THE GOLDEN CUP I
The Official Northern California Championships
Registration is Now Open
How it Works
The LIQBA is going coast-to-coast this season! We’ll be hosting one tournament and following the single-tournament Cup model.
Location and Dates
The Golden Cup will take place on January 10, 2026, at Sac City College, Sacramento, California.
The tournament will take place on from 9 AM to 5 PM, with registration opening at 8:15 AM.
Questions/Format
The Golden Cup will use LIQBA Standard Set #1, a set of medium difficulty. We will be using the twenty tossups/twenty bonus format and NAQT rules, but there will be no game clock.
Teams will be fairly placed into preliminary brackets before being re-seeded for playoffs. Teams will be guaranteed a minimum of 10 games; teams will be expected to play all 10 rounds, even if you are not in contention for the championship.
Teams
There are a maximum of 6 players per team, four of whom may play at once. If you wish to bring more players than that, please register additional teams. There are no exceptions to this rule. Teams may play short, with one player as a minimum. Nobody may switch teams during the tournament, such as from “A” to “B” or otherwise.
The field is capped at 36 teams. You will be placed onto a waitlist if you miss the cutoff and will enter the field as teams drop or the field expands (if there is enough interest, we guarantee that the field will expand).
We are happy to allow pseudonymous teams and teams not directly sponsored by their district to register. However, we do have certain requirements for these teams, so please contact us via phone or email prior to registration and we will be happy to work with you.
Readers and Buzzers
Each school is required to bring one reader for every two teams attending a tournament. Schools that cannot bring readers will be charged a $50 fee per team. Keep in mind this does not have to be a coach! It can be a player who would rather read, an extra player, a parent, an alumnus, someone’s friend, sibling, or third cousin twice removed, or anyone else that can read and scorekeep.
We will discount $10 per school for each working buzzer you bring, with no limit. If you desire to do so, send us an email after you register with how many buzzers you want to bring so we can update your invoice accordingly.
Paper question sets are no longer being offered.
Prizes
Trophies will be awarded to the top 3 teams after each tournament and the very best individual with the highest average Points per Game overall. The eight or so high scorers at each tournament will be awarded small prizes. We may add additional prizes at our discretion.
Fees
The fee structure is as follows:
$100$50 per team per tournament- $50 additional per team per tournament if no readers are brought
- $0 additional if 1 reader is brought
- -$25 for each additional reader
We can process cash, checks, and purchase orders. We are happy to provide a W9, a New Jersey Business Registration Certificate, and an invoice on request. Please make out checks to “Long Island Quiz Bowl Alliance”. You can mail checks, POs, and any other paperwork to 16 Gilbert Avenue, Smithtown, NY, 11787.
Buzzer discounts and paper question sets are no longer being offered. You can request a copy of the question set after the tournament.
Payment is due the morning of the event.
Registration:
In order to register, fill out this form. Once you receive a confirmation from us, you are officially registered.
Please ensure that you register prior to the day of the tournament! Registration closes one week prior to the event.
Food:
We do not serve breakfast or lunch and teams should either bring food or prepare to go out and obtain it. We will provide a map of local restaurants in the vicinity during the morning meeting. Lunch generally lasts an hour. Teams should eat breakfast prior to arrival.
Stats:
Full and complete team and individual statistics will be posted within 48 hours after the completion of the event.