mrowl
6/5/2006, 12:42 PM
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/stories/0606dnspobig12.57d0a0e1.html
San Antonio, KC to host Big 12 football, basketball championships
11:09 AM CDT on Monday, June 5, 2006
By KEITH WHITMIRE / The Dallas Morning News
The Big 12 will play its football championship in San Antonio in 2007 and its basketball tournaments in Kansas City in 2008, the league announced Monday.
San Antonio was host to two of the first four Big 12 football championships, in 1997 and 1999. Commissioner Kevin Weiberg said a key to returning to the city was a guarantee to sell 40,000-45,000 public tickets by the host committee. The ticket guarantee was not in place the last time San Antonio hosted the championship.
Kansas City has been the basketball host seven times, but this will be its first since time since 2005. The 2008 men’s tournament will coincide with the inaugural year of the new Sprint Center in downtown Kansas City.
Weiberg said the Big 12 did not want to award sites beyond 2007-08 because of a variety of factors. Those factors include the negotiation of a new television contract next year, possible changes in the basketball tournament format and the construction of the new Dallas Cowboys stadium in Arlington.
The new Cowboys stadium is scheduled to open in 2009. Weiberg said there have been no formal discussions with the Cowboys, but the Big 12 is monitoring the construction timeline. He said the bidding process for future championships would not start until at least January 2007.
This year’s football championship is in Kansas City on Dec. 2, and the 2007 basketball tournaments will be in Oklahoma City for the first time. Dallas has been host to the football championship in 2001 and the basketball tournaments in 2003, 2004 and 2006.
San Antonio, KC to host Big 12 football, basketball championships
11:09 AM CDT on Monday, June 5, 2006
By KEITH WHITMIRE / The Dallas Morning News
The Big 12 will play its football championship in San Antonio in 2007 and its basketball tournaments in Kansas City in 2008, the league announced Monday.
San Antonio was host to two of the first four Big 12 football championships, in 1997 and 1999. Commissioner Kevin Weiberg said a key to returning to the city was a guarantee to sell 40,000-45,000 public tickets by the host committee. The ticket guarantee was not in place the last time San Antonio hosted the championship.
Kansas City has been the basketball host seven times, but this will be its first since time since 2005. The 2008 men’s tournament will coincide with the inaugural year of the new Sprint Center in downtown Kansas City.
Weiberg said the Big 12 did not want to award sites beyond 2007-08 because of a variety of factors. Those factors include the negotiation of a new television contract next year, possible changes in the basketball tournament format and the construction of the new Dallas Cowboys stadium in Arlington.
The new Cowboys stadium is scheduled to open in 2009. Weiberg said there have been no formal discussions with the Cowboys, but the Big 12 is monitoring the construction timeline. He said the bidding process for future championships would not start until at least January 2007.
This year’s football championship is in Kansas City on Dec. 2, and the 2007 basketball tournaments will be in Oklahoma City for the first time. Dallas has been host to the football championship in 2001 and the basketball tournaments in 2003, 2004 and 2006.