Breaking down the state of tickets to Nationals as we approach the end of the regular season!
September 4, 2026 by TJ Lee and Nate Knowles in Coverage, Preview
Ultiworld’s coverage of the 2026 club season is presented by Spin Ultimate; all opinions are those of the author(s). Find out how Spin can get you, and your team, looking your best this season.
As the regular season comes to a close, it is time to look at where teams sit in regards to earning strength bids. While some teams sit safely in the bid earning range, there are plenty who will be anxiously updating Projected Rankings on the daily as the Pro Championships play out this Labor Day weekend.
To recap how bids are earned: all eight regions earn one auto bid, given to the highest ranked team in the region. After that, the top eight teams that do not have auto bids secure strength bids.
Women’s Division
Great Lakes
Current Bid Projection: Toronto 6ixers
In the Hunt: Chicago Nemesis
Darkhorses: N/A
Bid Range: 1-2
Chicago Nemesis will be refreshing Projected Rankings throughout this weekend, as 6ixers look more like semifinal contenders than a team worried about surviving Regionals. Sitting 42 points back of the last bid-earning team, Nemesis are close enough that anything could happen, so all hope is not lost for them. With the next-highest ranked GL team, Indy Rogue, being below 1000 rating points, the odds of anyone testing Nemesis is even lower than Nemesis challenging 6ixers.
Mid-Atlantic
Current Bid Projection: Washington DC Scandal, Philadelphia Flight
In the Hunt: Pittsburgh Parcha
Darkhorses: Washington DC Agency, Washington DC Grit
Bid Range: 2-3
Unlike many regions, The Mid-Atlantic still has the chance to earn another bid from teams in the field, rather than waiting to see someone else fall. Parcha, Agency, and Grit will all be in attendance at Pro Champs with a clear window to punching up.
Parcha, less than half a point behind last bid-earner Traffic, will not have to step up too much compared to other teams, but having to play Grit in pool place will force them to be on their A-game. One score too many from them or anyone else at Pro Champs could be all that stands between a third bid in the region and having to knock off a top ten team if they want to advance.
North Central
Current Bid Projection: Minneapolis Pop
In the Hunt: Madison Heist
Darkhorses: St. Louis Stellar, Kansas City Wicked
Bid Range: 1
With Heist needing a lot of help to get in–over 200 points of help–all eyes turn to Regionals for a duel between them and autobid earner Pop. Over 300 points clear of Heist, Pop have a decent gap in rating, so the odds of Stellar or Wicked playing up to Heist is a little more realistic than Heist stealing the bid. But compared to other regions, the North Central is one of the easier places to pull off the upset.
Northeast
Current Bid Projection: Boston Brute Squad, New York BENT, Quebec Iris
In the Hunt: N/A
Darkhorses: Northampton Starling
Bid Range: 3
With Starling done for the regular season, the odds of them jumping Parcha into bid-earning range through second-order effects alone is very unlikely. Regular season performances from Brute Squad, BENT, and Iris also suggest that an upset at Regionals is unlikely, but with the chaos that some Regionals formats can provide it is not impossible.
The battle for fourth place will be more interesting, with Stella, Siege, and Pizza Rat duking it out to make a game-to-go. But it seems that the race to earn better TCT rankings for the 2027 season is where most of the drama will occur this year at Regionals, unless Brute Squad show up flat footed and either BENT or Iris can capitalize.
Northwest
Current Bid Projection: Seattle Riot, Portland Schwa, Vancouver Traffic
In the Hunt: N/A
Darkhorses: Utah Dark Sky
Bid Range: 2-3
More focused on making semifinals than Nationals, Riot have put together a strong season and currently sit ranked fifth-best in the nation. The real drama in this region takes place a little bit lower down the pecking order.
Holding onto the last strength bid by less than one point, Vancouver Traffic will be rooting hard for anyone who has to play Pittsburgh Parcha at Pro Champs. Traffic won’t be out of the picture if they can’t hold onto their bid–a two point loss to Schwa back at PEC West puts them very much in a potential game-to-go. But holding seed at Regionals is always easier than breaking seed, so expect players, coaches, and fans alike to all be furiously reloading the projected rankings page this weekend.
Schwa’s 160-point cushion should see them hold on to their bid, as it would take some weird results to get them out of the cutoff. With the focus on Regionals, Schwa can take this time to dial in more of the championship contention they used to hold.
