Houston Chronicle:
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The Big 12 is set to expand its footprint south of the border.
The conference is aiming to host regular-season football and men’s and women’s basketball games in Mexico within the next two years, two sources with knowledge of the plans told the Houston Chronicle.
The University of Houston, which is set to join the Big 12 on July 1, has expressed interest and is on the short list of men’s basketball teams that could play in Mexico City as early as the upcoming 2023-24 season. The Big 12 has not finalized the teams that will play in the games.
Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark recently visited Mexico on a fact-finding trip, meeting with various officials and touring potential sites, a source said. Arena CDMX, a 22,300-seat venue in Mexico City, is a candidate to host a men’s basketball game. A football game, likely at 53,500-seat Estadio BBVA, known as “El Gigante de Acero,” Spanish for “The Steel Giant.” has been targeted for the 2024 or 2025 seasons in Monterrey, a source said.
Chris Pezman, UH’s vice president for athletics, was not immediately available for comment. An announcement could come this week at the Big 12’s annual spring meetings.
Houston, along with Baylor, TCU and Texas Tech, would all offer regional appeal based on proximity to the border.
Plans to play games in Mexico are part of a broader vision for the Big 12, which spans multiple time zones and has been rumored to have expansion interest in Pac-12 schools Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah.
“We want to be a truly national conference from a brand perspective, but also a geographic footprint,” Yormark said recently.
The Big 12’s desire to play games in Mexico would follow in the footsteps of the NFL, MLB and NBA — each having made regular trips south of the border in recent years — but seize a chance to become the first U.S.-based conference to play in the region. There has never been a game between two U.S. college football teams played in Mexico.
The Pac-12 has played games in Sydney, Australia, and the Big Ten, ACC and Notre Dame have gone overseas for games in Dublin, Ireland. The only time UH football has played an international game was in 1990, against Arizona State in Tokyo. The basketball team has played two games in Japan, including against No. 1 Virginia in 1982.
College basketball teams are allowed to travel internationally during the summer once every four years. UH is planning a trip to Australia for August.
Along with football and basketball, the Big 12 also has interest in playing baseball and women’s soccer games in Mexico. If the Mexico games go well, the Big 12 has interest in playing games in Europe and Africa down the road, a source said.
The Big 12 will become a 14-team league for one season when UH, BYU, UCF and Cincinnati join on July 1. The rest of the conference includes Baylor, Texas, TCU, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Kansas, Kansas State, Iowa State and West Virginia. UT and OU will leave for the SEC in July 2024.
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The Big 12 is set to expand its footprint south of the border.
The conference is aiming to host regular-season football and men’s and women’s basketball games in Mexico within the next two years, two sources with knowledge of the plans told the Houston Chronicle.
The University of Houston, which is set to join the Big 12 on July 1, has expressed interest and is on the short list of men’s basketball teams that could play in Mexico City as early as the upcoming 2023-24 season. The Big 12 has not finalized the teams that will play in the games.
Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark recently visited Mexico on a fact-finding trip, meeting with various officials and touring potential sites, a source said. Arena CDMX, a 22,300-seat venue in Mexico City, is a candidate to host a men’s basketball game. A football game, likely at 53,500-seat Estadio BBVA, known as “El Gigante de Acero,” Spanish for “The Steel Giant.” has been targeted for the 2024 or 2025 seasons in Monterrey, a source said.
Chris Pezman, UH’s vice president for athletics, was not immediately available for comment. An announcement could come this week at the Big 12’s annual spring meetings.
Houston, along with Baylor, TCU and Texas Tech, would all offer regional appeal based on proximity to the border.
Plans to play games in Mexico are part of a broader vision for the Big 12, which spans multiple time zones and has been rumored to have expansion interest in Pac-12 schools Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah.
“We want to be a truly national conference from a brand perspective, but also a geographic footprint,” Yormark said recently.
The Big 12’s desire to play games in Mexico would follow in the footsteps of the NFL, MLB and NBA — each having made regular trips south of the border in recent years — but seize a chance to become the first U.S.-based conference to play in the region. There has never been a game between two U.S. college football teams played in Mexico.
The Pac-12 has played games in Sydney, Australia, and the Big Ten, ACC and Notre Dame have gone overseas for games in Dublin, Ireland. The only time UH football has played an international game was in 1990, against Arizona State in Tokyo. The basketball team has played two games in Japan, including against No. 1 Virginia in 1982.
College basketball teams are allowed to travel internationally during the summer once every four years. UH is planning a trip to Australia for August.
Along with football and basketball, the Big 12 also has interest in playing baseball and women’s soccer games in Mexico. If the Mexico games go well, the Big 12 has interest in playing games in Europe and Africa down the road, a source said.
The Big 12 will become a 14-team league for one season when UH, BYU, UCF and Cincinnati join on July 1. The rest of the conference includes Baylor, Texas, TCU, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Kansas, Kansas State, Iowa State and West Virginia. UT and OU will leave for the SEC in July 2024.
