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Two years have passed since the Big 12 announced plans to play football, basketball, baseball, and women’s soccer games in Mexico—none of which have come to fruition yet.
But the conference hasn’t abandoned its international expansion strategy, despite first delaying the “Big 12 Mexico” initiative from 2024 to 2025, before ultimately pivoting away from its initial plans altogether.
“I want this conference to be a global conference,” commissioner Brett Yormark said at Big 12 football media days this week. “I think we can win globally big-time.”
The Big 12’s presence outside the U.S., like other Power 4 conferences, is growing.
In August, Iowa State and Kansas State will face off in Dublin, marking the first time Big 12 schools have competed in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic that’s become an annual Week 0 tradition since 2022. “The game in Ireland is an impetus for future global expansion, and I’m all in on it,” Yormark said. Big 12 member TCU will play North Carolina in Ireland next year.
In November, Baylor’s women’s basketball team will play Duke in Paris as part of a new event in France, and Yormark said there is a “good chance” the Big 12 will play baseball games in Mexico City in the spring of 2026. The Big 12 media days are being held in Arlington, Texas—which is notable, given that six member schools (Arizona, Arizona State, Baylor, Houston, TCU, and Texas Tech) are based in states bordering Mexico.
New Borders
What else could be on the way outside the U.S.? “We’re having conversations with other countries throughout the world that are very interested in bringing the Big 12 to their marketplace,” Yormark said.
International expansion appears to be an area of growth that many college sports are interested in exploring further, as professional leagues like the NFL, NBA, MLB, and NHL have found great success in recent years, taking their products abroad.