South Central
Current Bid Projection: Denver Molly Brown, Dallas Dimes
In the Hunt: Colorado Kelp
Darkhorses: Austin Vengeance
Bid Range: 1-2
Playing the refresh game, Dallas Dimes have almost 100 points over just-in Traffic and just-out Parcha. But with both teams at Pro Champs, the window is still open for either to take away the SC’s second bid. The good news: Colorado Kelp are close to bid-earning range too, so while backdoor effects could take the bid away from Dimes, there’s still a chance for the South Central to walk away with two bids.
Molly Brown have made it abundantly clear that they are not at risk of losing their autobid, but a second bid can make the race for second one for the ages, with even Austin Vengeance entering the picture.
Southeast
Current Bid Projection: Raleigh Phoenix
In the Hunt: N/A
Darkhorses: Atlanta Ozone
Bid Range: 1
While normally being so close to the cutoff is cause for concern at Regionals, the lack of a real contender allows Phoenix to not stress too much. Ozone, Magma, and America’s team Dolly For President should provide some healthy competition amongst each other for second, but Phoenix should be able to comfortably take the region.
Southwest
Current Bid Projection: San Francisco Fury, San Francisco Nightlock, San Diego Flipside
In the Hunt: N/A
Darkhorses: Oakland LOL
Bid Range: 3
With three teams in the top ten, the odds of any one of Fury, Nightlock, or Flipside losing their bid is unlikely. LOL played well this season, particularly at Select Flight Invite, but a tougher outing at Elite-Select Challenge with losses to Parcha and Flight will leave them on the outside looking in. The good news for LOL: with the next highest-ranked teams being Wildfire and FAB, the odds of anyone challenging LOL for a spot in the game-to-go is unlikely.
Men’s Division
Great Lakes
Current Bid Projection: Chicago Machine, Toronto GOAT
In the Hunt: Chicago Haymaker
Darkhorses: N/A
Bid Range: 2-3
With Daan De Maree still in contention for best active player in all of ultimate, Chicago Machine are more focused on trying to earn the top seed at Nationals rather than securing a bid. Toronto GOAT also sit more focused on seeding than securing the bid, so the question becomes whether or not Chicago Haymaker can find a way to get in. They’re close enough to the cutoff–about 40 points back of Doublewide–that the right results elsewhere can get it done, but otherwise they will have to prepare to pull off an upset in a few weeks.
Mid-Atlantic
Current Bid Projection: Philadelphia Pacmen, Washington DC Truck Stop
In the Hunt: N/A
Darkhorses: Virginia Vault, Arlington Oak Grove Boys, Pittsburgh Temper
Bid Range: 2
While both Pacmen and Truck Stop are competing at Pro Champs and thus, have the chance to play all the way out of their bids, odds are likely both teams are in. Vault, Oak Grove Boys, and Temper would have preferred if any one of them secured a third bid, but instead they will have to prepare for a two bid regionals with only one backdoor bracket unless Vault can pull off an astronomical performance at Pro Champs1.
North Central
Current Bid Projection: Minneapolis Sub Zero
In the Hunt: Madison Mad Men
Darkhorses: St. Louis Lounar, Kansas City Smokestack, Mallard
Bid Range: 1
One of the biggest breakout teams this year, People’s Division team Minneapolis Sub Zero have put together an impressive season featuring a strong US Open performance. With only losses to top 10 teams like Revolver, DiG, and Machine, and you have a team ready to hold onto their bid entering the Series. But it’s not all sunshine and flowers in Minnesota2, as Will Brandt is almost guaranteed to be out for the season after an injury during Championship Weekend in the UFA, and Nate De Morgan’s status is also unclear after his own injury sidelined him in the championship game.
Mad Men put up a strong year as well, but failed to thoroughly put away some lower-ranked opponents, leaving them over 100 points behind the last strength bid spot. A three goal loss to Sub Zero at Elite-Select Challenge suggests they may have enough in the tank to make a run at Regionals, which is realistically the only way they will qualify for Nationals this year. With Sub Zero limping into the postseason, the opening for Mad Men and company may be enough to make it happen.
Northeast
Current Bid Projection: Boston DiG, New York PoNY, Montreal Mephisto
In the Hunt: Portland Red Tide, New York Blueprint
Darkhorses: Amherst Sprout
Bid Range: 2-4
With DiG sitting third overall in the nation and with PoNY fourth, the region’s first strength bid is more than secured. The real drama takes place at the bottom of the rankings, where Montreal Mephisto has the second-to-last strength bid, and sits just one point ahead of last-in Doublewide, which should make for a harrowing Pro Champs.
Portland Red Tide are the first team out, but are more than close enough for secondhand effects to push them back into bid-earning range should Doublewide stumble. Further down out of the bid-race picture are New York Blueprint and Amherst Sprout, who will gladly fight for that third or fourth bid, but will need to punch up at Regionals if they want to advance.
