheduling agreement known as the New England Women's Hockey Alliance (NEWHA), which with the upcoming addition of LIU in 2019 has announced its intention to become an official NCAA conference.[2]
- ↑ Potential of no independents in 2019 should the NEWHA be recognized as an NCAA conference; 6 women's independents otherwise.
- ↑ Although founded in 2011, the NCHC did not begin play until 2013.
Other single-sport conferences
This list includes conferences in sports that the NCAA does not fully split into divisions, such as men's volleyball and rifle. Note also that sports in which the NCAA sponsors separate championships for men and women are officially treated by the NCAA as two separate sports.
- ↑ There are 7 NCAA varsity members; the conference also has one junior college member.
- ↑ 9 schools have both men's & women's varsity teams, 10 have men's varsity teams only, 9 have women's varsity teams only; additionally, there are 136 men's and 86 women's club teams.
- ↑ Founded in 2013 as a women's-only conference; men's play added in 2016.
- ↑ There are 2 varsity members; the conference also has 7 college club members.
- ↑ There are 8 varsity members; the conference also has 7 college club members.
- ↑ There are 7 varsity members; the conference also has 6 college club members.
- ↑ There are 6 varsity members; the conference also has 13 college club members.
- ↑ There are 10 varsity members; the conference also has 10 college club members.
- ↑ There are 8 varsity members; the conference also has 13 college club members.
- ↑ There are 8 varsity members; the conference also has 5 college club members.
- ↑ There are 8 varsity members; the conference also has 4 college club members.
- ↑ 7 varsity members in 2019 with loss of New Mexico.
- ↑ The SBL was established during the 2014–15 school year with competition starting immediately. While the Southland Conference provides administrative support, the SBL operates separately.[3]
- ↑ 8 women's members in 2019 with loss of UC San Diego; men's membership will not change.
Division II
Current conferences
- ↑ 12 members in 2020 with loss of UC San Diego.
- ↑ 12 members in 2019 with addition of Chowan.
- ↑ Emerging sport Swimming & Diving (M) included.
- ↑ 12 members in 2019 with loss of Chowan.
- ↑ 9 members in 2019 with loss of LIU Post.
- ↑ 15 members in 2019 with addition of Southwest Baptist.
- ↑ 13 members in 2019 with loss of Davis & Elkins.
- ↑ Emerging sport Wrestling included.
- ↑ Disbanding in 2019 following the announced departure of eight members to the Lone Star Conference, with the ninth (Newman) set to become a de facto MIAA member at that time.
- ↑ 20 members in 2019 with addition of Arkansas–Fort Smith, Dallas Baptist, Lubbock Christian, Oklahoma Christian, Rogers State, St. Edwards, St. Mary's (TX), Texas A&M International, and UT Tyler.
- ↑ 13 full members in 2019 with loss of Southwest Baptist. A 14th school, Newman, will technically be an associate member, but for all practical purposes will be a full non-football member, housing all of its sports in the MIAA.
- ↑ 11 or 12 members in 2019 with loss of Shepherd and UVA–Wise, plus confirmed addition of Davis & Elkins as a full non-football member and possible addition of Frostburg State as a full football-sponsoring member.
- ↑ 22 sports in 2019 with addition of men's and women's indoor track & field, plus wrestling.
- ↑ 14 members in 2019 with loss of Merrimack.
- ↑ 18 members in 2019 with addition of Shepherd.
- ↑ 12 members in 2019 with addition of UVA–Wise.
- ↑ 14 members in 2019 with addition of Savannah State.
Single-sport conferences
| Conference | Nickname | Founded | Members | Sport | Headquarters | Map |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Appalachian Swimming Conference | ASC | ? | 6 (men) 4 (women) | swimming | ? |  |
| Bluegrass Mountain Conference | BMC | 2000 | 9 (men) 7 (women) | swimming | Spartanburg, South Carolina |  |
| ECAC Division II Field Hockey League | ECAC | 2014 | 6 | field hockey | Danbury, Connecticut | |
| ECAC Division II Wrestling League | ECAC | 2015 | 7 | wrestling | Danbury, Connecticut | |
| New South Intercollegiate Swim Conference | NSISC | 1995 | 6 (men) 6 (women) | swimming | ? |  |
| Pacific Collegiate Swim and Dive Conference | PCSC | 2003 | 4 (men) 7 (women) | swimming | ? |  |
Other sports
These conferences sponsor sports which do not have D-II championships.
