Undertaker & Quinn Ewers at Big 12 Title Game IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire

WWE And Big 12 Expanded Partnership Will Reportedly Bring Smackdown To College Markets

Originally posted on Wrestling on SI | By Rick Ucchino | Last updated May 29, 2025 8:43 PM ET

WWE and the Big 12 Conference are reportedly set to expand their partnership with one another this upcoming football season.

Chris Vannini of The Athletic took to social media Thursday evening to break the story, saying that several episodes of Friday Night SmackDown are set to run in Big 12 markets this fall as part of the deal.

The first of those wrestling, college football doubleheaders is set for a Week 0 (the opening weekend of the season where a select number of teams play prior to a full slate of games in Week 1) match-up in Dublin, Ireland.

Sources: The Big 12 and WWE are expanding their partnership this fall. WWE will hold several episodes of Friday Night SmackDown in Big 12 markets, the night before football games.

Includes a Week 0 show in Ireland before KSU/ISU and an Orlando show before UCF/UNC. pic.twitter.com/ukrGZ23S07
— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) May 29, 2025

SmackDown will emanate from the 3Arena on Friday, August 22 as part of the company's previously announced overseas tour that will lead to up the Clash in Paris Premium Live Event.

The Kansas State Wildcats will then play host to the Iowa State Cyclones at Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Saturday, August 23.

Vannini is also reporting that SmackDown will take place on Friday, September 19 in Orlando before the UCF Knights and Bill Belichick's North Carolina Tar Heels kick-off the next afternoon on Saturday, September 20.

No other SmackDown dates during college football season have been scheduled at this time, but Big 12 cities to keep an eye on for future announcements include:

WWE and the Big 12 conference have been partners for the last couple of years. The winners of the Conference Championship Games have been awarded Big 12 WWE Championship belts, with WWE Hall of Famer The Undertaker and other stars taking part in the award ceremonies.

We'll provide more information on this story as it becomes available.

This article first appeared on Wrestling on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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