Atlantic 10 extends women's basketball championship tournament for a third year in Henrico
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Officials from the Atlantic 10 conference Wednesday announced that the A-10 women's basketball championship tournament will remain in Henrico County for a third year.
The Henrico Sports and Events Center, which hosted the event this year, already was set to host it again in 2025. Now, it also will be the host site for the 2026 event.
In a statement, conference officials said they were thrilled with the attendance and energy of the 2024 tournament, won by the Richmond Spiders.
“We’re very pleased to extend our partnership with the Henrico Sports & Events Center to provide a home for the Women’s Basketball Championship through 2026,” said A-10 Commissioner Bernadette McGlade. "We had a wildly successful first year in 2024, with record crowds and thrilling finishes and we expect to continue that success for the next two years.”
The decision was finalized by the league’s athletic directors during the conference's recent annual spring meetings.
The A-10 will celebrate its 50th Anniversary in 2025-26, with the women's basketball championship considered one of its marquee events. More than 16,000 fans attended the five-day event this year at the 3,500-seat arena.
The championship set attendance records, with the Friday quarterfinals seeing more than 5,700 people in attendance and the first sellout in the history of the Henrico Sports and Events Center in the first session. The estimated economic impact brought into the Greater Richmond Area through the A-10 Women’s Basketball Championship was more than $1.3 million in indirect spending, according to county and league officials.
"Together with our partner, Richmond Region Tourism, we are committed to providing an exceptional experience for student-athletes, coaches, and fans," said Dennis Bickmeier, the executive director of the Henrico Sports and Entertainment Authority, which oversees the facility. "We look forward to many more exciting tournaments in Henrico.”
The 2026 event will mark the ninth time in the last 12 years the championship has been hosted in the Richmond region. From 2014 through 2018, the tournament was played at the Richmond Coliseum, and in 2021, VCU hosted the league tournament on campus at the Siegel Center.
The championship enjoys national television and streaming coverage for all five rounds, with ESPN+ broadcasting the first and second rounds. This coming season, the quarterfinals will air on NBC/USA Network for the first time. CBS Sports Network will air the semifinals and ESPN will carry the championship final on ESPN2 or ESPNU.