| Conference | Nickname | Founded | Members | Sport | Headquarters | Map |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conference Carolinas | CC | 1930 | 9 | men's volleyball | Thomasville, North Carolina |  |
| Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association | CIAA | 1912 | 10 | bowling | Hampton, Virginia |  |
| East Coast Conference | ECC | 1989 | 10 | bowling | Central Islip, New York |  |
| Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association | MIAA | 1912 | 7 | bowling | Kansas City, Missouri |  |
| Northeast-10 Conference | NE-10 | 1980 | 6 | men's ice hockey | South Easton, Massachusetts |  |
Division III
Current conferences
- ↑ 11 members in 2019 with addition of Alfred State.
- ↑ 7 members in 2019 with loss of Alfred State and Thomas More.
- ↑ Known before 2018–19 as the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
- ↑ 12 members in 2019 with loss of UT Tyler.
- ↑ 6 members in 2019 with loss of Frostburg State and Penn State Harrisburg.
- ↑ 10 members in 2019 with addition of Saint Elizabeth.
- ↑ Commonwealth Coast Football is operated by the Commonwealth Coast Conference, but remains a separate entity.
- ↑ Commonwealth Coast Football is a 2017 rebranding of the New England Football Conference, which was founded in 1965.
- ↑ 8 members in 2019 with addition of Husson
- ↑ 6 members in 2019 with loss of Husson
- ↑ 8 members in 2019 with loss of Stevens.
- ↑ No football independents in 2019 with Thomas More leaving the NCAA to rejoin the NAIA.
- ↑ The MAC is actually an umbrella organization of three conferences. Nine schools are members of the Commonwealth Conference and eight are members of the Freedom Conference. Each league conducts competition in the same set of 15 sports, not including football. The third league, called the Middle Atlantic Conference, combines schools from the Commonwealth and Freedom Conferences for the following 12 sports: men's and women's cross country, football, men's and women's ice hockey, men's and women's track & field (both indoor and outdoor), men's and women's swimming & diving, and men's volleyball.
- ↑ 17 total members and 8 MAC Freedom members in 2019 with loss of Manhattanville and addition of Stevens.
- ↑ 12 members in 2019 with addition of Penn State Harrisburg and loss of Saint Elizabeth.
- ↑ 12 or 13 members in 2019. Benedictine had originally planned to move to the Division II Great Lakes Valley Conference, but has reportedly backed out of the move and will remain in Division III. Benedictine's future NACC status is currently unknown.[4]
- ↑ 12 members in 2019 with addition of Manhattanville
Single-sport conferences
| Conference | Nickname | Founded | Members | Sport | Headquarters | Map |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colonial Hockey Conference | CHC | 2015 | 7 | Women's ice hockey | ||
| Continental Volleyball Conference | CVC | 2011 | 12 | Men's volleyball | Madison, New Jersey | |
| ECAC West | ECAC-W | 6 (men) 10 (women) | Ice hockey | Danbury, Connecticut |  | |
| Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League | MCVL | 2014 | 10 | Men's volleyball | Cedar Rapids, Iowa | |
| Midwest Lacrosse Conference | MLC | 2009 | 8 | Men's lacrosse | Waukesha, Wisconsin | |
| Midwest Women's Lacrosse Conference | MWLC | 2010 | 10 | Women's Lacrosse | Waukesha, Wisconsin | |
| New England Hockey Conference | NEHC | 2015 | 10 (men) 13 (women) | Ice hockey | N/A |  |
| Northern Collegiate Hockey Association | NCHA | 1981 | 10 (men) 7 (women) | Ice hockey | Waukesha, Wisconsin |  |
| Ohio River Lacrosse Conference | ORLC | 2014 | 7 (men) 10 (women) | Lacrosse | Greenwood, Indiana | |
| United Volleyball Conference | UVC | 2010 | 9 | Men's volleyball | Rochester, New York |
Other sports
These conferences sponsor sports which do not have D-III championships.
