These states want the college title games North Carolina lost | McClatchy Washington Bureau

A growing list of cities and states are hoping to host next year’s ACC and NCAA championship games, recently recalled from North Carolina by sporting officials.

The National Collegiate Athletic Association announced earlier this week it would pull seven championship tournament games from North Carolina and immediately, officials around the country raised their hand, hoping to scoop up the events as tourism and economic development boosters.

NCAA officials said they couldn’t keep the games in North Carolina because of the state’s law governing where transgender people may use public restrooms. The ACC followed suit.

The disputed law, called HB2 or House Bill 2, includes several provisions unrelated to public facility use but the main purpose of the legislation requires people to use restrooms in schools and other government buildings according to their birth sex.

Critics of HB2 say that amounts to discrimination because transgender people do not identify with their sex assigned at birth. Proponents have raised concerns about privacy and safety as justification. The issue is under litigation, with the U.S. Department of Justice suing the state of North Carolina for alleged discrimination.

Now, NCAA and ACC officials are looking to relocate the games originally scheduled for play in North Carolina.

Here’s a look at locales eager to play host:

▪ In Georgia, the Gwinnett Sports Commission and Kennesaw State University may be interested, according to a report from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Wednesday. AJC.com reported NCAA officials reached out to Kennesaw State representatives with interest in the school hosting soccer and lacrosse championships.

▪ Athletic event recruiters with the St. Louis Sports Commission in Missouri say they’ve already contacted the NCAA to express interest, according to Fox 2 news in St. Louis.

▪ Pennsylvania is ready and willing to put on some or all of the games, U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., told NCAA officials in a letter Thursday. Casey, who has referred to the N.C. bathroom law as “state-sponsored discrimination,” said this week Pennsylvania values equality and is proud of its diversity.

▪ The Central Florida Sports Commission and Miami University could be contenders for the ACC games, ESPN.com reported this week. Miami officials had earlier told the Miami Herald they are evaluating the possibility but understand their area may not be considered neutral territory, which is most likely what ACC officials are looking for.

▪ Kansas City, Missouri – already host to three NCAA championship events this athletic year – says it could likely handle more, the Kansas City Star reported Monday. Kansas City Sports Commission President Kathy Nelson said, “We have some date and venue conflicts, but bring it on.”