KHSAA approves final football alignment for 2025 and 2026 seasons

The Kentucky High School Athletic Association’s Board of Control on Wednesday approved a football realignment plan for the 2025-26 seasons.

Several schools made requests for changes to the first draft of alignment that was released in February. The board approved five requests, including one from a Northern Kentucky school: Grant County.

Grant County requested to move to District 4 from District 5 in Class 4A, where it was paired with Northern Kentucky schools Covington Catholic, Highlands and Holmes. The KHSAA granted that request.

According to a document published by the KHSAA, Grant County wanted to be with schools in which they are partners within the Eighth Region in several other KHSAA team sports like basketball.

Grant County wanted to lower transportation costs and balance out the two districts. Before the switch, District 5 had six teams and District 4 had four, but in the final alignment, both districts have five teams.

As previously noted, the new alignment reflects St. Henry's addition as a varsity program beginning with the 2025 season. The Crusaders have been starting spring practices in recent weeks and will play junior varsity this fall. Covington Catholic and HIghlands will also be reunited in Class 4A after being in different classes in 2023 and 2024.

Here’s the complete alignment:

Class A

District 1: Ballard Memorial, Caverna, Fulton County, Russellville

District 2: Bethlehem, Campbellsville, Kentucky Country Day, Louisville Holy Cross

District 3: Bellevue, Dayton, Newport, Newport Central Catholic

District 4: Bishop Brossart, Holy Cross, Ludlow, Trimble County

District 5: Berea, Eminence, Frankfort, Sayre

District 6: Fairview, Nicholas County, Paris, Raceland

District 7: Harlan, Lynn Camp, Middlesboro, Pineville, Williamsburg

District 8: Hazard, Jenkins, Paintsville, Phelps, Pikeville

Class 2A

District 1: Caldwell County, Crittenden County, Fort Campbell, Mayfield, Todd County Central, Trigg County

District 2: Fort Knox, Hancock County, McLean County, Owensboro Catholic

District 3: Clinton County, Green County, Metcalfe County, Monroe County, Somerset

District 4: Danville, DuBois, Lexington Christian, Shawnee, Washington County

District 5: Beechwood, Bracken County, Gallatin County, Owen County, St. Henry, Walton-Verona

District 6: Breathitt County, Jackson County, Morgan County, West Carter

District 7: Floyd Central, Knott County Central, Leslie County, Martin County, Prestonsburg

District 8: Belfry, Betsy Layne, East Ridge, Pike County Central, Shelby Valley

Class 3A

District 1: Hopkins County Central, Murray, Union County, Webster County

District 2: Adair County, Butler County, Edmonson County, Glasgow, Hart County

District 3: Central, Christian Academy, DeSales, LaRue County, Thomas Nelson, Western

District 4: Bardstown, Casey County, Garrard County, Lexington Catholic, Mercer County

District 5: Bourbon County, Carroll County, Henry County, Lloyd Memorial, Pendleton County

District 6: Bath County, East Carter, Fleming County, Lewis County, Russell

District 7: Bell County, Clay County, Knox Central, McCreary Central, Rockcastle County

District 8: Estill County, Lawrence County, Letcher County Central, Magoffin County, Powell County

Class 4A

District 1: Allen County-Scottsville, Calloway County, Franklin-Simpson, Logan County, Paducah Tilghman, Warren East

District 2: Elizabethtown, John Hardin, Marion County, Nelson County, Taylor County

District 3: Breckinridge County, Doss, North Oldham, Valley, Waggener

District 4: Franklin County, Grant County, Shelby County, Spencer County, Western Hills

District 5: Covington Catholic, Harrison County, Highlands, Holmes, Mason County

District 6: Ashland Blazer, Boyd County, Greenup County, Johnson Central, Rowan County

District 7: Boyle County, Lincoln County, Russell County, Wayne County

District 8: Corbin, Harlan County, Perry County Central, Whitley County

Class 5A

District 1: Apollo, Graves County, Madisonville-North Hopkins, Marshall County, Muhlenberg County, Owensboro

District 2: Barren County, Bowling Green, Grayson County, Greenwood, Ohio County, Warren Central

District 3: Atherton, Butler, Iroquois, Seneca

District 4: Bullitt Central, Fairdale, Jeffersontown, Moore, North Bullitt

District 5: Boone County, Conner, Cooper, Dixie Heights, Scott

District 6: Anderson County, Collins, Scott County, South Oldham, Woodford County

District 7: East Jessamine, Madison Southern, Montgomery County, West Jessamine

District 8: North Laurel, Pulaski County, South Laurel, Southwestern

Class 6A

District 1: Christian County, Henderson County, Hopkinsville, McCracken County

District 2: Central Hardin, Daviess County, Meade County, South Warren

District 3: Manual, North Hardin, Pleasure Ridge Park, St. Xavier

District 4: Bullitt East, Fern Creek, Male, Southern

District 5: Ballard, Eastern, Oldham County, Trinity

District 6: Campbell County, Great Crossing, Ryle, Simon Kenton

District 7: Henry Clay, Lafayette, Paul Dunbar, Tates Creek

District 8: Bryan Station, Frederick Douglass, George Rogers Clark, Madison Central

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: KHSAA approves final football alignment for 2025 and 2026 seasons