Greg Sankey explains SEC Softball Tournament move to Madison, Alabama

BIRMINGHAM — SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey shed some light on the decision to move the SEC Softball Tournament to a neutral site for the first time in 23 years.

In April, the SEC announced a four-year deal for the tournament to be held at Toyota Field, home of the Rocket City Trash Pandas in Madison, Alabama, starting in 2027.

Sankey defended keeping the SEC Softball Tournament on campus sites due to superior facilities held within the conference at the 2023 APSE South regional conference. Three years later at the Alabama High School Sports Hall of Fame for the same conference, Sankey started off by clarifying he didn't have a vote in the matter.

"The folks in the Huntsville area pursued us aggressively," Sankey said Monday, May 11. "They hosted a multiple team event a little over a year ago to show what could be done in a baseball stadium for high level competition. ... It's pretty central for our teams to access."

It's a change from the 2023 APSE South regional meeting, where Sankey named Oklahoma City as a neutral-site contender for the tournament.

"The Oklahoma City facility is a much, much larger place (than campus sites)," he said at the 2023 APSE South regional conference. "... I would never say no, but is that possibility there? There aren't just a lot of facilities, outside that one, that rise to the level of what's on our campuses."

Toyota Field in Madison, Alabama, will host the SEC Softball Tournament starting in 2027. Here is the field converted for softball for the 2025 Rocket City Showcase.

So, why not Oklahoma City?

Sankey said that SEC teams have the confidence they will get to Oklahoma City eventually for the Women's College World Series.

"Our teams know they're going to be in Oklahoma City, or have confidence they're going to be in Oklahoma City, and the Big 12 (Softball Tournament) has a contract there," Sankey said Monday.