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| NCAA divisions |
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NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athletic powers, with large budgets, more elaborate and nicer facilities and a few more athletic scholarships than Divisions II and III as well as many smaller schools committed to the highest level of intercollegiate competition.
This level was previously called the University Division of the NCAA, in contrast to the lower-level College Division; these terms were replaced with numeric divisions in 1973. The University Division was renamed Division I, while the College Division was split in two; the College Division members that offered scholarships or wanted to compete against those who did became Division II, while those who did not want to offer scholarships became Division III.[1]
For college football only, D-I schools are further divided into the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), and those institutions that do not have any football program. FBS teams have higher game attendance requirements and more players receiving athletic scholarships than FCS teams. The FBS is named for its series of postseason bowl games, with various polls ranking teams after the conclusion of these games, while the FCS national champion is determined by a multi-team bracket tournament.
For the 2020–21 school year, Division I contained 357 out of the NCAA's 1,066 member institutions, with 130 in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), 127 in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), and 100 non-football schools, with six additional schools in the transition from Division II to Division I.[2][3] There was a moratorium on any additional movement up to D-I until 2012, after which any school that wants to move to D-I must be accepted for membership by a conference and show the NCAA it has the financial ability to support a D-I program.
Finances
Division I athletic programs generated $8.7 billion in revenue in the 2009–2010 academic year. Men's teams provided 55%, women's teams 15%, and 30% was not categorized by sex or sport. Football and men's basketball are usually a university's only profitable sports,[4] and are called "revenue sports".[5] From 2008 to 2012, 205 varsity teams were dropped in NCAA Division I – 72 for women and 133 for men, with men's tennis, gymnastics and wrestling hit particularly hard.[6]
In the Football Bowl Subdivision (130 schools in 2017), between 50 and 60 percent of football and men's basketball programs generated positive revenues (above program expenses).[7] However, in the Football Championship Subdivision (124 schools in 2017), only four percent of football and five percent of men's basketball programs generated positive revenues.[8]
In 2012, 2% of athletic budgets were spent on equipment, uniforms and supplies for male athletes at NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision school, with the median spending per-school at $742,000.[9]
In 2014, the NCAA and the student athletes debated whether student athletes should be paid. In April, the NCAA approved students-athletes getting free unlimited meals and snacks. The NCAA stated "The adoption of the meals legislation finished a conversation that began in the Awards, Benefits, Expenses and Financial Aid Cabinet. Members have worked to find appropriate ways to ensure student-athletes get the nutrition they need without jeopardizing Pell Grants or other federal aid received by the neediest student-athletes. With their vote, members of the council said they believe loosening NCAA rules on what and when food can be provided from athletics departments is the best way to address the issue."[10]
According to the finance section of the NCAA page, "The NCAA receives most of its annual revenue from two sources: television and marketing rights for the Division I Men's Basketball Championship and ticket sales for all championships. That money is distributed in more than a dozen ways — almost all of which directly support NCAA schools, conferences and nearly half a million student-athletes. About 60% of the NCAA's annual revenue — around $600 million — is annually distributed directly to Division I member schools and conferences, while more than $150 million funds Division I championships" (NCAA 2021).
Football conferences
Under NCAA regulations, all Division I conferences defined as "multisport conferences" must meet the following criteria:[11]
- A total of at least seven active Division I members. However, the NCAA's Grace Period rule (Bylaw 20.02.9.2) allows conferences to operate for up to two years with less than the minimum.[12]
- Separate from the above, at least seven active Division 1 members that sponsor both men's and women's basketball.
- Sponsorship of at least 12 NCAA Division I sports.
- Minimum of six men's sports, with the following additional restrictions:
- Men's basketball is a mandatory sport, and at least seven members must sponsor that sport.
- Non-football conferences must sponsor at least two men's team sports other than basketball.
- At least six members must sponsor five men's sports other than basketball, including either football or two other team sports.
- Minimum of six women's sports, with the following additional restrictions:
- Women's basketball is a mandatory sport, with at least seven members sponsoring that sport.
- At least two other women's team sports must be sponsored.