| Conference | Nickname | Founded | Members | Sport | Headquarters | Map |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference | AMCC | 1997 | 8 | Bowling | North Boston, New York |  |
| Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference | WIAC | 1913 | 8 | Women's gymnastics | Madison, Wisconsin |
Defunct NCAA conferences
| Conference | Division | Founded | Folded | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| America Sky Conference | Division I | 2007 | 2014 | Men's golf conference absorbed by the Big Sky Conference.[5] |
| American Lacrosse Conference | Division I | 2001 | 2014 | Women's lacrosse conference that folded after the 2014 season due to fallout of the early-2010s conference realignment, specifically the 2013 announcement by the Big Ten that it would add men's and women's lacrosse for the 2014–15 school year (2015 season). Four of the seven final ALC members are full Big Ten members. Johns Hopkins went independent before joining Big Ten women's lacrosse in the 2017 season. The other two members became Big East affiliates. |
| American South Conference | Division I | 1987 | 1991 | Merged with the Sun Belt Conference. The new conference used the Sun Belt name.[6] |
| Atlantic Central Football Conference | Division III | 1997 | 2010 | Disbanded |
| Atlantic Soccer Conference | Division I | 2000 | 2012 | Disbanded |
| Atlantic Women's Colleges Conference | Division III | 1995 | 2007 | Disbanded |
| Big Central Soccer Conference | Division I | 1987 | 1991 | Men's soccer-only conference disbanded after the all-sports conferences of all but two of its members began sponsoring the sport. |
| Big Eight Conference | Division I | 1907 | 1996 | Initially formed in January 1907 as the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association, before six schools split away to form the Big Six in 1928. Disbanded to join with four former Southwest Conference schools to create the Big 12 Conference. |
| Border Conference | University Division | 1931 | 1962 | Members split between the newly formed WAC and Independent statuses. |
| Central Collegiate Hockey Association | Division I | 1971 | 2013 | The decision of the Big Ten Conference to add men's ice hockey as a sponsored sport in the 2013–14 season, taking three of the most successful members of the then-11-member league, led to a major conference realignment that ultimately consumed the CCHA. Two members joined the new National Collegiate Hockey Conference, one member joined Hockey East, and the remaining five members joined or rejoined the Western Collegiate Hockey Association. |
| Continental Divide Conference | Division II | ??? | 1992 | Women's-only conference that merged with the men's-only Great Northwest Conference (not to be confused with the current Great Northwest Athletic Conference) to form the Pacific West Conference. |
| Deep South Conference | Division II | 1994 | 2013 | Men's lacrosse conference disbanded when the South Atlantic Conference and Sunshine State Conference, home to all nine of the final conference members, began sponsoring the sport. |
| Dixie Conference | * | 1930 | 1942 | Disbanded after most of its members suspended athletics during World War II. |
| Dixie Conference | * | 1948 | 1954 | Disbanded |
| East Coast Conference | Division I | 1958 | 1994 | Absorbed by the Mid-Continent Conference, now known as The Summit League. |
| Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League | * | 1901 | 1955 | Basketball-only conference absorbed by the Ivy League, which claims the EIBL as part of its own history. |
| ECAC Lacrosse League | Division I | 1999 | 2014 | Men's lacrosse conference that disbanded after the 2014 season. The conference lost many members after the 2010 season when the original Big East launched a men's lacrosse league, and lost still more members with the Big Ten announcement. At the end of the final ECAC Lacrosse season, only one member had not announced a new lacrosse affiliation for the 2014–15 school year; that school would later join Southern Conference men's lacrosse. |
| ECAC Division II Lacrosse League | Division II | 2012 | 2016 | Disbanded. Six members began play in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference, leaving three members to become independents. |
| Freedom Football Conference | Division III | 1992 | 2003 | Disbanded |
| Great Lakes Football Conference | Division II | 2006 | 2012 | Football-only conference, effectively absorbed by the Great Lakes Valley Conference. |
| Great Midwest Conference | Division I | 1991 | 1995 | Merged with Metro Conference to form Conference USA. |
| Great Northwest Conference | Division II | ??? | 1992 | The second part of the merger that created the current Pacific West Conference. |
| Great South Athletic Conference | Division III | 1999 | 2016 | Disbanded |
| Great West Conference | Division I | 2004 | 2013 | Disbanded after all but one of its members joined more established conferences during the early-2010s conference realignment. The men's golf history and Internet presence of the Great West were maintained by the America Sky Conference (above) before the latter conference's absorption by the Big Sky. |
