SEASON PLAY REQUIREMENTS

All USQ teams are invited to participate in one of four divisions at US Quadball Cup.

College Division 1 (D1): 16 teams max

College Division 2 (D2): No cap

Club Competitive Division: 16 teams max

Club Open Division: No cap

Uncapped divisions will have a structure designed to obtain a winner, but their primary objective will be to provide all teams with games at or close to their competitive level.

For a team intending to play at US Quadball Cup in either the Club Competitive Division or College Division One, there are specific season play requirements that must be met in addition to registering the team and its players. The deadline for these requirements is DATE.

PRE-USQ NATIONAL QUALIFIERS

The journey to US Quadball Cup for competitive teams begins with play at local or smaller national tournaments. All teams must play a minimum number of official games before their national qualifier in order to be seeded. The official USQ Standings will be used to seed teams as needed.

Two weeks before attending a national qualifier, official teams wishing to be seeded at that qualifier will be required to:

☐ Compete in at least five USQ official games
☐ Compete against three different teams
☐ Attend two USQ-official events
☐ Complete the referee and flag runner requirements

Should a team fail to play the required number of official games, they will be counted as unseeded.

USQ NATIONAL QUALIFIERS

Information regarding national qualifier dates and locations will be added here within the next month.

While all teams may attend a national qualifier, those who have their eye on a competitive division must attend at least one national qualifier. Teams will be assigned to a national qualifier by USQ. Teams will rank their top three choices upon team registration. College teams will only be assigned to one* national qualifier. Club teams can note if they have an interest in attending more than one qualifier when registering.

The official USQ Standings will be used to seed teams as needed at qualifiers. All teams that have not yet played sufficient official games will be counted as unseeded.

At each qualifier, a specific number of bids for College Division One and/or the Club Competitive Division will be up for grabs.

NATIONAL QUALIFIER ASSIGNMENTS

For the 2025-26 season, all teams must attend at least one national qualifier to qualify for College D1 or the Club Competitive Division at US Quadball Cup.

Teams will be assigned to a national qualifier by USQ. To facilitate this process, college teams will rank their top three choices during team registration, and will only be assigned to one national qualifier*. Club teams will rank up their top three choices upon team registration and can also note if they are interested in attending more than one qualifier.

Qualifier bids will be calculated and publicly announced in early December, along with the list of teams attending each national qualifier. National qualifiers will be allocated bids based on the number of registrants by 11:59 pm PST on December 1. The remaining at-large bids will be awarded in March.

For qualifiers, the official USQ Standings will be used to seed teams as needed. All teams that have not yet played sufficient official games will be counted as unseeded (see Season Play Requirements).

USQ requires a minimum qualifier size for the collegiate division. In the 2025-26 season, the minimum will be five teams. If a national qualifier does not have five college teams committed to attend by Dec. 1, or if the number of collegiate teams drops below five after that point, USQ Gameplay and Events Departments will determine whether a qualifier for that collegiate division will occur. If the collegiate division at a qualifier cannot occur, USQ will establish dedicated at-large bids based on the number of teams registered for that qualifier by Dec. 1.

Additional information regarding national qualifier dates and locations will be added here within the next month.

HUNTINGTON-HILL METHOD

The Huntington-Hill method of apportionment is used to determine the collegiate bid allocation. Of the 32 collegiate competitive division bids, 27 will be awarded at national qualifiers. These 27 bids will be distributed to the regions using the Huntington-Hill method. The remaining bids will be distributed at large. The Huntington-Hill method ensures each region is represented at the US Quadball Cup according to the size of the region.

Using this method, we first determine a standard divisor by dividing the number of registered teams by the number of available event bids (27). We then calculate a standard quota for each region, representing the number of bids each region would receive if the bids accurately represented the region’s size. Unfortunately, ¼ of a team cannot receive a bid to represent their region at the event, so some rounding must occur, which is why using this mathematical method is necessary.

Suppose a region’s standard quota is less than the geometric mean of the integers between which it is located. In that case, a region is allocated to the lower of those integers. Suppose the region’s standard quota is greater than the geometric mean of the integers. In that case, it is allocated to the higher integers.

If the total sum of those initial quotas adds to the total number of bids, the initial quotas are used. Otherwise, a modified divisor is used in place of the standard divisor so that the modified quotas sum correctly, and those modified quotas are then used.

In order to allocate each division’s bids to D1 and D2, each region’s quota will be multiplied by 0.46 and 0.54, respectively, to generate the divisional quota for D1 and D2. If the divisional quotas do not add up to the total number of bids in each division, a modified multiplier is used in place of the standard multiplier so that the modified divisional quotas sum correctly, and those modified divisional quotas are then used.

You can find further reading on the Huntington-Hill method in the Mathematical Association of America.

NATIONAL QUALIFIER BIDS

A bid is a team’s ticket to a competitive division at US Quadball Cup. Qualifier bids are given out at qualifiers. At-large bids are bids that were not distributed at qualifiers for reasons such as uneven numbers of teams, bid deferment, etc.

The number of bids per qualifier is calculated and publicly announced in early December, along with the list of teams attending each national qualifier. National qualifiers will be allocated bids based on the number of registrants by 11:59 pm PST on Dec. 1. The remaining at-large bids will be awarded in March.

AT-LARGE BIDS

Teams that do not earn bids for US Quadball Cup at a national qualifier must complete expanded season play requirements to earn at-large bids. At-large bid requirements for all teams are listed below. This must be completed by March 16, 2025.

Teams going for at-large bids will be required to:

Compete in at least 10 USQ official games.^
Compete against at least 8 different official teams.^
Attend 4 events, of which one must be a USQ national qualifier.

