Fans get higher quality from paid subscriptions
The NIL era of collegiate sports proves that the only constant is change. Conferences change for many reasons. The University of Wyoming competes in the Mountain West conference, which has experienced a large shifting of membership over the last couple years. The shift has made it so conferences have to find new ways to keep revenue streams going with new faces and fanbases.
In 2025, the conference featured 11 full time member schools. Air Force, Nevada, New Mexico, San Jose State, UNLV, Wyoming, Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State. The last five schools all left for the PAC-12 this year. The loss of those five member schools resulted in an estimated loss of $1 million for each school in the conference per year. This is because of less opportunities for instances like NCAA tournament wins, bowl game appearances and college football playoff berths.
Currently, there are now eight full time member schools. Air Force, Nevada, New Mexico, San Jose State, UNLV, Wyoming, Hawaii and UTEP. Two schools, Grand Canyon and UC Davis, are members in every sport besides football. North Dakota State and Northern Illinois are football-only members.
The Mountain West launched its free streaming app in late 2021. According to a press release from JMI sports, at launch the app was designed to “deliver live sports, exclusive Mountain West Network content and archived games to sports fans.” So what changed in five years to make the app a subscription based service, rather than free for anyone with a phone, computer or television?
Leadership of the conference has made it clear it is for the sake of covering lost revenue.
“MW+ is a game-changer for the Mountain West,” said Mountain West Commissioner Gloria Nevarez in a release. “Not only are we expanding how fans connect with our schools and student-athletes, but we’re also creating a powerful new revenue stream that directly benefits our member institutions. This is about building the future of our Conference, and this platform allows us to deliver more of our stories, more of our student-athletes, and more of our live events directly to the audiences who care most.”
Outside of just the revenue, Nevarez also points out how it elevates the way they tell stories of athletes and live events. Outside of live events, Wyoming fans can also look forward to seeing highlight reels from past years, and full broadcasts from exciting moments like border war games and championship runs in multiple sports. The archives really draw the appeal to fans of all ages, and opportunities to use the app outside of specific seasons and live events.
Fans from across the Mountain West and the country as a whole have been vocal about the changes and a new streaming service. A search on X.com shows many differing opinions. One user, @halfbirdhalfman, posted on Sept 12 “The Mountain West is charging $80 a year for their streaming service MW+. I don’t care that much to watch New Mexico State vs Hawaii at midnight.” Fans of teams in the Mountain West, however, seem to appreciate the upgrade in quality compared to the free version. @AZLobo480, a New Mexico fan, states “Hate that im saying this mostly because it costs money, but holy MW+ clears the old app by 10 miles… Good work Mountain West.” Both of these posts garnered over 3.5 thousand views on X.
Purchasing subscriptions through the dedicated Wyoming page sends a percentage directly to Wyoming Athletics and the Cowboy Joe Club. The app can be accessed through the official Mountain West website, as well as smart tvs, roku, fire stick and amazon prime video. Annual subscriptions can be purchased for $79.99, and monthly for $10.99.