| Great West Hockey Conference | Division I | 1985 | 1988 | Ice hockey-only conference formed by four Western schools, but had one of its members drop hockey after its first season. After failing to attract additional members in 1988, the league folded when one of the remaining members shut down its entire athletic program. |
| Great Western Lacrosse League | Division I | 1993 | 2010 | Members joined the ECAC Lacrosse League (see above). |
| Gulf Coast Conference | College Division | 1949 | 1957 | Disbanded |
| Gulf Star Conference | Division I | 1984 | 1987 | Effectively absorbed by the Southland Conference. |
| High Country Athletic Conference | Division I | 1983 | 1990 | Women's-only conference absorbed by the Western Athletic Conference. |
| Indiana Collegiate Conference | Division II | 1950 | 1978 | Disbanded |
| Indiana Intercollegiate Conference | Division II | 1922 | 1950 | Disbanded |
| Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference | University Division | 1908 | 1970 | Previously known as Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, disbanded. |
| Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the Northwest | * | 1892 | 1893 | Disbanded, precursor to the Big Ten Conference. |
| Lake Michigan Conference | Division III | 1974 | 2007 | Merged with the Northern Illinois-Iowa Conference to form the Northern Athletics Conference, now known as the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference. |
| Metro Conference | Division I | 1975 | 1995 | Merged with Great Midwest Conference to form Conference USA. |
| Metropolitan Collegiate Conference | University Division | 1965 | 1969 | Disbanded |
| Metropolitan New York Conference | University Division | 1933 | 1963 | Disbanded |
| Mid-Continent Athletic Association | Division II, later Division I | 1978 | 1981 | Football-only conference absorbed by the Association of Mid-Continent Universities in 1982. Effectively one of the precursors to the current Missouri Valley Football Conference. |
| Midwest Collegiate Hockey Association | Division III | 1998 | 2013 | Absorbed by the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association. |
| Midwestern Conference | University Division | 1970 | 1972 | The five member schools were unable to find the 6th member required for NCAA recognition. |
| Mountain States Conference (aka Skyline Conference) | University Division | 1938 | 1962 | Disbanded, members split between the newly formed WAC and Independent statuses. |
| Mountain West Athletic Conference | Division I | 1982 | 1988 | Women's-only conference (not to be confused with the modern Mountain West Conference) absorbed by the Big Sky Conference. |
| National Lacrosse Conference | Division I | 2008 | 2012 | Disbanded after the Atlantic Sun Conference and Big South Conference began sponsoring women's lacrosse. |
| New England Conference | * | 1938 | 1947 | Disbanded; the final four members joined two other schools to form the Yankee Conference under a new charter. Effectively the earliest ancestor of today's Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) football conference. |
| New England Women's Lacrosse Alliance | Division III | 1998 | 2012 | Disbanded |
| New South Women's Athletic Conference | Division I | 1985 | 1991 | Women's-only conference initially known as the New South Conference; absorbed by the Trans America Athletic Conference, now legally known as the Atlantic Sun Conference and branded as the ASUN Conference. |
| North Central Conference | Division II | 1922 | 2008 | Disbanded |
| North East Collegiate Volleyball Association | Division III | 1995 | 2011 | Men's volleyball conference disbanded in 2011 due to the 2012 establishment of the NCAA Men's Division III Volleyball Championship. Most of the all-sports conferences that were home to NECVA members began sponsoring men's volleyball at that time. |
| North Star Conference | Division I | 1983 | 1992 | Women's-only conference effectively absorbed by the Mid-Continent Conference (now The Summit League). |
| Northern California Athletic Conference | Division II | 1925 | 1996 | Football-only conference, dissolved when most members decided to drop football |
| Northern Illinois-Iowa Conference | Division III | 1969 | 2007 | Merged with the Lake Michigan Conference to form the Northern Athletics Conference, now known as the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference. |
| Northern Pacific Conference | Division I | 1982 | 1986 | Women's-only conference. Disbanded when the Pac-10, home to five of the seven final conference members, began sponsoring women's sports. |
| Northern Pacific Field Hockey Conference | Division I | 1982 | 2015 | Field hockey-only conference that folded after the 2014 season. After a period in which the conference expanded to span both coasts, most of the eastern teams left over time. Four of the six final members, all from California (and also the league's founding members), became America East affiliates. The remaining two members became independents; one is now a field hockey member of the Big East and the other is now a MAC field hockey member. |
| Northern Sun Conference | Division II | 1979 | 1992 | Women's-only conference that merged with the men's Northern Intercollegiate Conference, forming the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. |
