Missouri Valley Conference facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Missouri Valley Conference

Association	NCAA
Founded	1907; 118 years ago (1907)
Commissioner	Jeff Jackson (since 2021)
Sports fielded	18 men's: 8 women's: 10
Division	Division I
Subdivision	non-football
No. of teams	11
Headquarters	St. Louis, Missouri
Region	Midwestern & Southern United States
Locations

The Missouri Valley Conference (also known as MVC or "The Valley") is one of the oldest college sports groups in the United States. It brings together different universities to compete in various sports. Most of its member schools are located in the Midwest, but some are also in the Southern states like Kentucky, Tennessee, and Arkansas.

History of the MVC

The MVC started in 1907. It was first called the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MVIAA). Some of its first schools were the University of Kansas, University of Missouri, University of Nebraska, and Washington University in St. Louis. This makes it the fourth-oldest college sports conference in the U.S.

In 1928, the MVIAA split into two groups. Many of the larger schools formed a new conference that kept the MVIAA name. This group later became the Big Eight Conference. The Big Eight then joined with other schools to form the Big 12 Conference in 1996.

The smaller schools from the original MVIAA, like Drake and Washington University in St. Louis, joined with new schools like Creighton to form the Missouri Valley Conference we know today. Both the Big Eight and the MVC claimed to be the original conference.

In the 2006–07 college basketball season, MVC teams had a great record, winning 74 games and losing only 27 against non-conference teams. They won 44 games at home and lost only one.

The MVC stopped sponsoring football in 1985. However, some MVC schools still have football teams. These teams play in other conferences, like the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) or the Pioneer Football League. The MVC and MVFC share the same office in St. Louis, but they are separate organizations.

In 2017, Wichita State left the MVC to join another conference. Soon after, Valparaiso University joined the MVC in July 2017.

More changes happened in 2021 and 2022. Belmont University joined the MVC in July 2022. At the same time, Loyola University Chicago left the MVC. The conference then invited Murray State University to join, and they officially became a member in July 2022. The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) also joined the MVC in January 2022. This helped the MVC keep a presence in Chicago, which is important for attracting new students.

In May 2024, Missouri State announced it would leave the MVC in 2025 to join Conference USA.

The MVC and the MVFC (the football conference) became even closer in May 2025. They now share administrative operations. This means the leaders of the MVC and another conference called the Summit League also help lead the MVFC.

Member Schools

Current Full Members

These are the schools that are full members of the Missouri Valley Conference.

Affiliate Members

These schools are members of the MVC for specific sports, not all sports. Note: For spring sports, the "Joined" year is the year before the competition started.

Former Members

Former Full Members

These schools used to be full members of the MVC.

Former Affiliate Members

These schools were once part of the MVC for specific sports.

Membership Timeline

This timeline shows when schools joined and left the MVC.

Full members  Full members (non-football)  Assoc. members (football only)  Assoc. member (other sports)  Other Conference  Other Conference 

Commissioners of the MVC

The commissioner is the main leader of the conference. Here are the people who have served as commissioner:

• C. E. McClung (1907–19??)
• Arthur (Artie) E. Eilers (1925–1957)
• Norvell Neve (1957–1969)
• DeWitt T. Weaver (1969–1972)
• Mickey Holmes (1972–1979)
• David Price (1979–1981)
• Richard D. Martin (1981–1985)
• James A. Haney (1985–1988)
• Doug Elgin (1988–2021)
• Jeff Jackson (2021–present)

Sports in the MVC

Former Missouri Valley Conference logo

The Missouri Valley Conference offers championships in 8 men's sports and 10 women's sports. Some schools are "affiliate members" for certain sports. For example, Ball State (men), Little Rock (women), and Miami (OH) (men) are affiliate members for swimming and diving. Also, Bowling Green, Northern Illinois, and Western Michigan are affiliate members for men's soccer.

The MVC brought back men's swimming and diving in the 2024–25 school year after 22 years. Seven schools now compete in this sport within the MVC.

Teams in MVC Sports

This table shows how many teams compete in each sport within the MVC.

Men's Sports by School

This table shows which men's sports each school offers in the MVC.

Men's sports not sponsored by the MVC, but played by Valley schools:

Women's Sports by School

This table shows which women's sports each school offers in the MVC.

Women's sports not sponsored by the MVC, but played by Valley schools:

Sports Facilities

This table lists the main sports facilities for some of the MVC schools.

Note

• For football stadiums of schools that play football, you can find information at Missouri Valley Football Conference | Facilities and Pioneer Football League | Conference facilities.

Basketball Tournament Champions

The MVC holds tournaments for men's and women's basketball. The men's tournament is called Arch Madness. This name comes from the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri, where the tournament is held. It also sounds like "March Madness". The women's tournament is called Hoops in the Heartland.

Note: Missouri State was known as Southwest Missouri State until August 2005.

Postseason History: Multiple Bids

Sometimes, more than one team from the MVC gets to play in the NCAA tournament. This shows how strong the conference is.

National Team Titles

This section lists the number of NCAA championships won by schools that are part of the MVC.

• Belmont
• Bradley – 2
• Drake – 3
• Evansville – 0+5*
• UIC
• Illinois State – 0+1*
• Indiana State – 1
• Missouri State – 0 +2*
• Murray State
• UNI – 1+2*
• Southern Illinois – 5+3*
• Valparaiso – 0

(*-Titles won by schools in a lower division before they moved to Division I in the late 1960s or early 1970s)

Men's Basketball Attendance

The MVC is known for having very loyal fans. Many schools often fill their large arenas for basketball games. For example, former member Creighton had one of the highest attendances in Division I in 2012–13. Other schools like Bradley, Illinois State, Missouri State, and Indiana State also had high attendance numbers.

From 2010 to 2013, the MVC was ranked as the eighth conference for average attendance.

In March 2007, the MVC set a record for attendance at its men's basketball tournament in St. Louis. Over 85,000 fans attended the five sessions. The final game had a record crowd of 22,612 people. This was the largest championship crowd for any NCAA conference tournament that year.

MVC TV Network

Since 1993, the MVC has had its own TV network, called the MVC TV Network. This network broadcasts many of the conference's sports events. These games were shown on regional sports channels like Bally Sports Midwest and NBC Sports Chicago. They were also available on ESPN3 and later ESPN+.

Starting with the 2024–25 school year, a company called Gray Media took over the production and distribution of these games. Now, games are shown on local TV stations owned by Gray Media in states where MVC schools are located. They are also available live on ESPN+ and through the ESPN app, with no blackouts.

The MVC TV Network also broadcasts the early rounds of the men's basketball tournament, known as Arch Madness.

See also

In Spanish: Missouri Valley Conference para niños

• Missouri Valley Conference Hall of Fame