Pro Championships Offer Chance to Secure Postseason Bids

Colorado Springs, Colo. (Sept. 3, 2026) – The USA Ultimate Pro Championships are coming up this weekend, presenting the final opportunity for club teams to impact the rankings before the start of the postseason. The three day tournament will take place in Maryland over Labor Day weekend and feature 24 of the top club teams across all three competition divisions. With just a few exceptions, almost all of these teams are currently ranked among the top 25 in the nation. 

Games will be streamed live starting at 8 a.m. Eastern on Saturday, and live coverage will continue throughout the tournament with all three divisional finals broadcast on Monday. The full streaming schedule is available from USA Ultimate’s media partner Ultiworld.

As the final event of the regular season, and with National Championship bid allocations on the line, the Pro Championships are sure to offer an exciting weekend of competition for players and fans alike. Read on below for key stories to follow in each division.

Men’s Division

Looking at bid allocation for the men’s division, there are a few teams that are currently sitting just short of being in the position to claim a strength bid for their regions. These teams are all close enough in ranking points that Pro Championships results could cause a re-allocation. The two teams currently holding onto the final two strength bids — Montréal Mephisto in the Northeast and Austin Doublewide in South Central — are both competing and could easily play themselves safe or out of position this weekend.

Having missed earning a strength bid last year, followed by losing the game-to-go at Southwest regionals on universe point, Doublewide will be heading to the Pro Championships motivated to hold onto their current place in the rankings in hopes of preserving a path to the National Championships for themselves this year. 

Mephisto comes with similar motivations, having also come just short of making it to Nationals a few times in recent years. However, while Doublewide dropping farther down the rankings would almost certainly cost the South Central region a bid, the Northeast may hold the extra strength bid even if Mephisto falls. Portland Red Tide, another Northeast region team, currently sits just outside a strength bid in the rankings and could move up based on secondary effects of this weekend’s results.

Mixed Division

One big story in the mixed division continues to be Ann Arbor Hybrid. Currently sitting second in the rankings, and in a region that looks likely to retain two bids, they are well positioned to make it to the Championships this postseason. However, having won the U.S. Open (and claimed a World Championship title) Hybrid still needs a Pro Championships win in order to keep the dream of back-to-back Triple Crown wins alive. Third ranked Boston Slow has had a great 2026 season, and may present a challenge to Hybrid’s Triple Crown attempt. The two teams last faced off at the U.S. Open in a game that Hybrid won, but only after Slow took the game to universe point.

Similar to the men’s division, the last few strength bids are among teams with very tight ratings. Only three points separate Boston Sprocket, ranked 15th and currently taking the last strength bid for the Northeast, from the Northwest’s Salt Lake City Sego. Ranked 20th, Minneapolis Drag ‘n Thrust is the only team out of any division claiming an auto bid but falling outside of the top 16. However, with at least two games guaranteed against top ranked opponents this weekend, if they do well they are in a position to significantly improve their ranking. 

Regardless of any one team’s performance, watch for mixed division bid allocations to shift following the Pro Championships

Women’s Division

Like Hybrid, Washington Scandal is coming off back-to-back wins in the U.S. Open and WUCC. They are also the only top team in any division to have an undefeated regular season record. Regardless of the outcomes this weekend, they are likely to retain a good position in the rankings. But, a win at the Pro Championships will put them in position to advance to the National Championships with a chance at not only their first Triple Crown win, but the first ever in the women’s division.

Other teams playing this weekend whose postseason positions should be secure are Denver Molly Brown, New York BENT and Raleigh Phoenix. Molly Brown and BENT have enough margin in ranking points to be relatively secure, and even if Phoenix were to drop out of the top 16, they would still retain the auto bid for the Southeast region.

Pittsburgh Parcha currently sits just short of claiming a strength bid for the Mid-Atlantic, ranked 17th. A good weekend at the Pro Championships could easily bump them up, knocking Vancouver Traffic and the Northwest region out of position for the final strength bid of the 2026 season. Washington Agency and Washington Grit are also competing this weekend. Both are likely sitting outside range for a strength bid, and will be looking for Parcha to claim that extra bid. If they do, the Mid-Atlantic regionals will once again have three bids to the National Championships.

The South Central also currently has a strength bid heading into the postseason, thanks to Dallas Dimes 14th place ranking. While the Dimes are not competing at the Pro Championships, and their position is likely secure, there remains a possibility that a strong performance from Parcha — and a big shift in the final regular season rankings — could cause Dimes to lose that bid.

Current Championship Bid Allocations

Final Championship bid allocations and regular season rankings will be published by September 9, 2026.