The University of Illinois has canceled its scheduled football games against the University of Missouri for the 2027 and 2028 seasons, according to a report from the Columbia Daily Tribune published Tuesday.
The two programs had previously agreed to meet in those future seasons, continuing a regional rivalry that has been played intermittently over the years. The cancellation removes two non-conference matchups from each team's schedule for those years.
No official reason for the cancellation was immediately disclosed by either athletic department. Both schools will now need to fill those open dates on their 2027 and 2028 schedules.
The Illinois-Missouri series, sometimes referred to as the "Arch Rivalry" due to the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, has a history dating back to 1896. The teams last met in 2010, with Missouri winning 23-13 in St. Louis.
