UH announces move to full Mountain West membership in 2026
The University of Hawaii announced today that it will join the Mountain West Conference as a full-time member effective July 1, 2026.
Currently, UH is a member of the MWC in football only. Nearly all of its other sports have competed in the Big West Conference since 2012.
“The University of Hawaii is honored to accept full membership in the Mountain West Conference, marking a pivotal moment in our athletic program’s history,” UH President David Lassner said in a press release. “While we are sad to leave so many amazing colleagues and competitors in the Big West, this expanded partnership will build on our strong football relationship and securely position us to thrive with our Mountain West colleagues in this incredibly dynamic landscape of intercollegiate athletics. This move will also help strengthen our overall finances.”
Travel subsidies for conference opponents will be phased out and a $750,000 exit fee for leaving the Big West Conference will be covered by the Mountain West Conference.
The addition of UH as a full-time member gives the conference eight schools, meeting the NCAA minimum requirement to be a Division I conference.
Boise State, Fresno State, San Diego State, Colorado State and Utah State announced in September they were leaving the conference for the Pac-12 beginning in 2026.
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UTEP recently accepted an offer to join the Mountain West, which as of July 2026 will include Air Force, Nevada, New Mexico, San Jose State, UNLV and Wyoming along with UH.
“At the end of the day, as we looked at all of our options, we believe the Mountain West Conference is the best place for all of our sports to be,” Hawaii athletic director Craig Angelos said today. “One, it brings stability to our program as a full-fledged member of a FBS conference and two, I think it will strengthen our financial picture.”
Hawaii will compete in 15 sports in the Mountain West Conference, which does not sponsor beach volleyball, men’s volleyball, men’s swimming and diving and women’s water polo.
A decision on where those teams will compete has not been made, although the Big West remains a possibility.