Alternatively, teams going for at-large bids can do the following if they compete against at least one opponent who attended a different national qualifier:

Compete in at least 8 USQ-official games.^
Compete against at least 7 different official teams.^
Attend 3 events, of which one must be a USQ national qualifier.

Games played at national qualifiers will count towards all above season play requirements for all teams.

COLLEGE DIVISION ONE QUALIFICATION

At least* 12 bids will be awarded at collegiate national qualifiers, proportional to the number of teams competing at each. Up to four at-large bids will be assigned based on the USQ Standings as of 11:59 PM ET on Sunday, March 22, 2026.

USQ will use the Huntington-Hill method to determine collegiate bid allocation. If the Huntington-Hill method does not yield an equitable distribution of 12 bids, additional bids shall be added until an equitable distribution can be reached.

COLLEGE DIVISION TWO QUALIFICATION

No College Division Two bids will be awarded at national qualifiers. All teams who do not qualify for College Division One are eligible to compete in College Division Two.

CLUB COMPETITIVE DIVISION QUALIFICATION

At least 12 bids to the USQ Cup 2026 Club Competitive Division will be awarded at national qualifiers, proportional to the number of bid-eligible teams competing at each qualifier.

Four at-large bids will be assigned based on the USQ Standings as of 11:59 PM ET on Sunday, March 22, 2026.

If a club team that already received a bid to USQ Cup 2026 is attending another national qualifier and that team places high enough to earn a bid, the additional bid they would have earned becomes an at-large bid. It does not go to the next highest-placing team at that event. If a club qualifier does not have the minimum number of teams to compete, USQ will discuss alternative opportunities.

In addition to the above bids, the champion of each national qualifier will be given pot priority at USQ Cup 2025. If the number of champions does not divide evenly into the size of each pot, then the highest-ranked teams in the USQ Standings will fill the remainder of the pot. For example, if three different club teams win national qualifiers, but four teams are needed to comprise each pot, then Pot 1 will be comprised of the three club teams that won qualifiers, plus the highest-ranked club team that did not win any national qualifier.

CLUB OPEN DIVISION QUALIFICATION

The Club Open Division is open to all club teams and does not require qualification.

US QUADBALL CUP

The main event for all USQ teams is US Quadball Cup.

COLLEGE DIVISION ONE AND CLUB COMPETITIVE DIVISION SEASON PLAY REQUIREMENTS

In addition to earning a bid for College Division One and the Club Competitive Division, teams must fulfill season play requirements to ensure that their rank in the USQ Standings roughly reflects their season-long performance.

Teams who earn bids to USQ Cup 2026 at a qualifier must complete the following standard season play requirements by March 29, 2026 to confirm their place in the division for which they earned the bid:

Compete in at least eight USQ official games^
Compete against at least six different USQ official teams^
And attend three events, including a USQ national qualifier

Teams that do not earn bids for USQ Cup 2026 must complete the following extended season play requirements in full by March 22, 2026 to be eligible for an at-large bid:

Compete in at least 10 USQ official games
Compete against at least eight different USQ official teams^
And attend four events, of which one must be a USQ national qualifier

Games played at national qualifiers will count toward season play requirements for all teams.

Teams aiming to earn an at-large bid can reduce their season play requirements back to the standard season play requirements by competing against at least one opponent who competed at a different national qualifier. They must still complete these requirements in full by March 22, 2026 to be eligible.

COLLEGE DIVISION TWO AND CLUB OPEN DIVISION SEASON PLAY REQUIREMENTS

Club teams interested in the open division and college teams interested in the College D2 will not have season play requirements, but are encouraged to attend official events before USQ Cup 2026. Unofficial teams that wish to compete in the open division should contact events@usquadball.org.

COLLEGE DIVISION ONE AND TWO FORMAT

While a standard pool play model will likely be used for College Division One, teams may be placed in stacked pools based on their performance throughout the season, depending on the size of the division, for College Division Two.

Each collegiate division will feature the following brackets:

An eight-team single-elimination bracket for the top eight teams in pool play, to determine the national champion and runner-up
An eight-team single-elimination bracket for the bottom eight teams in pool play, to determine the 9th and 10th-place teams in each division

CLUB COMPETITIVE DIVISION FORMAT

A standard pool play into single-elimination bracket is likely to be used for the Club Competitive Division.

Per the Gender Maximum Policy, a club team will be required to play three max in all official games in order to be eligible for a bid to the USQ Cup 2026 Club Competitive Division. To opt out of this eligibility voluntarily, teams should fill out the Opt Out Form. Teams who opt out of competitive division eligibility may still attend national qualifiers, and games between teams that have opted out will be prioritized to the fullest extent possible. Any team seeking a less-competitive experience at national qualifiers are encouraged to opt out, even if they intend to play three max during the season. All teams that opt out of competitive division eligibility are still encouraged to play three max when feasible.

CLUB OPEN DIVISION FORMAT

For the Club Open Division, teams may be placed in stacked pools based on their performance throughout the season, depending on the size of the division. A single-elimination bracket is likely to be used for the Club Open Division.

*In cases where a national qualifier does not have enough collegiate teams to occur, other teams may be allowed to attend that national qualifier in addition to their assigned qualifier. If a college team that has already received a bid to US Quadball Cup 2025 is attending another qualifier, and that team places high enough to earn a bid, the additional bid they would have earned becomes an at-large bid. It does not go to the next highest-placing team at that event.

^ Club teams will only be able to fulfill this requirement by competing against other club teams. College teams may use games against club teams to count for these requirements. Cross-division games (college vs. club) will not count for the USQ Standings.