CIAA Basketball Tournament To Stay In Baltimore Through 2029

The CIAA basketball tournament will remain in Baltimore through 2029, according to a report by the Charlotte Business Journal, despite a competitive bid from Charlotte, North Carolina.

According to reports from HBCU Sports, Baltimore and Charlotte were the only cities to submit bids to host the high-profile event. Baltimore, which first secured the tournament in 2021, will now extend its hosting duties for an additional three years beyond the current contract, which originally ran through 2026.

Charlotte previously hosted the tournament from 2006 to 2020, generating an estimated $650 million in economic impact during that span. However, concerns over hotel pricing reportedly played a role in the CIAA’s decision to leave the Queen City after the 2020 event.

According to conference guidelines, host cities must provide a venue with at least 7,500 seats, restrict ticket resales, and allow the CIAA full control of game-day sales and revenue. Additionally, cities are required to designate a hotel headquarters offering 500 rooms at a rate of no more than $200 per night for staff, officials, and media. Fan accommodations must also be secured, with room blocks capped at $225 per night.

“We didn’t have the flexibility,” said Mohammad Jenatian, president of the Greater Charlotte Hospitality & Tourism Alliance, in an interview with the Charlotte Business Journal. Despite the setback, Jenatian remains hopeful that Charlotte could host the event again in the future.

Charlotte’s proposal, covering the years 2028 to 2030 due to a scheduling conflict in 2027, faced several logistical challenges. While it included two years at the Spectrum Center in uptown Charlotte, the 2029 tournament would have been relocated to Bojangles Coliseum. This arrangement clashed with the CIAA’s long-standing preference for a consistent uptown venue.

That preference was shaped by the conference’s previous experience in Charlotte, where split-venue tournaments between 2017 and 2020 drew smaller mid-week crowds. Those low attendance numbers reportedly frustrated Spectrum Center’s operator, the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets, who have historically pushed to reserve the arena for more lucrative events such as concerts or to shorten the team’s road trips during tournament week.

Charlotte submitted its bid to the CIAA in April, but ultimately, the city’s proposal fell short in meeting the conference’s expectations.

CIAA Basketball Tournament to Stay in Baltimore Through 2029  was originally published on wolbbaltimore.com