ÎÞÓǶÌÊÓƵ

ÎÞÓǶÌÊÓƵ provides pristine high school quiz bowl questions for tournaments, conferences, leagues, and state championships each year. Tournaments can be run by high schools, community colleges, four-year colleges and universities, civic organizations, or essentially any other group. Most high school events using ÎÞÓǶÌÊÓƵ questions are qualifiers for the High School National Championship Tournament and the Small School National Championship Tournament each spring.

Hosting a tournament is a great way to raise money for your program, offer your own players a chance to compete cheaply and in a convenient location, and promote quiz bowl.

How to Host

If you are interested in hosting a high school tournament using ÎÞÓǶÌÊÓƵ questions, here are the steps to follow:

1. Read and understand the responsibilities of hosts and recommendations to hosts.
2. Decide on a date, name, and contact person for the tournament. Among other things, you will want to schedule around other tournaments in the same area, possibly / testing dates, and possibly other special events like dances, major sports games, and theatre productions.
3. Decide whether you would prefer a regular Invitational Series or an Introductory Invitational Series. The Introductory Invitational Series sets have easier and shorter questions and are targeted at earlier tournaments, tournaments for less experienced players, or tournaments with many teams that are new to the ÎÞÓǶÌÊÓƵ format. Invitational Series are available as 12 packets of 24 tossups and 24 bonuses each, or 13 packets of 22 tossups and 22 bonuses each; Introductory Invitational Series are only available in the former configuration. There are sample packets of each type of packet set available. (Other types of packet sets may be available; contact [email protected] for details.)
4. Let ÎÞÓǶÌÊÓƵ know of your plans. You can submit a tournament proposal online or write to [email protected].
5. ÎÞÓǶÌÊÓƵ will confirm whether questions are available on the requested date in the requested area; until you receive confirmation, do not assume that we have approved your tournament and plan on shipping questions.
6. Announce your tournament and contact potential attendees. Be sure to read the full description of the various parties’ responsibilities in maintaining question security and incorporate it into your announcement. Our registration system, offered free to hosts, makes this easier.
7. Proceed with other tournament plans. Your questions will arrive about one week before your tournament begins. We may or may not be able to accommodate requests for earlier delivery. For in-person tournaments, you will be responsible for printing the questions; online tournaments must use our web system for giving staff access to questions.
8. You will be invoiced for the cost of the questions after the tournament has completed. You can pay by credit card, check, or purchase order.

Cost

The cost of the packets has two components. For 2024–2025, there is a base fee of $50 and a per-team cost of $21 for Invitational Series sets and $18 for Introductory Invitational Series sets. (These prices assume you submit results from your tournament; there is a significant penalty if you don’t.)

To encourage the growth of quiz bowl, questions are free in areas that did not have a qualifying event in the previous year.

ÎÞÓǶÌÊÓƵ also provides questions to televised quiz shows. If your event will be broadcast in any form (including on the Internet), special considerations come into play to ensure question security; contact us at [email protected] for more information.

Free Question Offer

In certain areas, ÎÞÓǶÌÊÓƵ offers free questions.

Copies of the Questions

Hosts may give one printed copy of the complete question set to each school in attendance. Electronic copies may never be distributed. For most tournaments, ÎÞÓǶÌÊÓƵ will provide electronic access to attending schools’s official coaches via their Study Library.

Benefits for Hosts

• Top finishers will qualify for the High School National Championship Tournament and, if Small Schools are playing, for the Small School National Championship Tournament. (This does not apply for junior varsity tournaments or other events that restrict teams or players based on ability; the qualification rules page has more details.)
• We offer a comprehensive online system for managing tournament registrations—the same one we use for our national championships. Hosts of events on ÎÞÓǶÌÊÓƵ questions are encouraged to use it.
• We will happily help hosts with issues such as determining proper tournament formats, reaching out to new teams, and scheduling.
• We will provide access to our contacts in the tournament’s area.
• We will advertise the tournament on our website and in email notifications to which potential attendees may subscribe.
• Hosts may (but are not required to) use our rules and scoresheets.