Announcing the 2026 North American Collins Championship (NACC)
Back in 2023, we tried something no one had done before: We ran the first ever North American Collins Championship (NACC). It was a championship-level event, held on North American soil, in which Collins was the only game in town. The event spanned four days and took place in the heart of downtown Seattle. It attracted a strong field of players, split across two fiercely competitive divisions. At the end of the exciting playoff finals, we crowned Kevin Fraley as the inaugural North American Collins Champion.
After three years, the chance to dethrone Kevin and take that Collins crown for yourself is finally here. I am thrilled to announce that on November 6-9, 2026, the CoCo will host the second NACC in Minneapolis, MN.
Much of what the players loved about the first NACC will be the same this time around:
The 2026 NACC will feature 24 games spanning the first three days.
On the fourth day, the top four finishers in each division will square off in semifinal and final playoff matches to decide the winners.
Everyone else will have the option to play 6 more games in the standalone "Afterword" event, bringing the total number of games over the 4-day weekend to 30 games.
We'll broadcast a world-class livestream with the help of the world's best streaming duo, Christian Kay and Andrew Kay.
A team of CoCo directors (including me) will keep the clocks ticking and the tiles clacking.
Some backstory on this event: To ensure we provide a fun and memorable tournament experience for all players, we sent every CoCo member a player survey back in February. We listened to your feedback to understand what you love in a championship event. Based on that information, we set about scouring the country for a fantastic venue that checked all the boxes. With the help of CoCo volunteer extraordinaire Carson Ip, I reviewed more than 100 attractive proposals across 10 cities. In the end, we chose a venue in Minneapolis that blew us away.
Next fall, we invite you to join us at The Marquette Hotel, a luxury hotel in the Hilton's Curio Collection. We know that Scrabble tournaments often double as a "treat yourself" vacation, so we made sure to choose a hotel with tons of amenities in a highly walkable downtown area. The Marquette Hotel has an insanely high walk score of 97/100, with many options for food, drink, and entertainment all mere steps away.
For those who live in the Midwest, Minneapolis may be less than a day's drive from your home. For those farther afield, there are many direct flights into MSP airport. The Marquette is easily accessible from the airport by light rail.
This will be the CoCo's marquee event for 2026, and an unmissable championship for Collins enthusiasts. You won't want to miss it. A former national champion deemed the 2023 NACC "the most well-run tournament" he'd ever played. We strive to make the 2026 NACC even better. And we expect players will have the chance to enjoy more than just Scrabble fun, too - think trivia night, escape rooms, group dinners, a side chess tournament, and more.
The 2026 NACC is now open for registration. Head over to the official NACC event page to check out all the details and sign up. This is your chance to become the next North American Collins Champion. Although, until then, I'll continue to greet Kevin as "the reigning North American Collins Champion" every time I see him.