- At least six members must sponsor five women's sports other than basketball, with at least two of those five being team sports. If a conference officially sponsors an NCAA "emerging sport" for women (as of 2023–24, acrobatics & tumbling, equestrianism, rugby union, stunt, triathlon, or wrestling), that sport will be counted if five members (instead of six) sponsor it.
FBS conferences
FBS conferences must meet a more stringent set of requirements for NCAA recognition than other conferences:[13]
- A total of at least eight active FBS members.
- To be counted toward this total, a school must participate in conference play in at least six men's and eight women's sports, including men's and women's basketball, football, and at least two other women's team sports.
- Each school may count one men's and one women's sport not sponsored by its primary conference toward the above limits, as long as that sport competes in another Division I conference. The men's and women's sports so counted need not be the same sport.[14]
| Conference | Nickname | Founded | Members | Sports | Headquarters | Total NCAA Titles |
Men's NCAA Titles |
Women's NCAA Titles |
Co-ed NCAA Titles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Athletic Conference ‡ | The American | 1979 [a] | 14 [b][c] | 22 | Irving, Texas | 55 | 37 | 18 | 0 |
| Atlantic Coast Conference † | ACC | 1953 | 15 [d][e] | 28 | Charlotte, North Carolina | 150 | 87 | 58 | 5 |
| Big Ten Conference † | Big Ten | 1896 | 14 [f][g] | 28 | Rosemont, Illinois | 317 | 229 | 72 | 16 |
| Big 12 Conference † | Big 12 | 1996 | 14 [h][i] | 21 [j] | Irving, Texas | 166 | 163 | 3 | 0 |
| Conference USA ‡ | CUSA | 1995 [k] | 9 [l][m] | 19 | Dallas, Texas | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Division I FBS Independents[n] | – | – | 4[o] | 1 | – | ||||
| Mid-American Conference ‡ | MAC | 1946 | 12 [p][q] | 23 [r] | Cleveland, Ohio | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Mountain West Conference ‡ | MW | 1999 | 11 [s][t] | 19 | Colorado Springs, Colorado | 21 | 13 | 5 | 3 |
| Pac-12 Conference † | Pac-12 | 1915 [u] | 12 [v][w] | 24 | San Francisco, California | 501 | 309 | 174 | 18 |
| Southeastern Conference † | SEC | 1932 | 14 [x] | 20 | Birmingham, Alabama | 223 | 118 | 104 | 1 |
| Sun Belt Conference ‡ | SBC | 1976 | 14 [y] | 20 | New Orleans, Louisiana | 29 | 16 | 12 | 1 |
† "Power Five" conferences with guaranteed berths in the New Year's Six, the bowl games associated with the College Football Playoff
‡ "Group of Five" conferences
- Notes
- ^ The conference was founded in 1979 as the original Big East Conference. It renamed itself the American Athletic Conference following a 2013 split along football lines. The non-FBS schools of the original conference left to form a new conference that purchased the Big East name, while the FBS schools continued to operate under the old Big East's charter and structure. The American also inherited the old Big East's Bowl Championship Series berth for the 2013 season, the last for the BCS.
- ^ 13 of the 14 full members sponsor football, with Wichita State as the only non-football member.
- 13 full members, with 12 sponsoring football, in 2024 with loss of SMU.
- ^ In addition to the full members, six schools have single-sport associate membership, and two are members in two sports.
- Navy is a football-only member. Army becomes a football-only member in 2024.
- Cincinnati, Florida, James Madison, and Vanderbilt are members in women's lacrosse. Cincinnati will leave after the 2024 season when its primary home of the Big 12 Conference begins sponsoring the sport.
- FIU is a member in men's soccer and women's swimming & diving.
- Sacramento State is a member in women's rowing.
- Old Dominion is a member in both women's lacrosse and women's rowing.
- ^ Notre Dame is a full member except in football, in which it remains independent. It has committed to play five games each season against ACC opponents, and to play each other ACC member at least once every three years.
- ^ 18 full members and 17 football members in 2024 with addition of California, SMU, and Stanford.
- ^ 18 members in 2024 with addition of Oregon, UCLA, USC, and Washington.
- ^ In addition to the full members, two schools have affiliate membership:
- Johns Hopkins, otherwise a Division III member, is an affiliate in both men's and women's lacrosse, sports in which the school fields Division I teams.
- Notre Dame is a men's hockey affiliate.
