The University of Kansas will head across the pond for Big 12 football in 2026, according to a report from The Post and Courier on Thursday morning.
Scott Hamilton of the Charleston, South Carolina, newspaper reported that KU and Arizona State will meet at Wembley Stadium in London on Sept. 19, 2026, as part of an event called the Union Jack Classic.
KU did not confirm the report on Thursday. If the matchup indeed comes to fruition, it will be the first high-major college football game played in the United Kingdom and is believed to be the first of any kind since Richmond beat Boston University 20-17 at the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre on Oct. 16, 1988.
If the Jayhawks play the Sun Devils in London, they will be giving up a home game, as the matchup between the two teams was set to take place at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium according to the Big 12’s scheduling matrix. KU athletic director Travis Goff has previously said that the stadium will likely operate under reduced capacity during the 2026 season as construction of the second phase of KU’s Gateway project takes place at the east end of the venue.
The Sept. 19 date raises some questions about KU’s scheduling for next season given that the Jayhawks are currently bound by an agreement signed in March 2023 to pay Middle Tennessee $925,000 for a game in Lawrence on that same day, according to a copy of the contract obtained by the Journal-World via the Kansas Open Records Act. ASU is also supposed to play against Hawaii on Sept. 19.
If KU is able to move the Middle Tennessee matchup elsewhere in its schedule, it would still play six games in Lawrence in 2026, as it is also set to host Long Island, Missouri, Baylor, BYU and UCF.
The Big 12 hosted a game between Kansas State and Iowa State at Aviva Stadium in Dublin in what was known as the Aer Lingus College Football Classic on Aug. 23. That event has also featured teams from the ACC, Big Ten and independent ranks in recent years, and TCU will face North Carolina there next year. Michigan and Western Michigan are reportedly in talks to play in Frankfurt, Germany, next season as well.
This story will be updated.
AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth
