The landscape of high school athletics in Long Beach, Lakewood and Compton will undergo its biggest transformation in more than half a century beginning with the 2026-27 school year.
After 55 years as a member of the Moore League, Compton High will depart to join the newly formed Hub City League, a four-school league made up entirely of Compton Unified School District campuses. The move is part of the newly created SoCal Legacy Association, a partnership between Long Beach Unified School District and Compton Unified designed to improve competitive equity while maintaining scheduling flexibility between the two leagues.
While Compton leaves the Moore League, Lakewood, Millikan, Long Beach Poly and Wilson remain members of the Moore League in every CIF-sanctioned sport. Jordan and Cabrillo will compete in both leagues depending on the sport as part of the association model.
Compton won’t be leaving the Moore League entirely as they will field boys and girls water polo, girls tennis, and boys and girls wrestling teams. Dominguez will also be joining the Moore League in a few sports for the first time.
Perhaps the most significant competitive impact comes with CIF Southern Section automatic playoff berths.
For instance in football under current CIF-SS guidelines, the current format would allow the Moore League and Hub City League two guaranteed entries.
Although the Moore League loses one automatic qualifier, the overall effect is expected to create greater postseason opportunities across both districts.
Historically, schools such as Poly, Wilson, Millikan and Lakewood have consistently occupied the Moore League’s automatic playoff positions in many sports, making postseason appearances difficult for programs like Compton and, at times, Cabrillo and Jordan.
Under the new alignment, Compton will no longer have to battle perennial Moore League powers simply to reach the playoffs. Instead, two Hub City League schools will automatically advance to the CIF Southern Section postseason in every league-sponsored sport, dramatically increasing opportunities for Compton, Dominguez, Centennial and Early College.
The association model also provides competitive benefits for Long Beach schools. Cabrillo and Jordan, which have often found themselves chasing the league’s traditional powers in several sports, will compete in the Hub City League in selected sports where they have a more realistic opportunity to contend for league championships and secure automatic playoff berths.
The changes also come during an era in which the CIF Southern Section’s competitive equity playoff system has reduced the importance of simply qualifying for the postseason. Once teams earn a berth, they are placed into divisions based on competitive equity rather than enrollment or league strength, giving schools from every level a legitimate chance to make deep playoff runs.
That philosophy helped inspire the realignment, as administrators believe increasing postseason access creates more opportunities for student-athletes to compete for CIF championships.
While the Moore League enters a new chapter with six core schools – Poly, Wilson, Millikan, Lakewood, Jordan and Cabrillo in applicable sports – the partnership with the Hub City League ensures that Long Beach and Compton schools will continue to share proximity rivalries while creating a more balanced competitive landscape for years to come.
