UConn celebrates historic 12th national title with parade and rally in the state capital

More than an hour before the parade celebrating UConn’s historic 12th national championship began, fans were already gathering in front of the stage where the parade would end and the rally would begin, eager to see the team they love.

Fans also gathered at the capitol building where they watched the team arrive, enter the building and eventually come out and board the double-decker bus they’d ride on during the parade. Graduate student guard Kaitlyn Chen carried the trophy, while redshirt senior guard/forward Aubrey Griffin donned the net that had been cut down a week before as a necklace.

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Though it had been 3,290 days since the last UConn women’s basketball victory parade, this was the third parade in a row for the city of Hartford and UConn fans, as the men’s basketball team won titles in 2023 and 2024. 

“We are now officially the parade capital of the world,” head coach Geno Auriemma told the crowd Sunday afternoon. 

He continued to highlight and praise the dedication of the fans who outnumbered the seats in the XL Center where UConn has played games since 1980. 

“I wanna thank every single one of you, not just for today, but for how many times in this building you’ve been here for us,” Auriemma said. “[Shown] up, weekends, weeknights, snow, rain, sleet, doesn’t matter. You’re part of our team. And we have the greatest team in the country, and we have the greatest fans in the country.” 

Fans lined the streets of Hartford on a chilly, and at times windy, afternoon, donning their UConn apparel and holding up signs, including one that read “Thanks for the joy.” 

Before the team, coaches and director of athletics rode by, the parade first featured local first responders and businesses, the Connecticut Valley Siberian Husky Club, the UConn Cheerleading Alumni Association, as well as the UConn cheerleaders, mascot and pep band. 

Gratitude was a theme throughout the rally. In addition to thanking the mayor of Hartford, local businesses, the governor and the lieutenant governor, graduate student guard Azzi Fudd also thanked the fans and her UConn family. 

“I also want to thank our coaches. Obviously, we wouldn’t have been able to do it without you guys, but just the continued support, the belief that you guys have in us, it speaks volumes,” she said. “So thank you guys for continuing to believe in us, coaching us as people and players. … Like I said, this championship means everything, but to do [it] with this team — this team is so special.”

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“These girls, my sisters, my friends for life — we’ve lived through so much together, so to win this, get through all that adversity and bring it home, just the bond that we have, the love that we play with, it shows every single night. And so to be able to play, not just for each other, but for our seniors, and bring it home for them. And be able to send them off to their next chapter with this kind of storybook ending … Seniors, we love you and thank you, thank you for everything,” Fudd continued.

The championship means a lot to Fudd, who also brought up running it back next year — what will be her fifth season in Storrs — which led to raucous cheers from the crowd. 

The championship concluded the UConn career of redshirt senior guard Paige Bueckers, who was drafted No. 1 overall by the Dallas Wings in the 2025 WNBA Draft on Monday night. 

Bueckers thanked everyone from the UConn president, professors, teaching assistants and the team’s academic support staff to the kitchen and janitorial staffs at the Werth Family UConn Basketball Champions Center and the janitorial staffs of the XL Center and the team’s on-campus home, Harry A. Gampel Pavilion. 

“It takes an entire village. This entire community, city and state, the support worldwide, countrywide, it means everything to us,” Bueckers said. “… Obviously, we had our ups and downs … [just like] everybody else, but as soon as the tournament started, we had this confident, light vibe to us … [and] we just felt like something was different.”

The players made sure to soak in the moment as the bus parked in front of the XL Center, posing for pictures, capturing the moment on their phones and tossing t-shirts and peppermints to the crowd while they waited for the rally to begin. 

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When it was his turn to speak, Auriemma echoed Bueckers’ feelings about the team being special. 

“It took a lot to get here,” he said. “It’s been a long time. A lot of it had to do with all the ups and downs that these players have had, individually — their trials and tribulations — and our team. And to overcome all that and to be standing here right now as national champions, it’s a credit to how strong they are, physically, mentally, and they deserve everything that they’re getting right now.”

As the bus slowly drove from the capitol building to the front doors of the XL Center, Auriemma and members of his coaching staff reminisced about the thirty years that have gone by since the team won its first championship in 1995.

“You see the reaction of the kids, you know, that’s never changed. It’s still the same,” Auriemma told reporters after the rally. “They’re blown away by the, by the whole event. So it was a great day. A great day for them, and [a] great day for all [of] UConn Nation.”