- ^ 16 members in 2024 with the following changes:
- ^ In addition to the full members, the Big 12 has 13 members that participate in only one sport.
- Air Force, California Baptist, Missouri, North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, Northern Iowa, South Dakota State, Utah Valley, and Wyoming compete in men's wrestling.
- Fresno State competes in equestrian.
- Alabama and Tennessee are members in women's rowing.
- Denver is a member in women's gymnastics.
- ^ 23 sports in 2024 with addition of beach volleyball and women's lacrosse.
- ^ The conference was founded in 1995, with football competition starting in 1996.
- ^ 10 members in 2024 with addition of Kennesaw State.
- 12 members in 2025 with addition of Delaware and Missouri State.
- ^ In addition to the full members, Conference USA features 11 schools that play a single sport in the conference, and one that is a member in two sports.
- Dallas Baptist, a Division II member that plays D-I baseball, is a baseball-only member.
- Florida Atlantic, Missouri State, Tarleton, TCU, and UAB are members in beach volleyball. TCU will leave after the 2024 season when its primary home of the Big 12 Conference adds that sport, while Missouri State becomes a full CUSA member in 2025.
- Arkansas State, Stephen F. Austin, Valparaiso, Vanderbilt, and Youngstown State are bowling associates. Wichita State will join this group in 2024.
- Tulane is an associate in both beach volleyball and bowling.
- ^ "Independents" is not a conference; it is simply a designation used for schools whose football programs do not play in any conference. All of these schools have conference memberships for other sports.
- ^ 3 members in 2024 with Army becoming a football-only member of the American Athletic Conference.
- 2 members in 2025 when UMass becomes a full member of the Mid-American Conference.
- ^ 13 members in 2025 with addition of UMass.
- ^ In addition to the 12 full members, the Mid-American Conference features 18 single-sport members and one multi-sport associate. Another school will become a single-sport member in the near future, while four other single-sport members will leave.
- Appalachian State, Bellarmine, and Longwood compete in women's field hockey. James Madison will join this group in 2024.
- Detroit Mercy, Robert Morris, and Youngstown State compete in women's lacrosse.
- Evansville, Missouri State, Southern Illinois, and Valparaiso compete in men's swimming and diving, though Valparaiso fields no divers. Effective in July 2024, the MAC men's swimming & diving league will transfer to these schools' primary home of the Missouri Valley Conference.
- Bloomsburg, Clarion, Cleveland State, Edinboro, George Mason, Lock Haven, Rider, and SIU Edwardsville compete in men's wrestling.
- UIC is a member in both men's swimming & diving and men's tennis. UIC is also a full MVC member and thus will move men's swimming & diving to that conference in 2024.
- ^ 22 sports in 2024, with sponsorship of men's swimming & diving transferring to the Missouri Valley Conference.
- ^ Since 2012, Hawaiʻi has been a football-only associate member, with most of its remaining teams in the non-football Big West Conference.
- ^ In addition to the 11 full members and football affiliate Hawaiʻi, Colorado College, a Division III school with a Division I men's ice hockey team, plays Division I women's soccer in the MW. Washington State will become an associate in baseball and women's swimming & diving in 2024–25.
- ^ The charter of the Pac-12 dates only to the formation of the Athletic Association of Western Universities (AAWU) in 1959. However, the Pac-12 claims the history of the Pacific Coast Conference, which was founded in 1915 and began competition in 1916, as its own. Of the nine members of the PCC at the time of its demise in June 1959, only Idaho never joined the Pac-12. The PCC's berth in the Rose Bowl passed to the AAWU.
- ^ 2 members in 2024: Oregon State and Washington State.
- ^ The Pac-12 also includes five associate members, with four competing in a single sport and another in two sports.
- Bakersfield, Cal Poly, and Little Rock compete in men's wrestling.
- UC Davis competes in women's lacrosse.
- San Diego State competes in women's lacrosse and men's soccer.
- ^ 16 members in 2024 with addition of Oklahoma and Texas.[15]
- ^ In addition to the full members, the SBC has eight associate members:
- Kentucky, South Carolina, UCF, and West Virginia are members in men's soccer.
- Charleston, Mercer, Stephen F. Austin, and UNC Wilmington are members in beach volleyball.