The Villanova Wildcats are the athletic teams of Villanova University. They compete in the Big East for every sport; except football and women's rowing where they compete in the Coastal Athletic Association, and women's water polo where they compete in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. On December 15, 2012, Villanova and the other six, non-FBS schools announced that they were departing the Big East for a new conference. This conference assumed the Big East name on July 1, 2013.