2026 National Championship Tournament

Hosted at the Tennessee State University campus April 16-20, 2026
Information will be updated here as it becomes available

Qualification Reporting
Membership Renewal
Hired judge Interest / Info Sign up
Event Descriptions
IMpromptu & Extemp Archives
2026 Impromptu Schema
Enrollment Verification
First time Fee Waiver Request
Accommodations requests
Donate to student food security Fund
Online fee payment
Content warning guide

Welcome to the 2026 National Tournament!

Information for invitational tournament hosts:

  • If your tournament is hosted on Speechwire your regular-season results will be automatically recorded for qualification verification. You do not need to do anything else.
  • If your tournament was NOT hosted on Speechwire please report your tournament results to Speechwire so qualifications earned can be verified.

Information for Coaches

  • The Individual Events flights have changed for 2026: A– Duo, Impromptu; B – Prose, Informative, Rhetorical Criticism; C – Extemp, Poetry, After Dinner; D – Drama, Persuasion, POI. 
  • All entries must be submitted through Speechwire by March 30, 2026 at 6 pm CST. No entries will be accepted after this date.  
  • All qualifications will be verified through Speechwire. Tournaments not hosted on Speechwire must be reported manually – click here to confirm that tournaments you attended were reported for verification. Please work with tournament directors to ensure that tournament results are reported; manual reports should include the entire tournament results, not just the qualifications you plan to use.
  • The tournament will be in-person at Tennessee State University, however we will continue to use e-ballots on the SpeechWire platform. During the registration process, coaches will be required to provide an accurate email address for every student and judge they are bringing to the tournament.
    • Please remember that your school name, as well as your students’ and judges’ names, will appear exactly as you enter them on ALL tournament materials.
    • Please also add students’ name pronunciation and pronouns in SpeechWire so that student names are pronounced accurately in rounds and in awards. 
  • All teams must provide an Enrollment Verification form from their Registrar – scan and email a copy to nfatournamentcommittee@gmail.com when you register on Speechwire and bring the original to Registration.
  • You will receive an entry confirmation after all entries have been processed. If you do not receive a confirmation within one week of entering, please contact the National Tournament Committee at nfatournamentcommittee@gmail.com

Information for Judges:

Judge’s Table

  • Interested in joining the hired pool? Sign up here and we’ll let you know when the official sign up opens on Speechwire.
  • All judges must complete judge training by April 10 (or before rounds begin for judges who join the pool after April 10).
  • We are using e-ballots at NFA!
    • Judges must provide a valid email address and create a ballot account at live.speechwire.com. Once you’re entered as a judge you’ll receive a Speechwire invite in your email – check spam if it’s not in your inbox. Contact the tournament if you don’t have a Speechwire invite by 4/17
    • Make sure you bring a charged device on which to judge.
    • Please remember to click “start” when you arrive in your room so tab knows you’re there.
    • Return ranks immediately after the round – you can add and revise comments until the end of the tournament.
    • Tech problems? Dead batteries? Feel free to take notes in the round and then report to tab after – we will take you to a computer lab to enter your ranks and feedback on the e-ballot.