NCAA Announces Tournament Relocations from North Carolina

NCAA President Mark Emmert announced last night

that the association will move seven championships from North Carolina in response to the state’s

HB2

law, following the

NBA’s decision

to remove its February All-Star weekend earlier this summer.

The seven championship events will be relocated from North Carolina are as follows:

2016 Division I Women’s Soccer Championship, College Cup (Cary), Dec. 2 and 4.
2016 Division III Men’s and Women’s Soccer Championships (Greensboro), Dec. 2 and 3.
2017 Division I Men’s Basketball Championship, first/second rounds (Greensboro), March 17 and 19.
2017 Division I Women’s Golf Championships, regional (Greenville), May 8-10.
2017 Division III Men’s and Women’s Tennis Championships (Cary), May 22-27.
2017 Division I Women’s Lacrosse Championship (Cary), May 26 and 28.
2017 Division II Baseball Championship (Cary), May 27-June 3.

In a statement released by the NCAA, Emmert said:

"“Fairness is about more than the opportunity to participate in college sports, or even compete for championships. We believe in providing a safe and respectful environment at our events and are committed to providing the best experience possible for college athletes, fans and everyone taking part in our championships.”"

In the same statement, the “Board of Governors emphasized that NCAA championships and events must promote an inclusive atmosphere for all college athletes, coaches, administrators and fans. Current North Carolina state laws make it challenging to guarantee that host communities can help deliver on that commitment if NCAA events remained in the state…”

The board “stressed that the dynamic in North Carolina is different from that of other states because of at least four specific factors”:

North Carolina laws invalidate any local law that treats sexual orientation as a protected class or has a purpose to prevent discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender individuals.
North Carolina has the only statewide law that makes it unlawful to use a restroom different from the gender on one’s birth certificate, regardless of gender identity.
North Carolina law provides legal protections for government officials to refuse services to the LGBT community.
Five states plus numerous cities prohibit travel to North Carolina for public employees and representatives of public institutions, which could include student-athletes and campus athletics staff. These states are New York, Minnesota, Washington, Vermont and Connecticut.

As reported by WFMY-TV, “[o]fficials in Greensboro estimated that their local economy will lose $14 million as the NCAA men’s 1st and 2nd round games at the Greensboro Coliseum are moved.”

The overall impact isn’t yet clear, but Richard Geiger, president of the Winston-Salem Convention and Visitors Bureau stated:

"“This legislation is still pretty damaging to travel and tourism in our state. The decision from the NCAA speaks for itself. It’s time to determine what’s to be done. The law is viewed by many people as discriminatory. We need people to be safe, but we also need businesses to relocate here and sporting events held here.”"

Emmert spoke of the decision this morning on CBS This Morning: