Kansas, Arizona State Bring College Football to Wembley for Union Jack Classic
College football is coming to Wembley Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 19, when Arizona State meets Kansas in the inaugural Union Jack Classic.
Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. in London, which is 11 a.m. CT in Lawrence, Kansas. The game counts as a Week 3 matchup in the 2026 college season. Organizers bill it as the first college football game ever played at Wembley, England's 90,000-seat national stadium KU Athletics.
Both teams play in the Big 12 Conference, one of the top leagues in college football. Fox Sports lists live television and streaming coverage from London on Sept. 19. Fox will also bring its Big Noon Kickoff, its Saturday morning pregame show, to London for the game, the first time that show has gone international The Guardian.
Kansas arrives after a split start. The Jayhawks beat LIU 51-6 on Sept. 4, then lost 38-21 to No. 23 Missouri on Sept. 11 KU Athletics. Now comes the long trip. Kansas will travel more than 4,500 miles to London for the Arizona State game.
The trip is part of a bigger push. Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark leads the 16-team league, which is looking for fans beyond the United States. About 14% of Big 12 athletes come from outside the U.S., and six league schools operate campuses abroad. Yormark points to the NFL, which he says has played 42 games in the United Kingdom, and to Dublin's College Football Classic, which has drawn crowds of around 50,000 for five straight years.
Money explains some of the interest. Big 12 teams receive nearly $32 million a year from broadcasters. Arizona State and Kansas each spend around $20 million a year on their rosters in an era when college players can now be paid.
For fans, this means a full American Saturday in London. The plan includes pregame tailgate parties, which are parking-lot cookouts and meetups, plus marching-band pep rallies and a halftime show. Tickets are on general sale now through Wembley, which is also offering hospitality packages with drinks and lounge access included.
What makes this stand out is the setting. Wembley is new ground for the college game. Expect new faces in the stands, a lot of teaching as it goes, and two teams trying to settle in fast after crossing an ocean.
