The 2026 tournament dates are Feb 14-16, 2026.

Invitation Letter

Dear Coaches,

We are delighted to invite you to attend the annual Harvard National Speech and Debate Tournament, which will be held in person on Presidents' Day Weekend, Saturday, Sunday, & Monday, February 14-16, 2026. You can find the full invitation here: Full Invitation Link

We have several announcements concerning this year’s tournament.

First, contact. We will continue to use an official tournament email address. Please direct all inquiries to hst@harvarddebate.org.

Second, hospitality. We will be providing breakfast to participants in all events. Coaches and judges will still be provided with breakfast and lunch in the lounges at each site. These hospitality costs are included in the entry fees. The tournament also offers flight discounts through Delta and United and has a limited number of hotel block rooms, which are detailed in the full tournament invite.

Third, round robins. This year the Harvard Debate Council will resume hosting all four round robins before the tournament - in CX, Congress, PF, and LD. We would like to thank the Harvard College Debating Union, Harvard’s parliamentary debate team, for administering the PF, LD, and Congress round robins over the past several years. To apply for one of the round robins, please enter your team in the appropriate round robin division between Dec 1st and Dec 21st as a waitlisted entry.

Fourth, new events. We will be adding both an in-person and an online World Schools Debate division this year. We will again offer Impromptu speaking and JV Congressional Debate.

Lastly, final check-in. We no longer offer in-person check-in on Friday before the tournament. All registration and final confirmation must be completed online. Participants will be required to confirm final entry details in lieu of traditional registration between 12pm ET and 9pm ET on Friday February 13, 2026. All fees must be received in Cambridge by noon ET on Thursday February 12, 2026.

We look forward to seeing you in Cambridge once again!

Sincerely yours,

Tripp Rebrovick, PhD

Coach of Debate, Harvard College

Director of the Harvard Debate Council, a student organization at Harvard College

Official Tournament Email: hst@harvarddebate.org

Learn more about the Harvard Debate Council Summer Workshops!

2026 Dates: Session One - June 28-July 10 | Session Two - July 12-July 24

We offer full-service instruction in multiple divisions: WSD, PF, LD, Congress, Competitive Speech, Communication Skills, Policy (Novice, Sophomore, Junior Labs), and a Coaches' Workshop