Mid-American Conference

MAC, GCSC and Q Named Finalist To Host NCAA Women’s Final Four During 2021-2024

Cleveland, Ohio -- The NCAA has announced today that the Mid-American Conference (MAC) and the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission (GCSC) were named as a finalist for a Division I Women’s Final Four during the period of 2021-2024 to be hosted at Quicken Loans Arena (The Q) in Cleveland.

The MAC, GCSP and The Q previously served as host to the NCAA Women’s Final Four in 2007 as the city of Cleveland hosted Tennessee, LSU, Rutgers and North Carolina.  Tennessee won its seventh Division I Women’s Basketball Championship with a 59-46 win over Rutgers on April 3, 2007.

The MAC, GCSC and The Q also hosted the 2015 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship Regional in Cleveland on March 26-28, 2015, and will also host the 2018 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships on March 15-17, 2018 and the 2020 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball First and Second Rounds on March 20-22, 2020.

“Today we learned from the NCAA that we have been selected as a finalist in the on-going bidding process to host a future NCAA Division I Women’s Final Four. The Mid-American Conference has been aggressive in pursuing NCAA championship events. We have a great team in Cleveland and northeast Ohio which includes the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission, Quicken Loans Arena, a long track record of successfully hosting NCAA events, and a great and supportive fan base that is passionate about intercollegiate athletics,” said Dr. Jon Steinbrecher, Commissioner of the Mid-American Conference.

“We successfully hosted the Women’s Final Four in 2007 and I can think of nothing better than bringing the pinnacle of women’s basketball back to Cleveland. Our entire team looks forward to our continued efforts to successfully conclude the bidding process,” added Steinbrecher.
 
Quicken Loans Arena and the MAC have a long-standing working relationship. For 19 years, The Q has served as the host venue for the MAC Men’s Basketball Tournament (since 2000) and the MAC Women’s Basketball Tournament (since 2001). The Men’s Basketball Tournament at The Q is the second longest running neutral site men’s tournament in the nation.

The MAC and the GCSC have partnered for many years in successfully hosting NCAA Division I Championship events and have been aggressive in bidding for future Division I Championship events. This partnership has provided the city of Cleveland to host the following NCAA events:  NCAA Women’s Final Four (2007), NCAA Men’s Basketball First and Second Round (2020), NCAA Men’s Basketball Regional (2015), NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships (2018) and the NCAA Women’s Bowling Championships (2012, 2014, 2019).

“To have the Women’s Final Four return to Cleveland would be a tremendous opportunity to continue showcasing our community’s ability to attract and host major sporting events,” said David Gilbert, President and CEO of Greater Cleveland Sports Commission. “This event was extremely successful when Cleveland hosted it in 2007. We would love the opportunity to welcome this event again, which would bring 40-thousand game attendees and fans experiencing a fan fest and events associated with the Championship, in addition to highlighting Cleveland’s vibrant downtown and exciting destinations.”    

“Quicken Loans Arena is proud to have been chosen as a finalist venue for a NCAA Women's Final Four during 2021 through 2024,” said Len Komoroski, Cavaliers and Quicken Loans Arena CEO. “It takes a community-wide effort to be considered as a host for events of this magnitude and we’re thankful to have great partners like the Mid-American Conference and the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission representing our collective efforts so well. With The Q Transformation being complete in late 2019, having the opportunity to host the Women’s Final Four will not only be exciting for fans of college basketball across the region and country, but will also bring a significant economic impact to our community as it showcases Cleveland as a great destination and host.”
 
Following official bids, site visits and presentations from finalists, the NCAA is planning to announce the selected cities for the Women’s Final Four in 2021-2024 this October, 2018.

Mid-American Conference
Founded in 1946, the Mid-American Conference is an NCAA Division I, 12-member conference that sponsors 23 championships and is one of ten members of the Football Bowl Subdivison (FBS). With total enrollment of nearly 300,000 students, the league represents institutions of higher learning in five (5) states - Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, New York, and Ohio.

Current full member institutions and the year they joined are -- East Division: University of Akron (1992), Bowling Green State University (1952), University at Buffalo (1998), Kent State University (1951), Miami University (1947), Ohio University (1946). West Division: Ball State University (1973), Central Michigan University (1971), Eastern Michigan University (1971), Northern Illinois University (1975-86, rejoined in 1997), University of Toledo (1950), Western Michigan University (1947).  The conference office is based in Cleveland, Ohio.

Greater Cleveland Sports Commission
Since 2000, Greater Cleveland Sports Commission (GCSC) is responsible for attracting more than 190 sporting events which provide nearly $570 million in economic activity to Northeast Ohio. GCSC supports the local economy, utilizes sports as a vehicle to forward community agendas and maintains a goal of producing events that are more successful when held in Cleveland than in other cities. For more information, visit clevelandsports.org.

Quicken Loans Arena
Quicken Loans Arena—also known as “The Q”—is northeast Ohio’s premier sports and entertainment facility and major attraction for top tier concert tours and family shows, as well as home to the 2016 NBA Champion Cleveland Cavaliers, 2016 Calder Cup Champion Cleveland Monsters, AFL Cleveland Gladiators and the annual MAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournament. Each year, The Q hosts more than 200 diverse ticketed events that draw over 2 million patrons to downtown Cleveland. Quicken Loans Arena is established as a successful host site for high profile events of international and national scope, including the 2016 Republican National Convention, the 2015, 2016, 2017 NBA Finals and the upcoming NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships during the spring of 2018. In Pollstar magazine’s 2017 Year-End Report of Top 200 Arena Venues Worldwide for Entertainment Ticket Sales, The Q ranked No. 18 in the United States and No. 40 worldwide in ticket sales for top touring attractions. Visit TheQArena.com.