The dawn of a new era in the Sun Belt Conference began on July 1, 2016 as Coastal Carolina University officially joined the Sun Belt Conference after announcing its acceptance of an invitation on Sept. 1, 2015.
The Chanticleers joined the Sun Belt Conference as full members and began play in all sports, with the exception of football, in the 2016-17 academic year. The CCU football program began its two-year transition from the FCS to FBS in 2016-17. The Chanticleers completed the transition and attained full football membership status, with eligibility to play in a bowl game, for the 2018 season.
The Sun Belt Conference, which sponsors 19 NCAA sports, was founded in 1976 and began sponsoring football in 2001. The conference owns a .571 bowl winning percentage during the College Football Playoff era, trailing only the SEC (.578). Since expanding to 14 football-playing members in 2022, the Sun Belt has led non-autonomy conferences in bowl representation in each of the past three seasons and has been a multi-bid league in eight different sports.
The Sun Belt Conference is showcased nationwide through a media rights partnership with ESPN that runs through the 2030-31 academic year. For the 16th consecutive year in 2026, every Sun Belt home football game will appear on an ESPN platform or another linear network.
The Sun Belt Conference has transitioned to a neutral-site model for many of its championship events to provide an enhanced experience for student-athletes and fans. Pensacola, Fla., will serve as home for the Sun Belt Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships through the 2029-30 season. Cross country (Foley, Ala.), women’s soccer (Foley, Ala.), volleyball (Foley, Ala.), men’s tennis (Rome, Ga.), women’s tennis (Rome, Ga,) and baseball (Montgomery, Ala.) have also established long-term agreements.