| Pacific Coast Conference | Division I | 1915 | 1959 | Forerunner to the Pac-12, disbanded due to scandal and infighting |
| Pacific Coast Softball Conference | Division I | 2002 | 2013 | Softball-only; disbanded due to fallout from the early-2010s conference realignment. After the 2012 season, it lost five members when the Big Sky added the sport and a sixth to the WAC. After the 2013 season, the final seven members left when the West Coast Conference began sponsoring the sport (five were already WCC members, and the other two joined the WAC in softball). |
| Pilgrim Lacrosse League | Division III | 1986 | 2013 | Absorbed by the NEWMAC |
| Southeast Team Handball Conference | Unknown | 1997 | 2006 | Handball only, disbanded |
| Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association | * | 1894 | 1941 | Disbanded with the onset of American involvement in World War II. |
| Southwest Conference | Division I | 1914 | 1996 | Disbanded, members split into the Big 12, WAC, and C-USA |
| United Soccer Conference | Division I | 2005 | 2009 | Women's soccer-only, absorbed by Great West Conference |
| West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference | Division II | 1924 | 2013 | Disbanded after the conference's football schools announced a split from the non-football schools. Ultimately, nine of the final schools became charter members of the Mountain East Conference, three joined the Great Midwest Athletic Conference, two joined the PSAC, and one went independent. |
| Western Collegiate Athletic Association | Division I | 1981 | 1986 | Women's-only conference; known in its final season of 1985–86 as the Pacific West Conference (not to be confused with the current NCAA Division II conference). Disbanded when the Pac-10, home to the final five conference members, began sponsoring women's sports. |
| Western Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association | Division II | 2010 | 2015 | Lacrosse-only conference absorbed by the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference; all final teams are members of the RMAC, including one affiliate. The RMAC had absorbed the women's side of the WILA in 2013; five of the members were RMAC members including one affiliate, one additional women's member became an independent. |
| Western Wrestling Conference | Division I | 2006 | 2015 | Wrestling-only conference effectively absorbed by the Big 12 Conference, with all of its final members becoming single-sport Big 12 associates. |
| Yankee Conference | Division I | 1947 | 1997 | Football-only conference from 1975 until its absorption by the Atlantic 10 Conference in 1997. Also an effective ancestor of today's CAA football conference. |
- * - Operated before the NCAA split into divisions in 1955.
Conferences set to disband
This section is reserved for conferences currently in operation, but likely to disband in the near future due to major membership losses.
| Conference | Division | Founded | Folding | Background |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heartland Conference | Division II | 1999 | 2019 | In August 2017, eight of the Heartland Conference's nine members announced a mass exodus to the Lone Star Conference (LSC) after the 2018–19 school year.[7] The remaining member, Newman University, announced it would seek a new conference affiliation at that time,[8] and eventually announced that it would become a de facto member of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association in 2019.[9] According to the Newman student newspaper, the Heartland and LSC had been discussing a merger in spring 2017.[10] |
See also
References
- ↑ http://www.wacsports.com
- ↑ "NEWHA announces intent to be recognized as NCAA national collegiate women's hockey conference". USCHO.com. September 26, 2018. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
- ↑ "New Southland Bowling League Established" (Press release). Southland Conference. January 20, 2015. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
- ↑ Coleman, Pat (September 22, 2018). "Benedictine pulls 180, will return to D-III". D3sports.com. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
- ↑ Burton, Roy (June 4, 2014). "WSU joins friends/foes as Big Sky brings back men's golf". Standard-Examiner. Ogden, UT. Retrieved June 13, 2014.
- ↑ http://articles.latimes.com/keyword/colleges-southern-united-states
- ↑ "Lone Star Conference to Add Eight Schools in 2019" (Press release). Lone Star Conference. August 30, 2017. Retrieved August 31, 2017.
- ↑ "Newman To Explore New Conference Affiliation" (Press release). Newman University Athletics. August 30, 2017. Retrieved August 31, 2017.
- ↑ "Newman to Compete In MIAA As Associate Member in 2019-20" (Press release). Newman Jets. February 8, 2018. Retrieved February 15, 2018.
- ↑ Mannis, Taylor (March 9, 2017). "Heartland Conference Looking to Expand". The Vantage. Wichita, KS. Retrieved December 19, 2017.
| NCAA |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Division I | ||
| Division II | ||
| Division III | ||
| Single-division sports and championships | ||
Events listed in italics have been discontinued. | ||
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