Northwest
Current Bid Projection: Portland Rhino Slam!, Seattle Sockeye, Vancouver Furious George
In the Hunt: Eugene Dark Star
Darkhorses: Seattle SOUF
Bid Range: 2-3
It has been a weird year for Portland Rhino Slam! They put together a strong PEC West performance despite lacking many of their stars, and followed it with a very respectable US Open run despite having even more absences. They comfortably sit in bid-earning range, and the universe point thriller against Seattle Sockeye pushes the fish into a pretty safe postseason situation as well.
At 14th in the rankings, Vancouver Furious George are not in the safest position, but have 100+ points on teams in the hunt, and wins over Doublewide and Mephisto could help keep them above the pack. But after stealing a bid in 2023, Eugene Dark Star will have to do so again thanks to some middling results, like only beating Trident on universe, or failing to beat weaker regional talent by enough.3 Still, making the first place semifinal is all you need to be one Early Sunday hotstreak away from qualifying in the Northwest.
South Central
Current Bid Projection: Denver Johnny Bravo, Austin Doublewide
In the Hunt: N/A
Darkhorses: Denver Fungi
Bid Range: 1-2
After entering Elite-Select Challenge with the auto bid, Doublewide fell to holding onto the last strength bid. With a hungry Portland Red Tide only 11 points behind, this bid is by no means safe. Johnny Bravo are not in a much stronger position, only 127 points ahead of their Texas rival. Neither team is in a particularly comfortable position ranking wise and rely on each other to help boost their rating, so expect Doublewide to go all out at Pro Champs.
With Kyle Henke’s move from Doublewide to H.I.P, the window for even more drama at Regionals only increases. Rarely is one player enough to carry a team like this in the club division, but it’s very much enough for some chaos at Regionals. At the very least, it will not be a walk in the park for next-highest ranked Fungi to make the game-to-go, expect some tough competition from fellow darkhorses in Alamode and ISO Atmo.
Southeast
Current Bid Projection: Raleigh Ring of Fire, Atlanta Chain Lightning
In the Hunt: Raleigh-Durham United
Darkhorses: Florida Untied, Charlotte baNC
Bid Range: 2-3
Sitting at eighth and ninth in the nation, Raleigh Ring of Fire and Atlanta Chain Lightning are both in pretty comfortable positions looking towards Pro Champs. Raleigh-Durham United sit on the outside looking in and need multiple Pro Champs teams to underperform if they want in. RDU will need to either get lucky or pull off the upset at Regionals, but with how close the top two are to each other, the chance of Ring and Chain pushing each other to the limit in the first place final and being deflated for the game-to-go is possible.
Southwest
Current Bid Projection: San Francisco Revolver
In the Hunt: SoCal Condors
Darkhorses: Phoenix Nighthawk, Santa Cruz Wavestorms
Bid Range: 1
With Condors looking out of bid range at 22nd, the Southwest is set up to be a battle for second place. Nighthawk should be able to give SoCal a run for a spot in the final, but with Revolver as a clear title contender, the season will end for all others at regionals. As the question has become whether anyone in the nation can stop Revolver, don’t expect them to get tested before Nationals.
Mixed Division
Great Lakes
Current Bid Projection: Ann Arbor Hybrid, Toronto Union
In the Hunt: N/A
Darkhorses: Indianapolis Spectre
Bid Range: 2
With Hybrid and Union in a safe position to hold onto their bids, the question comes down to if they can get a third. And the answer is a pretty solid no. Some tough losses plus too tight of wins leave Spectre gearing for a tough Regionals run. Hybrid look more like a title contender than an early exit, and after losing to Hybrid in a one-bid region last year, Union are unlikely to squander this opportunity. This may prove the toughest region to steal a bid, with Hybrid being such a clear tier above the rest, and a WUCC-tested Union only slated to have trouble against the defending National champions.
Mid-Atlantic
Current Bid Projection: Washington DC Rally, Philadelphia AMP
In the Hunt: Pittsburgh Port Authority
Darkhorses: Richmond Revival, Charlottesville Spice
Bid Range: 2-3
Another region with the bid earners inside the top ten leaves very little room for an upset to occur. After a surprise run to the Elite-Select Challenge semifinal, Pittsburgh Port Authority are close enough that secondhand effects could earn them a bid, but the odds are more likely that they have to get creative at Regionals. Richmond Revival and Spice will both be contenders to make the game-to-go, but like Port Authority, are mostly fighting for consolation rather than a bid.
