DENVER – The University of Denver officially joined the West Coast Conference as a competing member on Wednesday, July 1, and throughout the course of the next week, DenverPioneers.com will look at some of the storylines associated with the conference transition.

The first, and maybe most impactful adjustment for Pioneer fans, is the shift in streaming platforms for Denver's athletic programs outside of hockey from Midco Sports Plus to ESPN+ beginning in 2026-27. This streaming shift not only applies to the programs making the transition from the Summit League to the West Coast Conference this athletic season but also applies to Denver's nationally-ranked gymnastics (Big 12) and lacrosse (BIG EAST) programs. NCHC.tv will continue to be the streaming home for Denver hockey in 2026-27.

Based on the fall sports schedules released so far and last season's schedules for the winter and spring sports, ESPN+ will be the streaming home for approximately 140 Denver athletic events in 2026-27. 

ESPN+ offers sports fans an unprecedented volume of live sports programming, including more than 24,000 college games and events across 20 conferences nationwide; more than 50 exclusive and 1,000 out-of-market NHL Power Play games each season; top domestic and international soccer; exclusive hours of golf coverage; Grand Slam tennis; Major League Baseball, and more. In April, the ESPN app reached nearly 224 million unique fans. 

ESPN Select (includes ESPN+) plans begin at $12.99 a month while ESPN Unlimited plans, which includes linear television programming throughout the ESPN family, begin at $29.99 a month. For more information on all ESPN plans and bundles, CLICK HERE.

Denver's three fall sports programs have confirmed their schedules for the 2026 campaign. DU women's soccer could have 15 regular season matches on ESPN+; men's soccer is expected to be featured on ESPN+ in at least 13 of its 16 regular season matches; and Denver volleyball will likely have 25 matches on ESPN+.

In addition to the 53 regular-season fall events, all men's and women's basketball, men's and women's lacrosse and gymnastics home events, and conference away events not picked up on linear networks will be on ESPN+. Using last year's schedule, that would provide Denver fans with another 88 events on the ESPN streaming platform.

The Big 12 Conference has been associated with ESPN+ since the start of the 2019-20 athletic season, and the BIG EAST made the transition from Flo Sports to ESPN+ ahead of the 2025-26 campaign.

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