NCAA Warns Schools Government Shutdown May Affect Fall Championships 

The ongoing government shutdown may end up disrupting the NCAA fall championships.

Front Office Sports viewed a memo the NCAA sent to its member schools Friday morning which said it is “monitoring the impact and risk” of the ongoing government shutdown to the fall championships.

On Wednesday, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ordered U.S. airlines to cut 10% of flights at the country’s 40 busiest airports. According to the memo, the impacted airports supported more than 70% of flights for the fall championships last November.

“The membership should be prepared for flight reductions and ongoing air traffic control and Transportation Security Administration staff shortages during the government shutdown,” the memo said.

The shutdown, which began on Oct. 1 and is now on its 37th day, is the longest in U.S. history.

The 2025 fall championships require more than 1,000 trips to more than 350 preliminary and final sites, according to the memo. The NCAA pays for teams’ travel to its championships across all divisions.

The NCAA did not go into any specifics about how its travel team intends to mitigate travel issues. The organization said its travel team is “exploring” its options “since this is an issue that cannot be controlled by the national office or the membership.” 

“Rest assured that the national office staff is committed to working on these potential issues so the student-athletes, coaches and administrators can have great experiences competing for national championships this fall,” the memo read.

Of the 24 fall championships, 11 will take place in November, including Division I championships for men’s and women’s tennis, field hockey, and men’s and women’s cross country.

The tennis championships start on Nov. 18, the first of the 24 finals, at the USTA National Campus in Orlando. The Orlando International Airport, the closest airport to the USTA National Campus, is one of the 40 airports included in the FAA’s selection. 

The USTA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.