Title: Atlantic Coast Conference Adds Stanford, California, and SMU, Creating a Fourth Super Conference
After a round of voting on Friday, the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) has decided to expand its membership by adding Stanford University, the University of California (Cal), and Southern Methodist University (SMU). This move not only provides a landing spot for two more schools from the disintegrating Pac-12 but also creates a fourth super conference in major college sports.
ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips expressed his excitement about the decision, calling it a “transformational day” for the conference. Starting in August 2024, the ACC will increase its number of football schools to 17 and 18 in most other sports, while Notre Dame remains a football independent. The expansion required the approval of 12 out of the 15 ACC members, and although the vote was not unanimous, Phillips stated that everyone felt positive about the process.
Both North Carolina and Florida State voted against the expansion. Florida State raised concerns about the ACC’s revenue distribution model, stating that the move did not fully address their financial interests. However, the Seminoles still expressed gratitude to the league for listening to their concerns and looked forward to earning new revenue through the ACC’s success incentives initiative.
With the addition of Stanford, California, and SMU, the ACC will now have members in at least three time zones, similar to the Big Ten and Big 12 conferences. The ACC’s geographical reach will span from Boston to Miami, expanding out to Dallas and up to Northern California. Stanford and Cal’s inclusion in the ACC means that Notre Dame will no longer be the westernmost school in the conference. The move raises questions about the impact on athletes’ travel, changes in recruiting, and the loss of traditional rivalries.
The decision to join the ACC was driven, in part, by financial considerations for Stanford, Cal, and SMU. With the Pac-12 facing departures to other conferences, the Bay Area schools see this move as critical for their athletic programs’ financial stability. Stanford expects minimal scheduling changes for the majority of its sports, while Cal Chancellor Carol Christ highlighted Dallas as a location where teams could come together to minimize travel impacts.
The inclusion of Stanford, Cal, and SMU in the ACC signifies a shift in the landscape of major college sports and marks the end of this wave of realignment among the nation’s wealthiest conferences. The ACC’s expanded membership will result in increased media rights revenue from the conference’s deal with ESPN, bolstering the financial resources available to existing members.
Cal and Stanford will receive a partial share of ACC Tier 1 media revenue over the next nine years before eventually receiving a full payment in the final three years of the conference’s deal with ESPN. SMU, on the other hand, will forgo all ACC media rights distribution for nine years but anticipates higher revenues over time through various sources.
As the ACC continues to grow, it will join the Southeastern Conference, Big Ten, and Big 12 as a conference with at least 16 football-playing members. This expansion adds another layer of complexity to college athletics, with shifting conference affiliations and changing revenue dynamics impacting the future of the sport.