{"id":491,"section":"sports","section_label":"Sports","url":"https://www.brokenews.co/sports/491","headline":"James Madison leaving Sun Belt for American Conference","dek":"The move, accepted by the American, will happen no later than July 1, 2028.","body":"James Madison is on its way out of the Sun Belt and into the American Conference, with both the school and the conference confirming the move on Oct. 12. The transition is set to happen no later than July 1, 2028.\n\nJMU's board voted to terminate its Sun Belt membership and apply to the American, a formality given how these things tend to go once the paperwork starts moving. The Dukes have been in the Sun Belt since 2022, when the program jumped up to the Football Bowl Subdivision from the Football Championship Subdivision, and have since been regarded as the most successful Group of Six football program over the past four years.\n\nAmerican commissioner Tim Pernetti framed the addition as a financial win for everyone already in the league, saying JMU's membership \"reflects a meaningful investment in the American and has been structured to protect and enhance the value of the conference's current membership.\" He added that the additional media inventory from JMU expands the conference's platform while boosting distributions for current members, and that JMU has made a significant financial and commercial commitment to the move.\n\nRealignment keeps grinding on, and JMU just became the latest program to cash in on it.","published_at":"2026-10-12T23:04:35.401115+00:00","source_count":4,"written_from":[{"outlet":"CBS Sports","publisher":"CBS Sports","title":"James Madison leaving Sun Belt for American after conference accepts application","url":"https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/james-madison-leaving-sun-belt-american/"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"American Conference adds James Madison as realignment wheels continue spinning","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/american-conference-adds-james-madison-143207983.html"},{"outlet":"The Athletic","publisher":"The Athletic","title":"James Madison board votes to terminate Sun Belt membership, apply for American Conference","url":"https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7683964/2026/10/12/james-madison-sun-belt-american-realignment/"}],"more_coverage":[{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"James Madison votes to leave Sun Belt, will join the American Conference","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/college-football/article/james-madison-votes-to-leave-sun-belt-will-join-the-american-conference-142037595.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"James Madison to leave Sun Belt for American Conference by 2028","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/james-madison-leave-sun-belt-153205075.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"JMU to leave Sun Belt and join American Conference by 2028","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/jmu-leave-sun-belt-join-153728324.html"},{"outlet":"Front Office Sports","publisher":"Front Office Sports","title":"James Madison Joins the American Before Sun Belt Exit Fees Rise","url":"https://frontofficesports.com/article/james-madison-joins-the-american-before-sun-belt-exit-fees-rise/"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"James Madison Joins the American Before Sun Belt Exit Fees Rise","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/james-madison-joins-american-sun-163204081.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"James Madison leaving Sun Belt Conference for American Conference in 2028","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/james-madison-leaving-sun-belt-164102621.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"“Absolutely Disgusted”: Insider Makes Thoughts Clear on JMU’s Surprise Conference Realignment Move Amid Undefeated Season","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/absolutely-disgusted-insider-makes-thoughts-224321509.html"}],"image":null,"embed":null,"license":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/","attribution":"Analysis data is licensed CC BY 4.0. Credit brokenews and link to the story page you took it from. Source headlines, story titles taken from a source headline, and quoted passages remain the property of their publishers and are quoted for comparison, not licensed onward.","terms":"https://www.brokenews.co/about#reuse"}