Mid-American Conference

Cleveland, Ohio -- The NCAA has announced today that the Mid-American Conference (MAC) and Greater Cleveland Sports Commission (GCSC) have been awarded the bid to host the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball First & Second Rounds in 2025, NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in 2026 and NCAA Division I Women's Bowling Championship in 2026. The Men's Basketball First & Second Rounds and Wrestling Championships will take place at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, while the Women's Bowling Championship will take place at RollHouse Wickliffe in Wickliffe, Ohio.

“Today we learned from the NCAA that we have been selected to host the 2025 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball First & Second Rounds, 2026 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships and 2026 NCAA Division I Women's Bowling Championship,” said Dr. Jon Steinbrecher, Commissioner of the Mid-American Conference. “The Mid-American Conference has been aggressive in pursuing NCAA championship events with our outstanding team that includes the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission and Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. We are proud of our long track record of successfully hosting NCAA events in Cleveland and can’t wait to showcase our great city.”

The MAC, GCSC & Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse served as the host for the 2015 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Midwest Regional in Cleveland and the 2018 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, which set NCAA Wrestling three-day Championship total attendance and single-session attendance records. The MAC was also selected to host the 2020 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament First and Second Rounds (cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic), and the 2024 Women’s Final Four also at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. The MAC and GCSC have also partnered to host the NCAA Women’s Bowling Championships (2012, 2014, 2019).
 
Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse and the MAC have a long-standing working relationship. For 21 years, Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse 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 Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse is the second longest running neutral site men’s tournament in the nation.
 
“Adding these premier NCAA Championship events to the Women’s Final Four already slated for 2024 will be great for Cleveland and have additional major impact for our community,” said Cleveland Cavaliers and Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse CEO Len Komoroski. “We are thankful to be part of such a hard-working group locally that competes to bring these amazing events here and we are proud to host them at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.”

"Cleveland’s selection of these incredible Championships provides us with a promising outlook for the future of live sporting events, said David Gilbert, President and CEO of Greater Cleveland Sports Commission. "The inspiration for this community to continue to move forward is in acknowledgement to the MAC and Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse for their partnership with the sports commission and communal efforts to achieve this great news.”

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 over 215 sporting events which provide over $843 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.

Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse
The newly transformed Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse 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 Cleveland Cavaliers, Cleveland Monsters and the annual MAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournament. Each year, Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse hosts more than 200 diverse ticketed events and 1,400 private events that draw over 2 million patrons to downtown Cleveland. Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse is established as a successful host site for high profile events of international and national scope, including the 2016 Republican National Convention, the 2007, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 NBA Finals and the upcoming 2022 NBA All-Star Game and 2024 NCAA Division 1 Women’s Basketball Final Four. In Pollstar Magazine’s 2019 Mid-Year Report of Top 200 Arena Venues Worldwide for Entertainment Ticket Sales, Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse ranked No. 11 in the United States and No. 27 worldwide in ticket sales for top touring attractions. Visit RocketMortgageFieldHouse.com.