SAN BRUNO, Calif. – The West Coast Conference welcomes the University of Denver as it expands its footprint into another major metropolitan area in the western region.
The West Coast Conference Presidents’ Council approved the admission of Denver as a conference competing member, beginning July 1, 2026. DU becomes the second announced membership addition in as many months, following the Sept. 3 announcement of the addition of UC San Diego. The conference will have 10 competing members in the 2026-27 academic year and 11 beginning with the 2027-28 academic year when UC San Diego becomes a competing member.
“The University of Denver is a superb addition to the growing constellation of top-flight schools in the West Coast Conference,” said Christopher Callahan, President of University of the Pacific and Chair of the West Coast Conference Presidents’ Council. “Under the outstanding leadership of Chancellor Jeremy Haefner, Denver is an academically strong university with a championship-winning pedigree in athletics.
“The addition of DU also brings the West Coast Conference another major media market while keeping true to our geographic profile, ensuring our student-athletes are not burdened with excessive travel,” Callahan added. “Commissioner Jackson has done an exemplary job of adding two stellar universities to our conference in the past two months, and now we look forward to setting our sights on recruiting a 12th exceptional university to our athletic conference.”
Denver’s addition highlights the West Coast Conference as the gateway to the western region. The conference rises in the west with a footprint that now stretches across 1,200 miles of the western region and expands to four states – California, Oregon, Washington and Colorado. The West Coast Conference is the only NCAA Division I conference with representation in eight of the nine largest metropolitan cities in the West. Conference membership is now represented in seven of the top 30 media markets in the United States in Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, Denver, Sacramento, Portland and San Diego.
“In the University of Denver, the West Coast Conference adds a geographically-aligned, perennial top performer among the winningest non-football athletic programs in the nation,” said West Coast Conference Commissioner Stu Jackson. “Denver’s commitment to elevate men’s and women’s basketball to a level which matches its nationally recognized success in other sports, while maintaining a focus on student-athlete development and experiences, is among the foundational pillars to this expansion. Their multi-year basketball growth plan shows an intentional focus that meets our basketball-centric identity. The Conference also values the addition of another large metropolitan area and top media market which will broaden our reach and deliver greater opportunity for our membership. The vision of Chancellor Jeremy Haefner and Vice Chancellor for Athletics Josh Berlo to strategically invest in its programs and compete at the highest level aligns with our mission as a premier basketball conference.
“As we welcome the University of Denver to the West Coast Conference, we continue our charge in expansion with the addition of two members in the past 58 days,” Jackson added. “This is our next step in expansion. We will continue to identify opportunities that expand our reach and better position us for additional NCAA bids.”
Denver will compete in the West Coast Conference in men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s soccer, women’s volleyball, men’s and women’s golf and men’s and women’s tennis.
“This is an exciting day for DU and an incredible opportunity to continue to advance our exceptional academic and athletic programs,” University of Denver Chancellor Jeremy Haefner said. “The excellence of schools that are part of the West Coast Conference is a perfect complement to DU and will help us continue to recruit the very best students and faculty.”
Denver has a storied history of postseason success with 35 national championships overall and numerous deep postseason runs, including a pair of NCAA Men’s Soccer College Cup appearances in the last nine years (2016 and 2024). DU has finished as the top institution in the LEARFIELD Directors’ Cup standings among non-football schools each of the last 12 years and 16 of the last 17 overall. Across the nine sports that DU will compete in the West Coast Conference, the Pioneers have earned NCAA Tournament berths 91 times since 1998.
Denver has made a multi-year commitment to position its men’s and women’s basketball programs for national competitive excellence as it enters the West Coast Conference next year. DU recently finalized plans to install new chairback seating in Hamilton Gymnasium ahead of the 2026-27 season.
“It has long been the ambition of the University of Denver and its community to further align ourselves with institutional peers in the West and that day has now come as we join the academically and athletically prestigious West Coast Conference,” Vice Chancellor of Athletics and Ritchie Center Operations Josh Berlo said. “I’d like to thank Commissioner Stu Jackson and the institutional leadership of the West Coast Conference for embracing the University of Denver. Joining the West Coast Conference will position DU with some of the top-ranked private universities in the West and their highly competitive athletics programs, elevate the university’s brand and national reputation through significantly enhanced broadcast exposure and increase the institutional presence in key markets for student recruitment and alumni engagement in the West.”
With the addition of Denver, 10 West Coast Conference member institutions are ranked in the top 151 of U.S. News and World Report’s list of the best universities in the United States.
The West Coast Conference is well regarded as one of the nation’s premier leagues in men’s basketball with six consecutive years of multiple NCAA Tournament bids, including multiple selections in 11 of the past 13 tournaments. The conference sent a record-tying six teams to NCAA postseason tournaments last season. At least one team has advanced past the first round in each of the past 17 tournaments. Eleven West Coast Conference teams have earned a NCAA Tournament berth in the last five seasons, with 10 of those teams earning an eight seed or better. Last season, nearly half of the conference’s men’s basketball programs finished in the top 85 of the final NET rankings.
A record-tying six women’s basketball teams earned postseason tournament berths last season. The conference has sent multiple women’s basketball teams to the NCAA Tournament five of the past six years.
The West Coast Conference is a multiple-bid conference in several sports with a rich tradition of postseason success. The conference has sent multiple women’s soccer teams to the NCAA Tournament in each of the last 33 seasons, highlighted by a recent NCAA Championship by Santa Clara and multiple Women’s College Cup appearances over the last six seasons. Pepperdine’s recent NCAA Men’s Golf Championship highlights NCAA appearances by multiple West Coast Conference men’s golf teams in 10 consecutive seasons, with four bids in three of the last four years. The conference has earned multiple NCAA selections in men’s soccer in eight of the last nine years. Led by a recent NCAA title match appearance by Pepperdine, multiple women’s tennis teams have been part of the national rankings and advanced to the postseason. Multiple conference women’s volleyball teams have earned NCAA Tournament bids in 12 of the past 14 seasons, including a recent Final Four appearance by San Diego. Last season, LMU beach volleyball advanced to the NCAA Championship dual.
About the West Coast Conference
The West Coast Conference was formed in 1952 and has grown to become a nationally recognized and competitive force in Division I intercollegiate athletics. We Rise in the West with a footprint that represents the western region’s largest metropolitan areas, including Gonzaga, LMU, Pacific, Pepperdine, Portland, Saint Mary’s, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Clara and Seattle U. Across 16 sports, we are fueled by a conviction to achieve our championship goals with strong core values of integrity, respect, collaboration, innovation, and inclusiveness. For more information, visit WCCsports.com and follow the West Coast Conference on X, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok @WCCsports.
About the University of Denver
Founded in 1864, the University of Denver is a private university that empowers students who want to make a difference. Recognized as one of the top research universities in the country, DU has more than 300 academic programs serving about 12,000 graduate and undergraduate students. DU students benefit from an experience on two campuses—in the city and in the mountains — that channels their passions to serve the public good.
About Denver Athletics
The University of Denver is home to 35 national championships, ranking Denver as the 14th-most prolific national-title winning athletic department in the country. Denver has finished as the highest athletic department without football (DI-AAA) in the Learfield Directors’ Cup Standings 16 of the last 17 academic years. Since the late Daniel L. Ritchie elevated Denver’s entire athletic lineup to Division I in 1998-99, Denver has 95 conference regular season titles, 126 conference tournament titles and has made 208 NCAA Tournament appearances.