'''Tournament''' [[SCRABBLE]]® Scrabble play in Canada and the United
States is administered by [[NASPA]] and its [[Tournament Committee]].
If you have questions about tournaments that are not answered here,
At a tournament, NASPA [[members]] get together to play several rounds
of SCRABBLE Scrabble according to tournament [[rules]] under the supervision of
a tournament [[director]]. The player who wins the most games usually
wins a prize, and the results of the event are submitted to NASPA to
what to do.
A director may refuse entry to a player for "misconduct by a player that is not specifically defined in other sections of this code, but is clearly abusive, negative, or detrimental to the success of the club, tournament, NASPA, or organized SCRABBLE Scrabble in general." (See Classification 1.g. of the [http://www.scrabbleplayers.org/w/Code_of_Conduct#g._Unsportsmanlike_Conduct Code of Conduct]). If a player is refused entry, the player may appeal that decision by the director, as detailed in the [http://www.scrabbleplayers.org/w/Code_of_Conduct#Right_to_Appeal_of_On-site_Director_Sanctions Code of Conduct].
If you have [[special needs]], our tournament directors will do their
# Any rights of first refusal must be exercised more than 12 months prior to the first date of the tournament, after which time all tournament sanctioning shall be on a first come-first served basis.
# Certain tournaments will be accorded special status, as determined from time to time by the NASPA Executive Committee, and may be scheduled without reference to this policy (currently including: NASC; CNSC; Can-Am; WSC Qualifier).
# The TC may remove a director’s first right of refusal if, in the judgment of the committee, such removal is in the best interests of tournament SCRABBLEScrabble, considering all relevant factors.
# The TC may grant other exceptions to this policy in exceptional circumstances.
|colspan=3|'''Scope''': Effective September 23, 2019, the geographic restrictions apply to all tournament types, including Local Club Tournaments.
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|colspan=3|'''Exceptions''':<ul><li>If the organizers of conflicting tournaments mutually agree, NASPA will sanction both.</li><li>The [[Executive Committee]] has determined that the [[Can-Am SCRABBLE Challenge |Can-Am Scrabble Challenge]] does not conflict with other events, due to its structure. Therefore, Can-Am can be scheduled at the convenience of the organizers, without regard to proximity to other events.</li><li>Two events that do not share a [[ratings|rating system]] (e.g., an all-[[TWL]] event and an all-[[CSW]] event) are deemed not to conflict with each other.</li></ul>
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| Frequency restrictions
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| Examples
| [[Championships|North American SCRABBLE NASPA Championship]], most tournaments
| Portland-Seattle Interclub Challenge, Texas State Championship, Can-Am, Kingston Cup
| One-day tournament that is created on short notice
* The number of 25-minute per side rounds at the main event tournament must exceed the number of shorter clock rounds (at all early birds, late birds, night birds, etc.) by at least one.
== Youth SCRABBLE Scrabble Tournaments ==
The [[NASPA Youth SCRABBLE |NASPA Youth Scrabble]] Program is open to all U.S. and Canadian residents who are 18 years of age or younger as of the beginning of the calendar year and have not yet graduated from high school. This program features a separate rating and achievement points ranking system specifically for these youths, with annual recognition of the most enthusiastic and skilled players.
Competition may take place solo or in two-player teams, using the [[SSWL]], [[OTCWL]], or [[CSW]] lexicons.
Directors can list upcoming Youth SCRABBLE Scrabble tournaments via the [[Tournament Listing Request]] form.
== Unrated Events and Newcomer Divisions ==
Many directors wish to have unrated SCRABBLE Scrabble tournaments and/or newcomer divisions that run concurrently with the main event. The following information is provided to help directors identify whether or not such an event is permitted under NASPA guidelines.
The [[Tournament Committee]] will not sanction events that include mirror images of the proposed NASPA-sanctioned event, save only for NASPA sanction. In general, unrated or newcomer events should be of significantly shorter duration than the main event with which they run concurrently. These events are accorded special consideration because they are designed to build interest in competitive play for newcomers, and grow our ranks. After-hours unrated events, tag-team events, etc. are generally fine.
Because of the large number of sanctioned directors, and the creativity with which they approach crafting events to meet the wishes of their constituencies, it is difficult to define every type of event and declare each as either prohibited or allowed. For that reason, directors who plan to offer unrated events are encouraged to contact [mailto:tournament@scrabbleplayers.org the Tournament Committee] with any questions about the suitability of a particular event.
Directors should always include details about all SCRABBLE Scrabble events (whether rated or unrated) to be run in conjunction with any event, when seeking sanction for the event.
== Fund-raisers ==
== Web coverage ==
Major events, such as [[Championships|national NASPA championships]], are webcast on this website,
and [{{SERVER}}/tourneys/ web coverage] is archived in perpetuity.
== Sponsorship policy ==
Tournament sponsorship is permitted with the prior approval of the [[Tournament Committee]]. In pursuing sponsors, please remember that we are licensed users of a registered trademark for a board game which is primarily marketed to families, and that sponsors should be appropriate for that demographic.