Tournament Of Champions
Bring together the best of the World Scholar’s Cup with one of the leading universities in the world, and you’ll discover our annual Tournament of Champions, hosted by the Yale International Relations Association at Yale University.
When Will It Take Place?
The 2023 Tournament of Champions is scheduled for November 2-7.
Who Can Attend?
All three scholars on each Tournament of Champions team must have qualified at a 2023 Global Round, and each team must have at least two scholars who qualified as teammates. The third scholar on a team may be a substitute who also qualified at a Global Round but whose teammates are not participating.
What to Expect?
The Tournament of Champions is more than just another Global Round. You’ll have the chance to interact with and learn directly from Yale students and faculty. You’ll attend a special panel on college life and on how to leverage your World Scholar’s Cup experience as part of your admissions portfolio. You’ll eat Yale dining hall food. You’ll meet our keynote speakers, including a Yale University professor. And you’ll come away knowing what it’s like to be a student at one of the world’s greatest universities.
Due to venue restrictions, access to theaters and other venues will be restricted to scholars and a limited number of registered adults per delegation. Only judges and participants will be allowed inside debate buildings.
More Highlights
You can also look forward to the Yale Ball, where you can dance (or not dance) with your fellow scholars from over fifty countries, a special Thanksgiving meal, and beautiful historic venues for the Scholar’s Bowl, Debate Showcase, and Scholar’s Show - the Shubert Theatre and Yale's own Woolsey Hall.
Pwaa in Real Life
During a scavenger hunt that will take you to every corner of Yale’s campus and the surrounding community, you’ll encounter real alpacas, too, including our very own Painted Warrior—the official alpaca of the Tournament of Champions. He's almost 15, so it's a good thing you're meeting him soon.
Recommended Hotels
We encourage all participants to stay at one of our recommended hotels. Reservation details will be available in August.
Ground Transportation
An optional shuttle will be available from official hotels in Milford and Shelton. Reservation details will be available in August.
Airports and Airport Transfers
We recommend flying into any New York area airport or directly into New Haven. For delegations looking for airport-to-Yale transfers, we recommend Go Airport Shuttle. Yale University also outlines other transportation options here.
Optional Tours
Boston tours will be offered on "off days" for both divisions. The tours include round trip transportation to Boston with guided tours of Harvard University, MIT and the historical areas of Boston. Reservation details will be available in August.
Climate
You might need gloves, especially at night: it’s New England in November. Then again, global climate change...
We’re incredibly grateful to our hosts at the Yale International Relations Association (and to our friend Denise at the Stone Bridge Alpaca Farm) for making possible this special culminating event of the World Scholar’s Cup season.
