Championship Sites Announced

[Deana_King]

NCHSAA Announces Fall 2026 Championship Sites
CHAPEL HILL – The North Carolina High School Athletic Association is excited to announce the locations and dates for the 2026 fall sports championships.

The 2026 championship schedule features new venues as well as the inaugural NCHSAA Flag Football Championships. The first Flag Football Championships, set for November 14, will be held at Helen & Leonard Moretz Stadium on the campus of Lenoir-Rhyne University.

“We are excited about the opportunities these venues and our university partners will provide for our student-athletes and their communities to celebrate the culmination of their seasons,” said NCHSAA Commissioner Brad Alford. “Our championships are about creating memorable experiences for everyone involved, and we are grateful to each of our host sites for their partnership in making those experiences possible.”

Burlington Tennis Center will once again host the NCHSAA Women’s Tennis Dual Team Championships as well as the 3A and 4A Individual State Tournaments. The 1A and 2A Individual Tournaments will be held at Cary Tennis Center, the 5A and 6A tournaments at North Main Athletic Complex in Holly Springs, and the 7A and 8A tournaments at Millbrook Exchange in Raleigh.

The Women’s Golf Championships will be contested at five different courses again this year. The 1A/2A Championship will be played at Gates Four Golf and Country Club in Fayetteville for the second consecutive year. The 3A and 4A Championships will return to Longleaf Golf and Family Club in Southern Pines, while Sapona Golf Club in Lexington will host the 5A and 6A Championships. The 7A Championship will be held at Seven Lakes Golf Club in West End.

The 8A Championship will be played at Pinehurst No. 1. This will mark the sixth time that Pinehurst No. 1 has hosted an NCHSAA women’s golf championship.

The Volleyball Championships will be held at a new venue this year as Gilbert Craig Gore Arena at Campbell University will host both days of the championships. Four championship matches will be held on October 30, with four more on October 31.

The following weekend, on November 6-7, the Cross Country Championships return to the Ivey Redmon Sports Complex in Kernersville. This will mark the 14th consecutive NCHSAA Cross Country Championship at Ivey Redmon and the 17th time the championships have been held in Kernersville.

The Men’s Soccer Championships will be contested at Durham County Memorial Stadium for the first time this year. The championships were held in Guilford County at MacPherson Stadium in 2022 and 2023 and at Guilford College in 2025. In 2024, they were held at the Mecklenburg County Sportsplex in Matthews.

The Cheerleading Invitational Championship returns to Cabarrus Arena, where it was held last year for the first time.

The NCHSAA Football Championships will be held Dec. 10-12 at Kenan Stadium on the campus of the University of North Carolina, Helen & Leonard Moretz Stadium on the campus of Lenoir-Rhyne University and Barker-Lane Stadium on the campus of Campbell University.

Kenan Stadium will host four championship games, bringing its all-time total to 92 NCHSAA Football Championship Games dating back to 1929. Moretz Stadium will host two championship games for the second consecutive year, while Barker-Lane Stadium will make its debut as an NCHSAA Football Championship venue with two games. Classification assignments and game times for each site will be announced at a later date.

Women’s Tennis: Individual Tournaments – Oct. 23-24
1A & 2A: Cary Tennis Center
3A & 4A: Burlington Tennis Center
5A & 6A: North Main Athletic Complex, Holly Springs
7A & 8A: Millbrook Exchange, Raleigh

Women’s Tennis: Dual Team Championships – Oct. 30-31
Burlington Tennis Center
Oct. 30: 1A & 3A at 9:00 a.m.
2A & 4A at Noon
Oct. 31: 5A & 7A at 9:00 a.m.
6A & 8A at Noon

Women’s Golf: Oct. 26-27
1A/2A: Gates Four Golf and Country Club, Fayetteville
3A & 4A: Longleaf Golf and Family Club, Southern Pines
5A & 6A: Sapona Golf Club, Lexington
7A: Seven Lakes Golf Club, West End
8A: Pinehurst No. 1, Pinehurst

Volleyball: Oct. 30-31
Gilbert Craig Gore Arena (Campbell University)

Cross Country: Nov. 6-7
Ivey Redmon Sports Complex, Kernersville

Flag Football: Nov. 14
Helen & Leonard Moretz Stadium (Lenoir-Rhyne University)

Men’s Soccer: Nov. 19-21
Durham County Memorial Stadium

Cheerleading Invitational: Dec. 5
Cabarrus Arena

Football: Dec. 10-12
Kenan Stadium (University of North Carolina)
Barker-Lane Stadium (Campbell University)
Helen & Leonard Moretz Stadium (Lenoir-Rhyne University)

 

[Otis1144]

I’d love to know why State has quit hosting football Championships. There’s more to this cause last year was a “ scheduling conflict”. When the games were at Duke, Carolina, and State you could catch multiple games. Jeez you gotta almost go to Tennessee now.

 

[19yardline]

Campbell is an excellent choice to host a state championship game; would also add Elon as a potential site that's a first-class college facility in a more intimate setting than a 50K college stadium.

 

[whitleyre]

Did not realize Hickory was so far west. I believe last year worked out pretty good for all teams involved.

 

[Mr.Blue&Gray]

I watched both 4A and 2A State Championships at Lenior Rhyne. I thought Lenior Rhyne did really good hosting State Championships.

 

[Otis1144]

I watched both 4A and 2A State Championships at Lenior Rhyne. I thought Lenior Rhyne did really good hosting State Championships.

How far a drive is it for you to hickory? How far is it to triangle area? LR is a 5 hour drive. I went last year to watch Reidsville. And that’s the only game the time allowed to watch.

 

[beamer24]

I watched both 4A and 2A State Championships at Lenior Rhyne. I thought Lenior Rhyne did really good hosting State Championships.

Make 2 entrances and open 2 concessions and its perfect.

 

[Vik-Val 86]

Make 2 entrances and open 2 concessions and its perfect.

Hopefully they will take this into consideration. Maybe they learned some things from last year.

 

[Freshmanposter01]

How far a drive is it for you to hickory? How far is it to triangle area? LR is a 5 hour drive. I went last year to watch Reidsville. And that’s the only game the time allowed to watch.

For some parts of the western nc, the triangle is almost 5.5- 6 hours.

 

[Mr.Blue&Gray]

How far a drive is it for you to hickory? How far is it to triangle area? LR is a 5 hour drive. I went last year to watch Reidsville. And that’s the only game the time allowed to watch.

I live 30 minutes away from Hickory. Not because of the distance. I thought LR did a great job of hosting State Championships. Other than that. I thought NC State and Wake Forest did a great job.

 

[Otis1144]

For some parts of the western nc, the triangle is almost 5.5- 6 hours.

Well I’m close to 1-1/2 from the coast. I just think anything west of Winston Salem is a bit too far. We played West Rowan at Wake Forrest years ago. Other than getting our butts handed to us by Kevin Parks I thought it was a great place for the game. Still difficult to make it somewhere else to catch another game. I’d go to all of them if it was made possible. They lose money in the end. How much would be anyone’s guess.

 

[Tarboroviking18]

I live 30 minutes away from Hickory. Not because of the distance. I thought LR did a great job of hosting State Championships. Other than that. I thought NC State and Wake Forest did a great job.

I enjoyed LR last year. I've been to many championship games and that was the best atmosphere I've experienced at one. The drive was long but I enjoyed it. I personally liked Winston Salem though. Hot take, I'd rather have them over Carolina