The NCAA has announced that the 2026 and 2027 Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament semifinals and finals will be in Wichita, Kansas at Charles Koch Arena on the Wichita State University (WSU) campus. This will be the first year that Wichita will host the final WBIT games. Wichita has experience hosting women’s basketball tournament games, most recently when it hosted a March Madness regional in 2022.
“Visit Wichita is honored to host, in partnership with Wichita State University, the 2026 and 2027 Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament, bringing even more high-level women’s sports to Wichita,” said Josh Howell, vice president of sports development at Visit Wichita. “We are very excited to welcome — for the first time — this tournament that showcases some of the best in women’s basketball and delivers high-energy matchups that fans won’t want to miss. In addition to the positive local economic impact and national TV exposure, this is a great competition for basketball fans in the region to experience in person.”
WBIT semifinals and finals will be broadcast on ESPN platforms. Dates are:
- 2026: March 30 (semifinals), April 1 (final).
- 2027: March 29 (semifinals), March 31 (final).
“We are delighted to bring the WBIT to Wichita,” said Lynn Holzman, NCAA vice president of women’s basketball. “Since the first WBIT in 2024, the postseason event has been a tremendous success for women’s basketball programs. With women’s basketball thriving, we are eager to build on this momentum in Wichita. The Wichita community has consistently supported NCAA basketball, twice hosting successful Division I women’s basketball tournament rounds. Its central location and accessibility make it an ideal location to continue growing this event.”
This will be the third year of the WBIT, with Minnesota taking home the WBIT trophy in 2025 and Illinois in 2024.
“Wichita State is excited and honored to be selected as the host of the WBIT finals in 2026 and 2027,” said Brad Pittman, Wichita State senior associate athletics director. “We strive to provide memorable championship experiences both in our city and on our campus and have had the opportunity to host many successful external events over the last few years. We are excited to showcase the city of Wichita and our campus on a national stage, and to show the rest of the country the passion for women’s basketball that exists in Wichita.”
The WBIT postseason tournament is owned and funded by the NCAA. The Association provides 100 postseason opportunities for Division I women’s basketball teams through its two events (the 68-team championship and 32-team WBIT). Selections, pairings and the bracket for the 2026 WBIT will be announced March 15.
###
About Visit Wichita
Visit Wichita markets the Greater Wichita area and advocates for the city as a destination, increasing travel and tourism as a key economic driver for the city, county, region and state. Visit Wichita is led by president and CEO Susie Santo, and in 2024 travel and tourism contributed more than $1.5 billion in economic impact to the greater Wichita area.