North Central
Current Bid Projection: Minneapolis Drag’n Thrust
In the Hunt: St. Louis Good Company
Darkhorses: Minnesota Star Power
Bid Range: 1
While Drag’n Thrust have struggled to prove they will be major contenders at Nationals, the lack of challengers for the region gives them time to focus on what to do in San Diego rather than making it there. Good Company are the sole exception to this and could give them a run at Regionals, but otherwise teams like Star Power and Minneapolis Bird will be more focused on taking the bronze medal.
Northeast
Current Bid Projection: New York XIST, Boston Slow, Boston Sprocket
In the Hunt: Montreal Odyssée
Darkhorses: Burlington Big Rig, Boston Wild Card
Bid Range: 2-3
With XIST and Slow clearly in the bid range, all eyes turn to Sprocket. Holding onto the last bid by just five points, Sprocket can lock their strength bid in or lose it this weekend at Pro Champs. While they do not have the same pressure that other teams have to exceed expectations, the strain of having to hold form all weekend may prove too much.
Twenty-six points outside the cutoff are WUCC quarterfinalists Odyssee, who are close enough that the right performances from other teams could see them in. Regardless, as Big Rig and Wild Card are both ready to prove themselves difficult teams to eliminate, expect the drama for third-fifth in the Northeast to be as exciting as ever.
Northwest
Current Bid Projection: Seattle BFG
In the Hunt: Salt Lake Sego
Darkhorses: Oregon Scorch, Seattle Mixtape
Bid Range: 1-2
At the beginning of the season, I predicted that the Northwest was going to lock in after failing to earn a single strength bid in 2025. I stand corrected, as now the season comes down to backdoor effects–of a Sprocket disaster–pushing Sego the six points they need into bid-earning range.
Adding to the chaos, Scorch, who sit 22nd in the nation, are not even the third-best team in the region algorithmically; that award goes to the BC Royals, who will not play 10 games this regular season but are playing the Series. Mixtape sit even further behind, so get ready for what will be an intense showdown for either one or two bids this Regionals.
BFG have done their part, with a strong regular season that sees them once again one of the top teams in the nation. But at this rate, the odds are favoring another callahan on universe than a second bid to the Northwest.
South Central
Current Bid Projection: Austin Disco Club, Fort Collins shame.
In the Hunt: N/A
Darkhorses: Denver Mile High Trash
Bid Range: 2-3
Austin Disco Club and Fort Collins shame. both are set to hold onto their bids, so upstarts Trash will have to work some Regionals magic to make their second-consecutive Nationals. The good news is that the next-strongest team, Moontower, has not shown they have what it takes to punch up to their level, allowing Denver to focus on the game-to-go more than getting there.
With Disco Club and shame. sitting at fifth and seventh in the nation, the more likely upset is for shame. to take the Region, which could lead to some fun pools at Nationals. Regardless, both should safely move on to the next round unless Denver can turn some trash into treasure.
Southeast
Current Bid Projection: Durham Toro
In the Hunt: N/A
Darkhorses: Atlanta Roma Ultima
Bid Range: 1
With second in the region Roma Ultima fighting to finish the season inside the top 25, 13th-overall Toro have pretty strong odds to cruise through Regionals. ‘Shine, Bar None, Murmur, Space Force, Brunch Club, and even Asheville Parliament provide plenty of contenders for second. But it would take an incredible performance for any one of these teams to complete the run and knock off Toro.
Southwest
Current Bid Projection: Sacramento Tower, San Francisco Polar Bears, San Diego Burrito, Los Angeles Lotus
In the Hunt: Bay Area Mischief
Darkhorses: Sunnyvale BW Ultimate, South Bay LIT Ultimate
Bid Range: 3-5
For one beautiful Saturday after the first half of Fruit Bowl, five bids were awarded to the Southwest. But whether you want to say they allowed MOONDOG and Spoke to score too many in their losing efforts, or that Polar Bears beat them by too much, Mischief will have to hope for some mishaps from the Pro Champs teams to regain the bid they let slip away.4
If it’s any consolation, Lawless will probably steal someone’s bid anyway, so do not be surprised if multiple Californian powerhouses miss Nationals.
Without assistance from top teams, they need to win Pro Champs and beat everyone by at least two ↩
Is there that much sunshine in Minnesota to begin with? I’ve only driven through the state once, but didn’t see a lot ↩
If you want culprits, Projected Rankings calls out Junco, Swordfish, Switchback, and TremOR for having the biggest effects ↩
Pretty much one goal from Mischief in any of these Fruit Bowl games would have saved the bid ↩
