The 2025-26 women’s basketball season opener between No. 1 UConn and No. 20 Louisville might need to find a new venue.
The matchup between the reigning champion Huskies and Cardinals is scheduled to be played on Nov. 4 at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. However, the government shutdown could prevent the game from being played overseas.
Advertisement
REQUIRED READING: Women’s Final Four moving to Lucas Oil Stadium in 2028 due to increased popularity, demand
According to the Louisville Courier Journal ― part of the USA TODAY Network ― if the shutdown continues through Monday, Oct. 20, the matchup between UConn and Louisville could be moved to the U.S. Naval Base in Washington, D.C., though a spokesperson said nothing is official yet.
The Courier Journal also reported that Louisville is taking guidance from ESPN on the game, as the network is in charge of putting on the event and makes the final call of where the game will be played.
The government shutdown started on Oct. 1 when the Senate did not pass a GOP funding bill that was passed by the House. If the shutdown extends until Nov. 4, it would match the longest shutdown in American history at 35 days, tying the record from President Donald Trump‘s first term in office, in 2019.
Advertisement
If played in Germany, the UConn-Louisville game would be the third time the Armed Forces Classic will be played at Ramstein, but the first time it will be a women’s basketball game. The UConn men’s team played Michigan State in 2012, while the Texas A&M and West Virginia men’s teams played in 2017.
UConn and Louisville are entering Year 3 of a four-year home-and-home series. The Huskies earned an 86-52 win over the Cardinals on Dec. 16, 2023, in Hartford, Connecticut and an 85-52 win on Dec. 7, 2024, at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, in the Women’s Champions Classic. Louisville is scheduled to host UConn at the KFC Yum! Center next season.
Led by Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd, the Huskies won the national championship last season, 82-59, over Dawn Staley and South Carolina. Louisville was bounced in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Government shutdown could force venue change for UConn-Louisville game
