Greater Metro Conference

The Greater Metro Conference was founded in 1997 by nine large high schools in the greater Milwaukee area: Brookfield Central, Brookfield East, Divine Savior Holy Angels, Marquette University, Menomonee Falls, Nathan Hale, Sussex Hamilton, Wauwatosa East and West Allis Central.^[1] Brookfield Central, Brookfield East and Wauwatosa West were former Woodland Conference members, Nathan Hale and West Allis Central were late of the Southeast Conference,^[2] Menomonee Falls came from the North Shore Conference^[3] and Sussex Hamilton was previously in the Parkland Conference.^[4] Divine Savior Holy Angels and Marquette University were both former members of the Metro Conference, a conference for private high schools affiliated with the Wisconsin Independent Schools Athletic Association.^[4] The Metro Conference was dissolved in anticipation of the coming merger between the WIAA and WISAA.^[5] Membership remained stable for the first twenty years of the Greater Metro Conference's existence, with the only changes coming in 2017. Germantown joined from the North Shore Conference, and Wauwatosa West swapped affiliations with West Allis Central, with the latter moving on to the Woodland Conference.^[6] Nathan Hale will be exiting the Greater Metro Conference in 2026 as part of a realignment plan that will add them and Augustine Prep to the Woodland Conference and create the new Parkland Conference from the Woodland's Eastern Division.^[7] In March 2026, the WIAA's Board of Controls approved a realignment plan that will see Germantown and Menomonee Falls return to the North Shore Conference for the 2027-28 school year, coupled with the addition of Oak Creek from the Classic 8 Conference.^[8] One month later, when the WIAA released their final realignment package, Sussex Hamilton was moved to the Classic 8 Conference with Franklin moving over from the Southeast Conference as their replacement.^[9]

In February 2019, in conjunction with the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association, the WIAA released a sweeping football-only realignment for Wisconsin to commence with the 2020 football season and run on a two-year cycle.^[10] The Greater Metro Conference entered the 2020 season with eight members for football. Seven members were also full members of the conference (Brookfield Central, Brookfield East, Germantown, Marquette University, Menomonee Falls, Nathan Hale and Sussex Hamilton), with former full members West Allis Central returning as a football-only member. Full Greater Metro members Wauwatosa East and Wauwatosa West were placed into the newly revived Parkland Conference for football.^[11] This alignment lasted through the 2022-2023 realignment cycle before further changes were made.^[12] West Allis Central shifted their football affiliation to the Parkland Cofnerence, and the conference decreased to seven members for football. The Greater Metro Conference also entered into a scheduling partnership with the Classic 8 Conference to play one interconference game per school counting towards the overall conference standings.^[13] For the 2026-2027 cycle, the Greater Metro Conference will be losing Menomonee Falls to the North Shore Conference and Nathan Hale to the Woodland Conference. Catholic Memorial, associate members in the Parkland Conference for football, will be joining as their replacement and the interlocking conference schedules will now include two crossover games with the decrease in members.^[14]