Rosemont, IL (SportsNetwork.com) - The Big Ten has announced an agreement with the city of Indianapolis that will have the conference's football championship game remain at Lucas Oil Stadium through 2021.
The league has held its first three football title games in Indianapolis and was already contracted to play the 2014 and 2015 editions there as well. Last year's matchup between Michigan State and then-undefeated Ohio State drew a capacity crowd of 66,002 fans.
Additionally, the Big Ten men's basketball tournament will rotate between Chicago and Indianapolis between 2019-22, with the event to take place at the United Center in 2019 and 2021 and Bankers Life Fieldhouse in both 2020 and 2022.
"The Big Ten Conference and member institutions are excited to return to Chicago and Indianapolis for future football championship games and basketball tournaments," said Big Ten commissioner James E. Delany. "These two cities have been tremendous hosts and partners with first-class facilities and an outstanding base of Big Ten alumni and fans who support conference events. We are proud of the history that we have developed with these two great cities and look forward to maintaining a significant presence in both locations."
Chicago will also host next year's men's basketball tournament, the first that will include incoming members Maryland and Rutgers, with Indianapolis the host site in 2016. The Big Ten announced last month that the 2017 tourney will be held at the Verizon Center in Washington, with the site for the 2018 event yet to be determined.
Indianapolis also earned hosting rights for the Big Ten women's basketball tournament from 2017 until 2022, the league announced Thursday.
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